Thumbnails in Windows 11 with blender v5.21 not visible!

[Spirou4D]

Since the last Blender v5.21 installed with .msi I don’t have thumbnails from my blend files ???

I made the terminal tip with-> blender.exe -R but don’t work !

I made the terminal tip with → blender.exe -r and has this message:
Blend file extension registered for the current user.

But always not thumbnails for my blend file !!!

Even with the preferences > save & load > File Preview Type => screenshot

I see the thumbnails in the blender’s file manager but not on my desktop or elsewhere in windows file manager.

My computer is Windows 11 with processor i9 3.2 GHz 32Go memory RAM + Nvidia Geforce GTX1080 Ti graphic card

EDIT: After a lot of research and emptying the thumbnail’s cache it’s a bug from Blender. Certainly in the register’s db…

[oo_1942 (Kim)]

It is difficult for me to fully understand what you asked. (I am not an English user.)
Usually, the blender-launcher.exe file is used to run Blender.

Blender’s settings include a feature for linking Blender files.

It would be a good idea to back up your current settings, reset Blender, and see if the same problem keeps occurring.

[Spirou4D]

Thanks Kim but I made what you said. Register and then unregister and then register again. I saw in terminal that Blender made the good process.

But nothing change on my desktop/manager.

I tested reset Blender load factory reset but no !

Thanks anyway.

[oo_1942 (Kim)]

te.blend (143.4 KB)

Please use the attached file to check whether the thumbnail is visible.
If it still doesn’t show up, it seems to be a Windows issue.

You can change or modify the file extension settings in nirsoft’s FileTypesMan (free) program.

[Spirou4D]

Thks for your help with this app I didn’t know!

[Spirou4D]

But what can I make with FileTypesMan ?

I know that Microsoft work on the conutextual menu of Windows 11 now…I mean it’s a windows bug may be!

Icon hander CLS ID !!!
I discovered an error I havn’t Blender 4.5 BUT blender 5.2.1 !!!

EDIT 1 : I downloaded ShelExView and I saw Blender 5.2.1 now but all is correct ???

It’s a bug from windows11 !!!

[oo_1942 (Kim)]

Try running Blender with administrator privileges, disable the existing setting 1, and then set it back to 2.
If this is due to a security issue, it seems that running it with administrator privileges should fix it.

Add…

Test result.

1. Using FileTypesMan.If you remove the .blend extension and clear the Windows thumbnail cache, only the icons will be visible.
2. If you reset the program association in Blender’s settings
3. The .blend extension is created automatically, and the thumbnail works.

• You must run Blender as an administrator to avoid issues caused by security enhancements.

[Spirou4D]

Hi Kim,

Thks but I am 63 years old and I made what you explain. I tested your method as administrator but nothing change.

I know that Microsoft work on the contextual menu now. Today I upgraded my windows11. There are some changes in the contextual menu…The rest is for 29 september… I must wait to see.

I discover fail folder in .thumbnails folder empty with a lot of thumbnails of blender:

[oo_1942 (Kim)]

My fail folder is set up the same way.
Also, deleting the data in the fail\blender folder won’t cause any issues.

During my test process as well, part of the thumbnail was corrupted.
However, thumbnails can be viewed in the Blender file browser.
And if you open and save a file with a corrupted thumbnail, the thumbnail will appear in Windows Explorer.

• To check and fix basic Windows system corruption, run sfc /scannow after running Command Prompt as an administrator. This will scan and repair corruption in Windows system files. Try it.

[Spirou4D]

>sfc /scannow

Ha yes indeed… I will make !
I don’t never think this command.

EDIT: Restarted. But nothing change after some errors with the scan.

EDIT 2: >deleting the data in the fail\blender folder won’t cause any issues.

Me too. Weird!

EDIT 3 : I mean this .thumbnails folder is uniquelly used by the blendthumbnails.dll of Blender install. Because I saw only images from blender. It is used by blender manager. But Windows must used it too !!! Why not?

[oo_1942 (Kim)]

It doesn’t seem like a complicated problem, but I’m not sure why it’s not going well

If you suspect the BlendThumb.dll file is corrupted, you can simply download the zip file from the installation package and replace only that file.

The case in the link below is related to the thumbnail issue, so it would be a good idea to check whether it will be helpful.

.Blend files not using preview thumbnails in windows explorer

Hi, I’m kinda new to the forums so I’m not 100% sure if this is the right place to post. I’ve been using blender for about 4 years now. Ever since I first started using it, all my .blend files have had little preview images in the icon in the windows explorer. I found this feature really useful because I save hundreds of copies of the same file as backups, and I always want to know which file is which without having to open blender 50 times before getting the right file. But just a week ago, I…

[Spirou4D]

I found the cause of this bug

it’s the pre-version of Windows11 and I discover this problem this day 28 08 !

Known problem for this update :

Desktop background settings are lost or reset on some devices

• Mouse customization is reset on non-English Windows devices.
• Microsoft Teams and Outlook may fail to launch on ARM devices.
• Desktop background settings are lost or reset on some devices.

[Spirou4D]

I have a lot of blender portable on my computer and the thumbnails are all visible in blender BUT not in windows manager.

I made “blender.exe -R” but not work with b5.2.1. Uniquelly “blender -r” or “.\blender.exe -r” (terminal or windows Powershell) works.

[oo_1942 (Kim)]

In my case, the invisible thumbnail issue can be fixed with blender -r.

1. Navigate to the Blender installation path using the command prompt (run as administrator)
   chdir C:\Program Files\Blender Foundation\blenderX.X

2. If you type blender -r at that path and press Enter, you will see the message: “Blend file extension registered for the current user.”
   If you check in Windows Explorer, the thumbnail appears correctly.

   ※ Although the procedure is the same, if it still doesn’t resolve the issue, I don’t know what the cause might be.
   Windows 11 has various issues, so one way is to look for information that could be the cause.

If it still doesn’t work after several attempts, it might be a bug, so I think considering reporting it as a bug could be a good option.

Please refer to Dongyeo Statue for the procedure

https://youtu.be/JTD0OJq_rF4

[Spirou4D]

Thanks a lot Dear Kim, I will may be post a message on blender.org but I wait a few to see Microsoft changes…
Good luck !
I want to say that was a great exchange with you.
Patrick D.

[oo_1942 (Kim)]

Thank you.
Have a great day

[Spirou4D]

Always no change since the upgrade of Microsoft for the file manager and windows UI.
Always no thumbnails??? Even after the re-install of Blender v5.2.2…

I just reported this to Microsoft today, 30/09/2026, following Microsoft’s updates for the Windows 11 UI.