Understanding the Music Folder

Written by Barry Dysert (last updated July 24, 2017)

There are several "personal system" folders included in Windows that serve as convenient repositories for various types of media files. Some of these folders include Pictures, Music, and Videos. Depending on how you've customized your Start menu, links to these folders may appear on your Start menu. If you click the Music option on the Start menu, Windows opens an Explorer window to display the Music library. This library defaults to the following location on your system (replace <user> with the appropriate user name on the system):

C:\Users\<user>\Music

Note that in Windows 7, Music is a library, which means you can add other directories to it while leaving the actual music files in their current location. (In Windows 10, your Music folder is stored in a library, and you can find your libraries near the bottom of File Explorer.) To do this, click the Music link on the Start menu and then click on the Locations link when the Explorer window comes up. (The Locations link is located at the top of the window, right under the words "Music Library.") Windows displays the Music Library Locations dialog box. (See Figure 1.)

Figure 1. Adding another location to the Music library.

You can then click the Add button to add another location to this library. (Windows libraries are covered under another tip.)

Another nice feature is since Music is a library, its Search and Arrange features are designed to work on its content's metadata. For example, if you go to the Music library and click the Arrange By drop-down list, Windows presents you with choices that are appropriate to working with music files. (See Figure 2.)

Figure 2. Arranging the Music library's contents by metadata.

Likewise, if you want to search in the Music library, click the Windows Search box and Windows presents you with searching options that are tailored for music files. (See Figure 3.)

Figure 3. Searching the Music library's contents by metadata.

Here you see that you can search by album, artists, genre, or length of the music.

 This tip (12834) applies to Windows 7 and 10.

Author Bio

Barry Dysert

Barry has been a computer professional for over 35 years, working in different positions such as technical team leader, project manager, and software developer. He is currently a software engineer with an emphasis on developing custom applications under Microsoft Windows. When not working with Windows or writing Tips, Barry is an amateur writer. His first non-fiction book is titled "A Chronological Commentary of Revelation." ...

MORE FROM BARRY

Scheduling a Program to Run on a Schedule

If you have certain programs that you want to have run automatically, you can use Windows Task Scheduler to quickly set ...

Discover More

Understanding the Pictures Folder

The Pictures folder is one of several system libraries specifically optimized to hold digital pictures. This tip tells ...

Discover More

Setting the Default Browser

Some people are passionate about the browser they use to access the Web. If you have a favorite browser that you want to ...

Discover More
More WindowsTips

Enabling Libraries in File Explorer

Windows 7 introduced us to libraries, but they're turned off in Windows 10. Here's how to get them back.

Discover More

Moving the Pictures Library

The Pictures folder is one of several system libraries created in Windows by default. This library is specifically ...

Discover More

Understanding the Search Index

You can utilize Explorer's search utility to find text within files. To make searches fast, Windows maintains a search ...

Discover More
Comments

If you would like to add an image to your comment (not an avatar, but an image to help in making the point of your comment), include the characters [{fig}] (all 7 characters, in the sequence shown) in your comment text. You’ll be prompted to upload your image when you submit the comment. Maximum image size is 6Mpixels. Images larger than 600px wide or 1000px tall will be reduced. Up to three images may be included in a comment. All images are subject to review. Commenting privileges may be curtailed if inappropriate images are posted.

What is five more than 3?

There are currently no comments for this tip. (Be the first to leave your comment—just use the simple form above!)


Newest Tips