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By LAPTOP Sta August 19, 2019 helpful tips.

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We all have computer les we'd like to keep secret from the world, but not SIGN ME UP

everyone knows how to password protect a folder in Windows 10. Whether

No spam, we promise. You can unsubscribe at any time and
you're hiding notes from someone with access to your computer or (hopefully) we'll never share your details without your permission.
something less drastic, you're allowed to have some privacy. Fortunately, in
Windows 10, you can tuck those unmentionable plans or les in a secret
folder that is password protected, and you can do it without buying any MORE FROM LAPTOP MAG...
additional software. Once you've created a new folder in Windows 10, here's
how to password protect it.

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We've received comments about issues people have run into with this how-to.
So, we went back and performed multiple rounds of testing internally, and can
now con rm that following this process closely, step-by-step, works — at least
on our end.

But just to be safe, you should rst try this how-to using  les that you can a ord
to lose, just in case the method doesn't work for you. Also, make sure you're
keeping some record, somewhere, of the exact password you're using to lock
your folder. If you lose the password, your les are gone, and since every
computer is di erent, we can't deduce exactly what went wrong on your end.

Also, yes, the FolderLocker le can be reverse engineered by someone who

understands the process, but this isn't meant to keep tech-savvy folks out, just
nosy family members who you don't trust.

Tips from readers: 

Do not use a password with a space, it may create an issue with the batch le.
Yes, les placed in your locked folder can appear in Recent Files list in various
apps, such as Microsoft Word. 

Here's how to password protect a folder in Windows 10, so you can ll it with
les you want to keep secret — and how to lock it, open it and repeat.

How To Lock a Folder With a Password in

Windows 10
1. Right-click inside the folder where the les you want to protect are
located. The folder you want to hide can even be on your desktop.

MORE: How to Change Your Password in Windows 10

2. Select "New" from the contextual menu. 

3. Click on "Text Document."

4. Hit Enter. It doesn't matter what the  le will be named. You can delete this
text le once the lockable folder has been made.

5. Double-click the text le to open it.

6. Paste the below text into the new document:

cls

@ECHO OFF

title Folder Locker

if EXIST "Control Panel.{21EC2020-3AEA-1069-A2DD-08002B30309D}" goto

UNLOCK

if NOT EXIST Locker goto MDLOCKER

:CONFIRM

echo Are you sure u want to Lock the folder(Y/N)

set/p "cho=>"

if %cho%==Y goto LOCK

if %cho%==y goto LOCK

if %cho%==n goto END

if %cho%==N goto END

echo Invalid choice.

goto CONFIRM

:LOCK

ren Locker "Control Panel.{21EC2020-3AEA-1069-A2DD-08002B30309D}"

attrib +h +s "Control Panel.{21EC2020-3AEA-1069-A2DD-08002B30309D}"

echo Folder locked

goto End

:UNLOCK

echo Enter password to Unlock folder

set/p "pass=>"

if NOT %pass%==Your-Password-Here goto FAIL

attrib -h -s "Control Panel.{21EC2020-3AEA-1069-A2DD-08002B30309D}"

ren "Control Panel.{21EC2020-3AEA-1069-A2DD-08002B30309D}" Locker

echo Folder Unlocked successfully

goto End

:FAIL

echo Invalid password

goto end

:MDLOCKER

md Locker

echo Locker created successfully

goto End

:End

7. Find where it says "Your-Password-Here" in the document.

 8. Replace "Your-Password-Here" with the password you want to lock the

folder with.

9. Click File.

10. "Select Save As..."

11. Click on the "Text Documents (*.txt)" menu bar that's next to "Save as
type:"

12. Select "All Files"

13. Change the le name to "FolderLocker.bat"

14. Click "Save."

15. Double-click FolderLocker.

The Locker folder has been generated!

16. Fill the Locker folder with the items you want to protect.

17. Open the FolderLocker le, because it's time to lock that folder up!

18. Type "Y" into the screen.

19. Click Enter, and the Folder Locker window will disappear, along with the
Locker folder itself! Your secrets are safe!

To unlock the folder, double-click "FolderLocker" to open it.

Enter the password you entered in Step 8, and click Enter.

The Locker folder is back. You can open it to nd your hidden les. Repeat Steps
17, 18 and 19 to lock the folder again.

To learn more about how to make use of your laptop, check out our guide for
what to do as you set up your new laptop. We've also got instructions if you're
trying to gure out how to reset Windows 10 PCs and how to reset your
password in Windows 10. Lastly, tired of Windows? We've got a guide that
answers the relatively new question of "Should I Buy a Chromebook?"

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