PDF download Download Article PDF download Download Article

In Windows 10, My computer is no longer available. However, you can still hide a disk drive on in File Explorer using Disk Management. You can even create a secret mount point. This wikiHow teaches you how to hide a disk drive in File Explorer on Windows 10.

Method 1
Method 1 of 3:

Using Disk Management

PDF download Download Article
  1. This displays a pop-up menu above the Windows Start drive.
  2. It's in the pop-up menu that appears when you right-click the Windows Start menu. This opens the Disk Management applications.
    Advertisement
  3. This displays a menu next to the drive. You can right-click the drive name in the list at the top, or the drive allocation tiles at the bottom of Disk Management.
  4. This opens a separate window that allows you to add, change, or remove the drive letter.
  5. The drive should be highlighted in blue when it is selected. Clicking Remove removes the drive letter from the drive. An alert will appear.
  6. It's in the alert that appears when you remove the letter of the disk drive. The alert informs you that some programs may not work properly if the letter is missing. Click Yes to continue. This removes the letter from the disk drive.
    • Removing the drive letter from the disk drive will prevent it from appearing in File Explorer. If that's all you want, you can stop here. Continue to the next step if you want to create a hidden folder on a separate drive that you can use to access the hidden disk drive. [1]
    • Removing or changing the letter of a disk drive may prevent programs that are dependent on that drive from functioning correctly.
  7. This opens a menu next to the drive.
  8. This opens a separate window that allows you to add, change, or remove the drive letter.
  9. The drive should be highlighted in blue when it is selected. Clicking Add displays options to add a new drive letter, or mount the drive in a different location.
  10. It's the second radio option in the "Add drive letter or path" window.
  11. It's to the right of the bar below "Mount in the following empty NTFS folder". This allows you to select a specific location where you can access the drive.
  12. Double-click the drive you want to add the folder in, and then double-click the folder(s) you want to place the folder in.
  13. It's to the right in the "Browse for drive path" window.
  14. This creates a new folder for the drive location. Give the folder a name you can remember, such as "Secret Drive" or "Hidden Drive."
  15. This will allow you to access the disk drive by clicking the mount folder you selected in Disk Management.
    • For additional security, you can hide the folder that contains the drive mount location in File Explorer. That way it will only appear if show hidden files and folders in File Explorer.
  16. Advertisement
Method 2
Method 2 of 3:

Using Group Policy Editor

PDF download Download Article
  1. Group Policy Editor is available on all versions of Windows. However, it is disabled on Windows 10 Home Edition. Use the following steps to enable Group Policy Editor in Windows 10 Home Edition: [2]
    • Click here to download a Windows 10 Group Policy Editor batch file.
    • Extract the contents of the zip file.
    • Navigate to the "gpedit-windows-10-home.bat" file.
    • Right-click the file and click Run as Administrator .
    • Wait for the script to finish running in the Command Prompt.
  2. This opens the Run application on Windows. You can use Group Policy Editor to restrict access to drives on your computer.
  3. This opens Group Policy Editor on Windows.
  4. It's in the sidebar to the left. To expand this option, either click the bracket to the left, or double click Administrative Templates .
  5. It's below "Administrative Templates" in the sidebar to the left.
  6. It's below "Windows Components." Clicking this option will display administrative template options in the main window on the right.
  7. It's one of the options below "Settings" in the main window on the right. This option hides the specified drives in My Computer and File Explorer. This does not prevent users from accessing the drive through other methods.
    • Alternatively, you can select "Prevent Access to drives from My Computer." This option allows users to browse to view the drive but not open folders or access the drive's contents.
  8. It's the second option near the upper-right corner of the window.
  9. Use the drop-down menu below "Pick one of the following combinations" to select which drive(s) you want to hide. You can select individual drives or a combination of drives.
    • This does not include the option to hide external USB drives.
  10. It's in the lower-right corner of the window.
  11. It's next to Apply . This closes the window.
  12. Advertisement
Method 3
Method 3 of 3:

Unhidding a Hidden Disk Drive in Disk Management

PDF download Download Article
  1. This displays a pop-up menu above the Windows Start drive. If you decide you no longer want the disk drive to be hidden, use these steps to revert the hidden drive in Disk Management.
  2. It's in the pop-up menu that appears when you right-click the Windows Start menu. This opens the Disk Management applications.
  3. This is the drive you hid in the previous method.
  4. This opens a separate window that allows you to add, change, or remove the drive letter.
  5. Since the drive doesn't have a drive letter, it will not appear in the "Change drive letters and paths for OS" window. Clicking Add displays options to add a new drive letter, or mount the drive in a different location.
  6. It's the first radio option in the window.
  7. Use the drop-down menu to the right of the radio option to select a drive letter to assign the drive. It's best that you select the same drive letter that it had before you removed the drive letter.
  8. This adds the drive letter back to the drive. You can now view the drive in File Explorer.
  9. Advertisement

Community Q&A

Search
Add New Question
  • Question
    What do I download to hide my drive?
    Community Answer
    Don't download anything. Do it manually in Windows by following the tutorial. Using 3rd-party software is risky.
  • Question
    What do I do if I restarted and now it is showing that Bootmgr is missing?
    Community Answer
    You remove/disconnect the device, then put it back in.
  • Question
    What do I do if this doesn't work?
    Community Answer
    You could try looking for other guides if this didn't help you. Try searching on the internet or for video tutorials. You could also ask if people know how to do it at your local computer repair shop.
Ask a Question
      Advertisement

      Tips

      Submit a Tip
      All tip submissions are carefully reviewed before being published
      Thanks for submitting a tip for review!

      Warnings

      • Removing the letter from a disk drive may prevent programs that rely on that disk drive from functioning properly.
      • Any user of the computer with Administrative Rights can change the Settings in Group Policy Editor. Realize your disk drives are not as secure as originally thought.
      • If you are using the "Hide these specific drives in My Computer" option, your hard disk drives are still accessible by typing the Drive Letter in address bar or "Run".
      Advertisement

      About This Article

      Article Summary X

      1. Right-click the Windows Start menu and click Disk Management . 2. Right-click a drive and click Change Drive Letter and Paths. 3. Highlight the drive and click Remove . 4. Click Yes .

      Did this summary help you?
      Thanks to all authors for creating a page that has been read 604,052 times.

      Is this article up to date?

      Advertisement