How to add or remove Check Boxes to Select Multiple Files or Folders on Windows 10 File Explorer?

Whenever you copy and paste a specific file/folder to your desired location you just right-click on the folder and select the option that says “Copy”. Once you do that you go to the desired destination, and right-click on an empty space, and click on “Paste”. This is quite easy if you want to copy/move one particular file. However, if you want to move a bunch of files together, it can be quite a task. To pick several files and folders on a Windows 10 computer, hold down the Ctrl key and then click the numerous things to select them at once. We can select all the items in a folder by clicking on a single item and then pressing the Ctrl + A keyboard shortcut. However, if you are working on a Windows 10 computer and your Ctrl key is not working, or you want to use the checkboxes to pick multiple folders/files for some other reason, it is feasible with a tweak.

This function is disabled by default on Windows 10 computers. However, it is simple to enable with a few mouse clicks. When you enable the feature, checkboxes will appear when you hover the mouse pointer over a file. You can now easily and quickly select or un-check the desired items without having to hold down the Ctrl key. Check-boxes make selecting, copying, cutting, and deleting multiple files easier and faster.

In Windows 10 File Explorer, there are at least two ways to enable or disable check-boxes for selecting multiple files or directories. These are as follows:-

1. Through the File Explorer Options.
2. Using the Registry Editor.

How to add or remove Check Boxes to Select Multiple Files or Folders using Folder Options?

Step 1: First, Open File Explorer Options on your computer.

Click on the Start button and type folder options to access the Folder Options on your Windows 10 computer. To open it, click on File Explorer Options from the list of results.

Step 2: In the File Explorer Options window, select the View tab and scroll down to the Use check-boxes to select items option. Select this option. Now, press the Apply and OK buttons.

When you do the above instructions, a checkbox will display when you hover your mouse over any object in File Explorer. These check-boxes can be used to select or deselect any item.

In case you change your mind and want to remove the check-boxes from the File Explorer in the future, un-check the checkbox that says “Use check-boxes to select things”.

How to enable or disable Check Boxes to Select Multiple Files or Folders via Registry Editor?

Use the following steps to enable or disable check-boxes to select multiple files or folders using the Registry Editor:-

Step 1: First, Open Registry Editor on your system.

Step 2: In the Registry Editor’s left side window, navigate to the following key:-

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Advanced

Step 3: Find AutoCheckSelect on the right side of the Advanced key and double-click on it to edit its Value data.

Step 4: Set the Value data figure to 1.

Step 5: Click on OK.

After completing the above registry settings, a checkbox will display anytime you hover your mouse over any object in File Explorer. These check-boxes can be used to select or deselect any file or folder.

To disable this functionality, repeat the preceding steps and modify the Value data from 1 to 0 in step 3.

On Windows 7 and Windows 8, you can enable or disable the check-boxes for selecting multiple files or directories by repeating similar processes. This function is useful if you have a touchscreen laptop.

That is it.

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