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Tracking recently opened documents

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Recommendation

Situational

Can be disabled for privacy: Windows will stop remembering which documents you opened.

The documents themselves are not deleted and open as usual; Jump Lists and recent lists simply stop being updated.

History accumulation
Stops
Old entries
May remain visible
Files
Are not deleted

What changes

Section titled “What changes”

Windows stops tracking and saving the history of opened documents. New entries no longer appear in the recent files lists of the Start menu, in the Jump Lists of apps on the taskbar, or in the recent files of File Explorer and Office. It is specifically history accumulation that is disabled: documents are not deleted, not blocked, and open manually as usual.

Exceptions and differences

Section titled “Exceptions and differences”

Distinguish between two neighboring settings. This one stops accumulation: old entries may remain visible, but the lists are no longer updated. “Show recent and frequently used items” hides the already collected lists from the interface without stopping collection. If Jump Lists and recent files are needed for work, restore the original state.

How to verify the result

Section titled “How to verify the result”

Open any document, then open the Jump List of its app — right-click the icon on the taskbar. A fresh entry should not appear: the list contains only what was opened before the change.

How to change and revert

Section titled “How to change and revert”

In BoosterX, open “Optimization” → “Customization” → “Windows Shell” → “Tracking recently opened documents” and set the toggle to “On”: BoosterX will apply the disabling of document tracking. Click “Apply” at the bottom of the page; with “Instant apply” enabled, the change is applied immediately. To revert, set the toggle to “Off”: BoosterX will return Windows to its default state — history accumulation will resume.

Confirmation

Section titled “Confirmation”

Last checked: 2026-09-19.