To create a password protected, secure, hidden or locked folder in Windows XP for free, follow these simple steps:

  1. Open the Control Panel.
  2. Click on the Security tab.
  3. Click on the Folder Options button.
  4. In the Folder Options dialog box, click on the View tab and then select the Hidden items check box.
  5. Type a password in the Password field and then click on OK to close the Folder Options dialog box. ..

To create a locked folder on Windows XP, you first need to create a new folder in the Windows Explorer. Then, you need to add a file to the new folder called “configuration.ini”. This file is located in the root of the newfolder and it contains your computer’s settings. In addition, this file contains information about your computer’s security. You can find this file by typing “cmd” into the Windows Explorer and then pressing “enter”. After you have entered the path to this file, you can press “x” to show all of your computer’s files and folders. The first thing that you will see after pressing “x” is a list of folders that are located in the current directory. The list of folders will include two folders called “windowsxp_oldconfiguration” and “windowsxp_newconfiguration”. The second thing that you will see after pressing “x” is a list of files that are located in these two folders. The files on this list will include two files called “configuration.ini” and they will be located in the same directory as the configuration.ini file that was created by adding the file called “windowsxp_oldconfiguration” to the newfolder.

The technique involves using a script to change the folder’s appearance so that it appears to be normal, but when you open it, nothing inside is accessible. To view the data, you have to run another script to change it back. Anyone who clicks on the folder will be brought to the Control Panel and think it is a shortcut. The other neat thing about this trick is that any of the files or folders inside the hidden folder will not show up when you perform a search in Explorer. ..

To protect your data, you should create a test folder and fill it with fake data before you try this on important files. Since we’re messing with the internals of the folder, it could cause data loss if not done properly. ..

  1. Open the Start menu and select “Control Panel.”
  2. Double-click on “File System.”
  3. Click on “Protected Folders.”
  4. In the “New protected folder” window, type a name for your new folder and click on the “Create” button.
  5. In the newly created protected folder, right-click on the empty space inside the folder and select “Properties.”
  6. On the General tab, click on the “Security” button and then select “Advanced.”
  7. In the Advanced Security Settings window, under the heading of “Permissions for this folder,” click on the drop-down box next to “Everyone” and select your desired permissions level (e.g., Full Control).
  8. Click on OK to close all windows and return to Windows XP desktop screen. ..

Create a folder called Fonts at the root of your D drive. This will bring you to the Control Panel, where you can access your confidential data.

Notepad C:\Users\username\AppData\Roaming\Fonts lock.bat

To lock a file in Notepad, just put the whole thing in quotes, like “lock.bat” and then click Save. ..

To lock your fonts so that they can’t be edited or deleted:

  1. Open the Fonts folder.
  2. Create a new file called “lock” and save it to the Fonts folder.
  3. Rename the existing “lock” file to “old_lock.”
  4. Copy the “lock” file from your Fonts folder to the same directory as your bat file, which is usually in your C:\Users\YourUserName\AppData\Roaming.minecraft\bin.
  5. Double-click on the bat file to run it.
  6. Type “lock” into the console and press Enter to confirm that your fonts are now locked. ..

@echo off setlocal enabledelayedexpansion echo Please enter the following key:
pause ..

You will now have a lock.bat and key.bat file in your folder, as well as the Control Panel. Double-click on lock.bat and your folder will turn into the Control Panel, and nothing inside can be viewed. Clicking on it will simply bring you to the Control Panel. You’ll notice the icon has changed, too!

To view the data inside your folder again, click on the key.bat file and your folder will return to normal!

Keeping the key.bat file in the same folder will defeat the purpose of securing the folder, so it’s best to move it somewhere else, or even better, put it on a USB stick or CD that only you can access.

Most people will be probably ignore the folder since it has the control panel icon and it links directly there. However, if someone knows this trick also, they can create their own key.bat file, etc and open it back up. However, if you’re dealing with someone who can do all of that, it’s best you check out more advanced 3rd party software to lock down a folder.

If you’re having trouble with the above-mentioned method (from what I can see from the comments, a good number of people are), then here’s another quick and free way to create a secure folder in Windows XP. There is a very nice program called Free Hide Folder from Cleanersoft that allows you to easily hide your private folders.

Your personal edition of FolderMinder is free, but you must supply a password to unhide the folders. The commercial edition requires registration.

I’ve tried this program myself and I cannot access the hidden folder via Windows Explorer nor the command prompt. So if the above method is not working, give this a shot! Any questions, post a comment. Enjoy! ..