Windows 11: Copying and moving files and folders

Copy and Move Files and Folders in Windows 11

As in previous versions of Windows, you can move or copy folders and files in the blink of an eye using the mouse, keyboard or touch. However, there are small innovations in Windows 11.

• You can select the desired file or folder as usual by right-clicking with your mouse and then selecting the buttons for “Copy” or “Cut”.

• With Windows 11, there are only icons without text for this purpose. These are displayed both in the context menu and in the title bar of the file explorer.

• The symbols have the following order:

• Cut (scissors), Copy (two sheets), Rename (text box), Share (box with arrow) and Delete (bin).

• Afterwards, open the desired destination folder and right-click again on a free space in the folder and then select “Paste”. In the file explorer, you can also select the corresponding button in the title bar.

• The button for “Insert” can also be found in the top line. It shows a clipboard with a blue document.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kUd_haLq-jc

Tips for moving and copying

If you want to move or copy files and folders even more easily, remember the following tricks.

• Key combinations: With the right key combinations, you can copy, move and paste blindly and without a mouse.

• Copy: [CTRL] + [C]; Cut: [CTRL] + [X]; Paste: [CTRL] + [V]

• Mouse: If you have several File Explorer windows open, you can also drag and drop files.

• Simply drag the highlighted folders and files from one place to another to move them.

• Depending on which option is set for you by default, this path will either copy, or move. Before you let go of the files in the new location, you will be shown whether they will be copied or moved.

• To change the mode between moving and copying in this way, simply hold down the [CTRL] key during the process.

• Tip: If you want to select multiple files, you can either select them with the mouse’s highlight box, or select them individually while holding down the [CTRL] key.

• Note: Until Windows 10, it was possible to move files and folders to another window via the taskbar. Since Windows 11 it is no longer possible. Whether this function will return in a newer version of Windows 11 is still uncertain. At the present time (October 2021), however, moving files and folders via the taskbar is no longer possible.