The latest Microsoft Windows 11 release preview build includes a change that finally fixes the annoying white flash problem of File Explorer that appears whenever you open the app in dark mode. It’s a long story that we hope will eventually be resolved, because this is not the first time that Microsoft has said that this will be fixed.
From what I can find, Microsoft first said that the white flash problem in File Explorer was fixed two years ago, in a Beta build released in August 2023: “Fixed white light in dark mode when switching between home and gallery.” A month later, another correction was observed in the structure of the Dev channel studied “Fixed an issue where when you launch File Explorer with a dark theme you can see a bright white light as content loads.”
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Little by little, Microsoft is addressing all areas of File Explorer that flash users a white screen when in dark mode. It’s interesting that it takes so long to complete the work, and you’d think it could be done in one fell swoop. But it turns out that File Explorer is more complicated than that.
Unlike other areas of the Windows 11 interface, File Explorer is a mish-mash of old and new UI elements spanning decades. The app has modern WinUI features on top, but the actual file management and folder view uses very old UI frameworks used with older versions of Windows.
This combination of old and new interfaces created many headaches, including graphical inconsistencies such as white flashes that continue to plague the app to this day. Microsoft is working to improve both the functionality and UI consistency of File Explorer this year, but they have a lot of work ahead of them before many consider it a great place.
The good news is that I can confirm that the preview build of the latest release also fixes the white flashing issue, and I can’t find any area of the app still flashing white right now, which is great. There are still many areas of the straight-up File Explorer interface that don’t support dark mode yet, such as File Properties, but sources tell me that this will be addressed soon.
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