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Thumbnails

Q:How do I completely disable thumbnail generation for video files in Windows XP?
A:

Execute the following command to disable the Explorer shell extension that is responsible for thumbnail generation:

Start -> Run -> regsvr32 /u shmedia.dll


Q:How do I disable thumbnail generation for a specific file extension?
A:
  1. Start the Windows Registry Editor program: Start -> Run -> regedit
  2. Navigate to the following key:
    "HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\.xyz\ShellEx\{BB2E617C-0920-11d1-9A0B-00C04FC2D6C1}"
    (replace .xyz with the desired file extension)
  3. Right-click on "{BB2E617C-0920-11d1-9A0B-00C04FC2D6C1}" and select Delete.

Q:I am not getting thumbnails on AVI files
A:

Execute the following command to enable the Explorer shell extension that is responsible for thumbnail generation:

Start -> Run -> regsvr32 shmedia.dll


Q:No video thumbnails are generated on a 64-bit version of Windows
A:

The 64-bit version of Windows Explorer is not able to load 32-bit shell plugins. That is the reason why it won't be able to generate thumbnails for some video formats.

The solution is to run the 32-bit version of Explorer. That will be able to generate thumbnails. The thumbnails are cached, which means that the 64-bit version of Explorer will able be able to display them.

Use the following command to run 32-bit Explorer:
Start -> Run -> "C:\windows\syswow64\explorer.exe" /separate

 

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