Show Hidden Files and Folders

One thing that I've learned working with Windows Servers is that Microsoft likes to hide files that you need...a lot. Now there is rationale for this, the files I need are generally not the kind of files that you want the average person to have access to. Still it can be a pain when you need access to these paths daily and they seemingly don't exist. In order to see these files there are a couple of simple settings that can be changed:

In order to view hidden files, folders and drives, as well as hidden file types, first open up a Windows explorer window.

Next, click tools in the upper left hand corner of the window and select folder options. 

When the next window is displayed click on the view tab at the top. 

You will now be presented with a window with an "Advanced Settings" section. We are after three options here; "Show hidden files, folders and drives", "Hide empty drives in the Computer folder" and "Hide extensions for known file types". Make sure "Show hidden files, folders and drives" radial button is selected. Also, verify that the check boxes are not marked next to  Hide empty drives in the Computer folder" and "Hide extensions for known file types". Once this is complete click OK. 

These changes will allow you to see hidden folders such as AppData and several other temporary paths that you might need in your every day to day. This change will also allow you to relabel file types with a simple rename which can be very helpful for scripting (building a .txt script file and then modifying the name to a .bat).