Update: This is not a secure hack. It is designed to hide your files from some one who is browsing through files, not your system admin, not your computer hacker friends. Think of it like hiding your money under the mattress, if some one really wants to find it they will, but if they are not looking for it they wont find it. It’s a fun trick and it works best on your desktop (just remember where you placed it)
You ever have a folder on your computer that you really dont want any one to find? You can make this folder hidden but then you have to un-hide all the folders when ever you want to find it. So how can you make a folder truly invisible? Follow these simple steps and your unmentionables will stay that way.
1. Right click where ever you want the invisible folder to be and select create a new folder.
2. Right Click on the folder and hit rename. Erase the name of the folder so there is nothing there.
3. If you try to stop here windows will tell you that you need to provide a name. So to get around this… with the name field still active hold down ALT and press 0160 on the number pad (make sure Num Lock is on), release alt
You should now have a blank name with nothing but a folder next to it
4. Now click on the nameless folder and right click. Select Properties.
5. Go to the Customize tab.
6. Find and press the Change Icon button. Scroll through the icons until you find one that has no image.
4. Hit OK and you have an invisible folder!
With the invisible folder you can hide what ever undesirables you have. Be it video games at work, pictures of your family or anything else you can think of “wink”.
The folder will show up for a brief second if you put it on your desktop. For that reason it might be smart to place it inside a folder or amongst a group of folders.
Happy Hiding!
It’s also vulnerable to searches. Unless you zip everything up and then rename the zip file. And it might be easier to do just that without bothering to put your renamed zip file in a “secret” folder.
Still, neat trick.
Sorry, but this does not work in Vista
and I was so excited!
Neat trick. Hidden folders never work for me because I always have them displayed since I frequently visit hidden system folders. I’d have never thought of picking a blank icon and a blank name.
Ur dumb n00bz…neener neener neener!
Does not work to well though if you are like me and keep your folders in detail view. You end up with a blank space at the top of your list that says file folder next to it. Hummm…..
its not invisible… there are too many clues that point to the existence of the directory. I wont risk having private things in that directory. thats why you have encryption tools and hiding applications.
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Wow, another useless tip for a useless OS
1 Have different accounts for every person using your machine.
2. Never give away your password.
3. Never let your desktop unlocked when you are away.
4. Never need a socalled hidden folder.
Anyway, nice trick
you guys are all nubs, the file just doesnt have an icon, theres nothing hidden about it. if you really want a “secure” folder use the administrator in safemode to make a password protected hidden folder. sincerely the super nub.
This is nothing new. Old trick was to use ALT 255.
Hi Good one . But if u will look ATL+0160 is giving ascii value of space. so its not showing. also its searchable . jus type in search criteria ALT+0160 u will able to find that folder.
Thanks
For those of you who still haven’t figured out how to delete the folder, go here ;
http://www.howtogeek.com/howto/windows-vista/hide-desktop-icon-text-on-windows-vista/
( Read the last part of the article and replace 255 with 0160 when you’re in cmd, obviously.)
How to Create an "Invisible" Folder for Your, um, "Private" Files…
[...]You ever have a folder on your computer that you really dont want any one to find? You can make this folder hidden but then you have to un-hide all the folders when ever you want to find it. So how can you make a folder truly invisible? Follow the…
Make your computer folders invisible and never get caught again…
[...][...]…
nice to know about hinding files tell more about computer techniques
That is not really making it invisible. It still shows up as a record under “detailed” view. You may want to change it as hidden folder, and add more feature to it… to truly make it invisible. Alternatively, choose a location which is inconspicuous.
[...] Make your computer folders invisible and never get caught again [...]
i think i know the perfect idea to make it completely hidden:
make it invisible (like the blog says)
put it into winrar with a pass
put it into the most unsuspicious place like system32/cache. whateva
and there all the ideas come true
[...] To: Create an Invisible (not Hidden) Folder [iambetterthanu.com] (No Ratings Yet) Loading [...]
my computer won’t do it. when I hit rename and then press 0160, it doesn’t work. while holding down ALT and then 0160 and releasing ALT. it don’t work. is there a way to get around it.
[...] a Jeff Dempsey, redactor del portal “I Am Better Than You“, hemos conocido un excepcional truco para convertir nuestras carpetas en invisibles; una [...]
[...] Create an Invisible Folder [...]
just disable search use attrib +s +h alt 2+5+5 and put it in your office program files thing as office cache
Response to gern:
Who would be looking for those kinds of things? Girlfriends. Duh!
Very cute trick…to bad I don’t have anything to hide. All my shits on dvd and in the house
Melly you are smart person, Nothing on my site is designed to stop your IT professional, or wreak havoc on the masses. Good fun ideas…. Harass the masses because they dont know how to copy and paste
I think this sight is really rubbish because it didn’t tell me the information i needed!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I am never going on the sight again it is soooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo silly im going to report it
Molly are you reporting me to the ” I don’t like it Bureau”
[...] while some tricks require complex manipulation and heavy tweaking to your registry. Jeff from I am Better Than You has come up with a sweet and simple little trick that can help you make an invisible folder so you [...]
Boooooooo…
It does not work on WinXP SP2….
I have a mbpro, will this work on there too?
[...] sencillo que he leÃdo últimamente para ocultar carpetas en Windows XP, publicado originalmente en iambetterthanu. De donde extraemos las imágenes. Los pasos son [...]
wouldn’t it be be better and easier to just get a software that makes it ‘invisible’ for you with a password? This idea would be complicated to a novice, as the latter would be quicker and easier.
What happens if you screw up and can’t retieve that ‘invisible’ folder?
If you’re going to go through trouble, why don’t you just create an extra partition? Just format it as ntfs, then you can unmount it and leave the data intact. Doesn’t show up if hidden folders are viewed, can’t find anything in it with a normal search…
I do have to admint, though, I’ve never thought about hiding a folder like that. A better trick- create a folder with a ‘creative’ name on someone desktop, take a screenshot, and delete the folder again. Open paint, save screenshot, set as wallpaper. Some people will never be able to get rid of that ‘gay porn’ folder that they can’t delete from their desktop, yet everyone can see.
How to erase a uneraseable folder?
Do this with “WinRaR program” and so real easy. (http://www.rarsoft.com – freeware)
1- Put all of the files into a folder to save it, like mentioned in the tweak above.
2- In the program, check the option
“Delete files after archiving”
and click OK.
3- Now Right click in the folder “unnamed” and click
in the option “add to archive” to open WinRaR
program.
4- Winrar will delete the .RaR file without name for you instantly
.
how do i make invisible folders not invisible anymore
OPEN WINRAR THEN DIRECT THE MENU TO THE FOLDER EX: U PUT THE INVI FOLDER ON DESKTOP THEN U SHOULD SEE IT ON WINRAR THEN RENAME IT TO NUMBER 1 THEN PRESS ENTER THEN CLOSE WINRAR THEN PRESS SHIFT+DELETE . VIOLA! JUGUG!!! SUCCESS!!
GRACIAS…
anyone that thinks this doesn’t work in any version of windows are not computer literate. If you are using a keyboard you must type the numbers on the number pad, not the top row of a qwerty keyboard. if you are on a laptop you have to use the function key to enable number lock and use the keys that have the keypad numbers on them, normally ‘mjkluo’. i’m working on a windows vista laptop and it works. I wouldn’t use this technique even if my parents had the IQ of a blade of grass, nor would i let windows display my ‘hidden’ files/folders. there are programs out there like magic folders, that don’t show your folders even if you’re in dos. mind you then you have to hide the magic folders application, which oddly enough fits on a floppy disk with plenty of room, yeah remember floppies, those hard 3.5″ homework eating pieces of garbage.
I would like to see a continuation of the topic
that rocks
cwl thnz
Thanks oscarverywild! It worked!
watta lame tip how can someone hide files when there was a blank space and a description of file folder. Instead of making it unnoticeable its more noticeable for clicking why not use:
attrib -h -r -s “new folder”
and hide system files its better for sure and unsearchable u can easily go to the folder by typing it on the address bar. get the idea
Better is set ‘secret’ folder to some not-often-used directory – for example C:/Program Files/Common Microsoft Offfice bla bla bla Files/data/Instal/ServicePack Files/common/…/
Isn’t it safer?
Zeus, ya its really up to you how you use it. Its just a fun little trick, I dont suggest it for hiding legal documents.
Great tip.. You really need to be ahead of the pack nowdays.. Even the kids know about hidden files and so on… I bet they don’t know this one yet..LOL
apparently i’ve ended up in the sewer of the internet. sigh
are you actually real morons commenting, or just spambots stringing together words?
@mind
Is it the post you find stupid? or the people commenting
better try a password folder software….they are free and can make folders invisible also….realy invisible….
…likes little girls underwear and slaying cambodian villagers