Microsoft warns: File Explorer may flash with a blinding color in dark mode
Just days after Microsoft admitted that the password button was missing for some users on Windows' sign in screen, it confirmed yet another issue that users on Windows PCs might encounter.
The details: According to Microsoft, users may see a white screen flash before they eyes in File Explorer when the system is set to dark mode.
- The issue affects Windows 11, versions 24H2 and 25H2.
- It may occur after installation of KB5070311 on Windows 11 PCs.
- There is no solution or workaround at this time, other than turning of dark mode.
Microsoft offers several scenarios where users might see the white screen flash when using Explorer. It may occur when creating a new tab, turning the details pane one or off, selecting more details when copying, and when navigating to or from Home or Gallery.
Most users might experience then issue when they open File Explorer, as Home may be set as the default view.
Microsoft released KB5070311 on December 1, 2025 as the preview update for the upcoming cumulative update, which it will release on Tuesday, December 9, 2025. It is the last major update for Windows 11 in the year 2025.
Turning off Dark Mode, the only option
Windows 11 users may turn off Dark Mode for the time being, if they experience the white flashes and want them to stop.
- Open the Start menu.
- Select Settings there, or type Settings and press the Enter-key to launch the app.
- Switch to Personalization > Colors in the Settings app.
- Click on the menu next to "Choose your mode" on the page and pick Light.
Doing so switches the system to a light theme. However, this may not be an ideal solution for most users, especially if they prefer dark mode over the lighter colored mode.
Microsoft announced plans to update the article when the issue is resolved. Whether that is already going to happen before the release of the December 9 cumulative update remains to be seen. Dark mode users on Windows 11 might want to hold off with the installation of the update until it is clear, whether the issue is also part of that update.
It is also unclear whether Windows 10 devices will also be affected by the issue. Microsoft did not release a preview update for the older operating system, which means that we will have to wait and see here as well.
Now You: Are you still on Windows 10 or already on Windows 11 or another operating system entirely? Let me and everyone else know in the comments below.
Found another open source file manager Spacedrive.
Double Commander is our friend
https://doublecmd.sourceforge.io/
or
Total Commander
https://www.ghisler.com/
That’s why I use F.lux for “dark mode”.
I ran into a new one last night. On one pc Windows would no longer repond to mouse clicks.
The cursor moved and things highlited when the cursor was over them but clicking did nothing.
I restarted and went into the bios and the mouse worked perfectly there.
I ended up unplugging all my usb devices and cold booting several times, attempting to get it to work when I plugged just the mouse back in and it finaly worked after several attempts.
I use a picture password, with no mouse clicks, I can’t even unlock my pc.
I do have a recovery USB but it didn’t get that far, luckily.
Redmond developers spend 95% of their time working on AI (although give it a couple of years and there won’t be any developers)
They then spend the remaining 4% thinking about fixing the feature failures they didn’t QA prior to release.
The 1% is them actually doing something about it
Pavan Davuluri should be sacked. It appears that the ability to successfully lead the Windows team has become a rarity.
Linux doesn’t do that ?
Haven’t seen Linux does.
Microsoft is likely still using old outdated codes from Windows XP or Vista or 7 which were hardcoded for white background so it works like a bug now with dark mode on Windows 11 where whenever you open File Explorer, it loads the white background first for milliseconds and then immediately switches to dark background, hence the white flash.
Entangling Desktop Environment deep with the Core of every Windows version is the biggest mistake Microsoft did and that probably why they can’t easily fix many bugs. Microsoft also made the same mistake of entangling Internet Explorer deep with the Core of Windows back in the days and probably making same mistake with Edge.
That’s true that Microsoft uses old code, but I was under the impression that the File Explorer program, like the taskbar were remade from scratch. Or is it not and just a heavily updated version?
If so, that File Explorer program could be as old as Windows 3.1 or Windows 95. And it probably can’t be fully transformed for dark mode so it will always show a white screen before.
Maybe that’s the reason why they want to add it as a background process that loads in memory before it’s even opened so they can bypass this flaw. But it’s not a solution, it’s just a band-aid.
Reminding you that ‘30% of Microsoft code is written using AI’…
AI will never write secure code because it doesn’t know what time is, and will generate code that works in a ‘seemingly working’ but wrong order.
The problem here is that the affected code was most likely written using some Copilot shit, and it generated code that contains a race condition.
The code generated by AI has no awareness of what time is, so it likely tries to make the ‘new tab’ appear before properly ensuring that it has actually been turned dark first.
The key to writing secure code is to enforce what the correct order of execution should be, and don’t allow elements that aren’t properly rendered yet to be interacted with.
That’s literally basic user interface design problems right there, and yet a billion-dollar company fails to understand it.
File Pilot is another alternative.
OneCommander is another one.
Drop it–forget it ever existed and work with an alternative.
It’s like beating a dead horse. Reality–issues exists with every OS and every program I have ever used–there is always something I can find fault with.
Best solution–highly variable and individual.
Better off switching to open source Files App instead.
https://github.com/files-community/Files
Well who cares, thank God we get AI now!!!!!! Finally we don’t ever again have to read words like “they make computers difficult so we can’t use them!” Microsoft now caters to the whole IQ spectrum.
This bug was already present in all Windows 10 versions.