Special folder

Special folders make it possible for any application to ask the operating system where an appropriate location for certain kinds of files can be found; independently of which version or user language of Windows is being used.

In Windows 10 the user can switch to another display language and the names of the special folders will change.

[1] Windows uses the concept of special folders to present the contents of the storage devices connected to the computer in a fairly consistent way that frees the user from having to deal with absolute file paths, which can (and often do) change between operating system versions, and even individual installations.

Microsoft's "Compatible with Windows" software logo[2] requires that an application make use of special folder locations to locate the appropriate folders in which documents and application settings should be stored.

The following tables list most of the file system and virtual folders that are available as of Windows Vista.