To open or close the preview pane, press Alt + P.

You can also quickly switch between the Preview and Details panes using keyboard shortcuts. A keyboard shortcut to display the Preview and Details panes When you highlight a file with the Details pane enabled, you will see a tiny thumbnail (for applicable file times) and some details about the file, such as its size or date created, on the right side of the window. To activate it, click 'View' on the Explorer menu bar, then click 'Details Pane' on the toolbar (it is located right next to the Preview pane option). When you select a file, you will see its preview thumbnail in the right side of the window.įile Explorer also has a related feature called the Details pane. Go to File Explorer in a folder containing the documents you want to preview. In the menu bar at the top of the File Explorer window, click 'View.'įind 'Preview pane' at the top left of the toolbar and click on it. You'll also find File Explorer in your Start menu. To do this quickly, press Windows + E or click the folder icon on your taskbar if File Explorer is pinned there. Here's how to activate it.įirst, open File Explorer. You can see thumbnails of most images, videos, audio files, and some text documents.

It's easy to preview files without opening them in Windows 10 with the preview pane feature in File Explorer.

Windows 10 details pane