Libraries are missing the New Folder option

Scroll down to #5 here.

How to Remove and Restore the Default "New" Context Menu Items in Windows 7 and Windows 8
http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/28677-new-context-menu-remove-restore-default-menu-items.html

On second thought, I don't have a Win7 machine to test, but I don't believe the new folder option is supposed to be there when in Libraries.

Create the folder in C>Users>Your User Name first then right click on that and Include In Library.

Hi Bruce,

Thanks for your reply.  I have just tried the solution on Seven Forums and while the remove reg file worked admirably, the restore reg file restored everything but the folders causing the problems.

Regarding your second comment, yes the New Folder option should be there as confirmed on my own and several other machines.

Actually, the restore reg file did work, but it did not survive a reboot.  It's like the registry changes are only temporarily added, or that some other process is reverting the registry changes for some reason.

I have used the Winternals program Process Monitor, but even with ONLY the registry filter invoked, it still dumps a ton of information which has not been helpful.

If you have any other ideas, I'd be happy to hear them.

I intend on doing some comparisons between reg files that promise to resolve the issue and what exists in a working system, to see if I can't ferret out another approach.  In the meantime, I've asked the user to stop using the Libraries function; he is using the default setup with no other folders so he really isn't using the feature to any advantage.

Cheers for now!

Dale

Bruce, in concept, such a capability should NOT exist.  Libraries are a virtual thing and not a real actual storage location.  If you could and do set up a new folder in a library, just where would it exist???

Libraries are a "collection" of folders that Windows 7 finds in real locations.

The concept of "library" has been confusing to the nth degree for so many people.

Bruce, in concept, such a capability should NOT exist.  Libraries are a virtual thing and not a real actual storage location.  If you could and do set up a new folder in a library, just where would it exist???

Libraries are a "collection" of folders that Windows 7 finds in real locations.

The concept of "library" has been confusing to the nth degree for so many people.

Which is why I suggested making a new folder in C>Users>Your User Name and then Include In Library. The same location where My Documents, My Pictures, My Music etc., is located.

Windows 10 does not have the capability on creating a new folder in a library, and I didn't think it did in Win7, but I never have tried to create a new folder in a library.

The OP did say that he could create new library folders on several other Win7 machines, so figure that one out. I do agree with you that the option to create a new folder in libraries should not exist.

Following up on the comments from Bruce Hagen and Canadian Tech, perhaps you could provide a screen shot showing where you think the ability to create a New Folder should exist but doesn't.

The following screenshots were taken on a Windows 7 Pro SP1 x64 system:

1.  Right-clicking on "Libraries" or Selecting "Libraries" and using the File menu give different menus, but neither has the option for a new folder:

2.  Expanding "Libraries" to show Documents, Pictures, Music, and Videos and then either right-clicking on one of those (e.g., Documents) or selecting it and using the File menu again give different menus, but this time there is a new folder option.  When used, the "New Folder" is created in the first directory within the selected Library (e.g., the "Documents" library includes "My Documents," "Public Documents," and "Downloads" -- the New Folder is created in My Documents.

I know you are trying to help, but you may be over thinking things a little.

We are not trying to make a new Library, we are trying to make a sub-folder within the library, specifically a folder within a folder.

While most of my clients folders within his document library allow the creation of a new folder, either from the file menu or the right click context menu, he has 4 that no longer show the new folder option.

I can confirm this to be an isolated bug in Windows 7. I am having the exact same problem on one of my systems as well. Perhaps it may be related to OneDrive in some mysterious way. In any case my work around is:

After you open My Documents from the Start Menu -> It opens the Document Library -> Then under the document library there is the parent folder in question. The physical location of this folder is C:\users\owner\documents\problematicfolder

If you rename the problem folder to a different name, you are able to restore the New Folder Context Menu or File Menu->New-> Folder.

Otherwise, once the My Documents window is open if you look to the left window pane where it shows the selected Library if  instead you select the Document folder instead of having the Library selected the problem will subside.

It appears only to fail to allow you to create a new folder when: Libraries is selected in the left window pane and under a specific folder name that prevents you from creating a new sub folder within the parent problematic folder.

However, if that parent problematic folder is renamed to something else, it will allow you create a new sub folder in that renamed folder. It must be a bad index in the libraries enumeration and I have no idea how to reset that reference.

Disabling and Enabling the libraries after a system reboot doesn't help. Disabling libraries all together and rebooting fixes the problem. However, then the Documents shortcut will no longer appear in the start menu and manual shortcuts will need to be placed on the desktop for direct access to the document folder.

I wish Microsoft would never have introduced such a complicated and unnecessary library solution. Windows was great before Libraries I don't know of anyone who uses the feature as it was intended.