We’re happy to let you know that you we’ve added one of the most requested features, namely support for network folders (this feature is still in public testing; let us know if you encounter any difficulties).
For this to work properly, on client PCs, you must enable remote paths using the following registry key:
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\Explorer]
“EnableShellShortcutIconRemotePath”=dword:00000001
You can also right click and ‘save’ this registry file and double click it to import it into the registry. The ‘reg’ file is safe to import. You must restart Windows Explorer after making this change.
Windows doesn’t always reflect changes made to network folder icons right away. Remember to restart Windows Explorer on the client PC to be sure.
Notes
- For now, we will officially be supporting only Windows shares (this does not mean the feature won’t work for folders shared using other operating systems – this will depend entirely on that operating system).
Note: Your custom folder icons will likely also not show up when browsing a shared Windows folder from other operating systems such as macOS or Linux as these operating systems don’t typically interpret desktop.ini files created by Windows. - For your customized icon to be visible to other network users, if you’re on the computer hosting the folder, make sure you’re working with the shared network folder e.g. \\yourpc\thefolder or q:\thefolder as opposed to the local folder (i.e. c:\…\thefolder).
- You cannot apply custom icons to the shared folder itself. (these are the ‘folders’ that show up under Network when you browse a PC by its hostname/IP address). Note how Windows Explorer treats a shared folder differently:
Network>192.168.1.29
It works perfectly for any folder contained within the shared folder:
Network>192.168.1.29\New folder
This is not a bug in our app but by design because of how Windows interprets a shared folder more as a “network share” than a “folder”. - If you don’t see your customized icon, make sure you enable remote paths as per the above registry key. If all else fails, restart Windows Explorer.
This feature should work as expected for most users. It may not work under all circumstances and for every user for a number of reasons (if this feature doesn’t work, feel free to check in with our team to try and help you figure out why). This feature assumes you know how to share a folder, how to access a shared folder, that the shared folder has sufficient permissions, and that there are no policies or restrictions in place on the client PC, host PC or network.
If your organization blocks unauthenticated guest access, see this article.