How to Set File Drag and Drop Behavior on Windows 10 – Guide

To set a default drag and drop action in Windows 10, follow these steps:

  1. Open the registry editor.
  2. In the registry editor, open the following key: HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\Explorer
  3. In the value data field, add a new key called “DragAndDropAction” and set its value to “Copy”.
  4. Close the registry editor.
  5. To use this setting, you must first create a new file called “DefaultDragAndDropAction” in your user’s Documents folder. This file will contain your new drag and drop action.

Change the default drag and drop behavior of files or folders

If you want to keep your files on the current drive, you can choose to copy them to a different directory on the drive before moving them.

To force Windows 10 to copy or move the behavior, whether you are dragging items to the same drive or to different drives, you need to edit two registry entries. Follow the guidance below.

Please go back up the registry or create a system restore point as necessary precautionary measures. Once this is done, you can proceed as follows:

Type “cmd” and press Enter.

In Registry Editor, type regedit and press Enter to open the Registry Editor.

Registry hive location: C:\Windows\system32\drivers\etc
The registry hive location is C:\Windows\system32\drivers\etc.

In the left pane, click the * folder. Click the Edit button. In the right pane, click the + button. Click the Add Folder button. In the left pane, click the My Documents folder. In the right pane, click the My Documents folder again.

Then choose New > DWORD (64-bit) Value.

DefaultDropEffect is the value that is set to the effect that is applied when a drop event occurs.

copy: Copies files and folders to the destination. move: Moves files and folders to the destination.

When you drag and drop files and folders into place, Windows will decide whether to copy or move them. If you choose to move the files and folders, Windows will do so automatically. If you choose to copy the files and folders, Windows will copy them into your destination folder.

Always copy (2): If the destination is a network drive, the copy will be placed on the same network drive. If the destination is a removable disk, the copy will be placed on the removable disk. ..

Always move (1): The file or folder will be moved to the destination.

To always create a shortcut on your computer, follow these simple steps:

  1. Open the destination folder.
  2. Right-click or press and hold on the file or folder you want to create a shortcut for, and then select “Create Shortcut.”
  3. The shortcut will be placed in the destination folder. ..

First, set the “Effect” property to “Drop”. Then, set the “Duration” property to " Forever “. Finally, set the “StartTime” property to " Now “. ..

To always copy files or folders, enter 1 in the Value data field. ..

Apply the changes to the text.

Windows 10: C:\Windows\System32\config\systemprofile Windows 8.1: C:\Users\YourUserName\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs\Administrative Tools<your operating system> Windows 8: C:\Users<your user name>.local<operating system><language> To find the registry path for your operating system, open the Start menu and type “regedit” (without the quotes). ..

In the context menu that appears, click New | Folder. Type C:\Users\Public\Documents\WindowsPowerShell and press Enter. Right-click the C:\Users\Public\Documents\WindowsPowerShell folder and click Properties. On the General tab, under Location, type %SystemRoot%. On the Security tab, under Location, type %SystemRoot%. Click OK. ..

To change the default Windows startup sound, choose Start > Settings > Control Panel > Sounds and Audio Devices. ..

The new DWORD DefaultDropEffect is set to “drop_effect” and is used to control the drop effect of a window.

First, set the “Effect” property to “Drop”. Then, set the “Duration” property to " Forever “. Finally, set the “StartTime” property to " Now “. ..

In the properties window, enter 1 in the Value data field and click on the OK button.

The changes you made to the document are now saved.

You can now exit Registry Editor and the changes will take effect immediately. ..

Final note

How to Set File Drag and Drop Behavior on Windows 10 In order to set file drag and drop behavior on your computer, you will first need to create a new file called “Behavior.txt” in the “C:\Users<username>\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies” folder. Then, you will need to add the following line to that file: DropFiles = True Next, you will need to open the “Behavior.txt” file and change the value of “DropFiles” to False. Finally, you can save the file by pressing the Save button in the top right corner of the file window.