Recover Windows 11 desktop.ini

Restores missing or broken desktop.ini files for Windows 11 user shell folders.

When desktop.ini files are deleted or corrupted, special folders lose their localized names and custom icons in Explorer. This tool restores them to the Windows 11 defaults.

Supported Folders

Desktop, Documents, Downloads, Music, Pictures, Videos, Favorites, Links, Contacts, Searches, Saved Games

Usage

Double-click Restore-DesktopIni.cmd or run the PowerShell script directly:

.\Restore-DesktopIni.ps1

Changes take effect after re-login or Explorer restart.

How It Works

1. Reads each folder's actual path from the registry (HKCU\...\User Shell Folders), so custom/relocated folders are handled correctly.
2. Copies the template desktop.ini from this project, converting from UTF-8 to UTF-16 LE with BOM (the encoding Windows requires).
3. Sets Hidden + System attributes on the file and ReadOnly on the folder, which signals Explorer to honor desktop.ini.

No administrator privileges required.

Requirements

• Windows 10/11
• PowerShell 5.1+

License

Unlicense - public domain