Libraries gather folders that are stored in different locations so you can browse them in one place. Here are answers to some common questions about libraries in Windows 8.1 and Windows RT 8.1.
They're still there, and they work the way they did before, they're just hidden from the left pane in File Explorer by default. You can still get to them under Favorites by opening Desktop. If you customized your libraries and want to see them in the left pane, tap or click View, tap or click Navigation pane, and then choose Show libraries.
Your libraries include the Documents folder on your PC as well as the Documents folder in OneDrive.
Some apps let you browse your PC to select folders to add. You can also add folders in File Explorer. To do this:
Browse to the folder you want to add, and then press and hold or right-click it.
Tap or click Include in library, and then select the library to which you want to add the folder.
Right after you add a folder to a library, searches and views of the folder might appear incomplete. This is because Windows is still indexing the folder.
You can include folders in a library from many different locations.
On your C drive, or other internal drives on your PC
Yes.
On a CD or DVD
No.
On a USB flash drive, SD card, microSD card, or portable external hard drive
Yes, but the files and folders will be available only when the device or drive is connected.
On a network
Yes, as long as the network location is indexed, or the folder has been made available offline. (See the following question.)
On a different PC in your homegroup
On a network-attached storage (NAS) device
Only folders can be included in libraries. Individual files and other items can't be included.
If you upgraded your PC from an earlier version of Windows, each of your libraries will contain a Public folder. The Public folders are a convenient way to share files with everyone who uses your PC or everyone on your network. For example, if you and other family members share a PC, you can put all your family pictures in the Public Pictures folder so that everyone can get to them easily and add, delete, and edit photos.
You can use the Photos app to import photos and videos into your Pictures library. For more info, go to How do I import photos and videos from a camera, phone, or DVD? on the Windows website.
You can print a document from a library without even opening the document. To do this, browse to the document, press and hold or right-click it, and then tap or click Print. To print multiple documents at once, select each document you want to print, press and hold or right-click one of them, and then select Print. In an open document, you can use the print command that's typically found in a menu at the top of the document—you can also try pressing Ctrl+P.
This message might appear if a library has been damaged. Here's how to solve this problem:
Tap or click to open File Explorer.
Tap or click View, tap or click Navigation pane, and then select Show libraries if not already selected.
In the left pane, press and hold or right-click Libraries, and then tap or click Restore default libraries.
This message appears if you try to add a network location that isn't indexed. The easiest way to index it so you can include it in a library is to enable offline files on your PC and make the network folder available offline. (In File Explorer, tap or click Home, tap or click Easy access, and choose Always available offline.) When you do this, the files are added to the search index on your PC.
You might get this message if you used an app to add a folder that isn't indexed (like a network folder) to a library. Searching, sorting, and filtering in the library will all be slow. To make these tasks faster, remove the location from the library. If it's important to you to keep the folder in a library, you can create a new library for only that folder so that it won't slow down searching, sorting, and filtering in any other library locations.