How to Remove “Earlier This Week” from Explorer Windows 11
If you’re using Windows 11 and find the “Earlier This Week” label in the File Explorer navigation pane to be unnecessary or distracting, you might be wondering how to remove it. This article will guide you through the steps to disable this feature and clean up your File Explorer interface.
Step 1: Open File Explorer Settings
The first step is to access the File Explorer settings where you can modify various options, including the “Earlier This Week” label. To do this, follow these steps:
1. Right-click on the Start button and select “File Explorer” from the menu.
2. Once File Explorer is open, click on the three dots in the upper-right corner to open the “File Explorer” menu.
3. Select “Settings” from the menu.
Step 2: Navigate to the Navigation Pane
After opening the settings, you’ll need to find the section related to the navigation pane. Here’s how to do it:
1. In the File Explorer settings window, click on “Navigation” from the left-hand menu.
2. Look for the “Show recently used files in the Quick Access section” option.
Step 3: Disable the “Earlier This Week” Label
Now that you’ve found the relevant setting, you can disable the “Earlier This Week” label:
1. Uncheck the “Show recently used files in the Quick Access section” option.
2. Click “Apply” and then “OK” to save the changes.
Step 4: Restart File Explorer
After making the changes, it’s a good idea to restart File Explorer to ensure that the changes take effect. You can do this by closing all File Explorer windows and opening them again, or by using the following command in the Command Prompt:
1. Press “Win + X” to open the Power User menu.
2. Select “Windows Terminal (Admin)” or “Command Prompt (Admin)” from the menu.
3. Type “taskkill /IM explorer.exe /F” and press Enter.
4. Close the Command Prompt and open File Explorer again.
Conclusion
By following these steps, you should now have successfully removed the “Earlier This Week” label from the File Explorer navigation pane in Windows 11. This can help you maintain a cleaner and more organized interface, making it easier to navigate your files and folders.
