Maximum number of recent documents: registry value MaxRecentDocsUserHKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\Explorer

Policy ID: MaxRecentDocs
Scope: User Configuration
Supported on: Windows Server 2008, Windows Server 2003, Windows 7, Windows Vista, Windows XP, and Windows 2000
Source: Administrative Templates (.admx) for Windows 11 2026 Update (26H2) (version 1.0)
Category: Windows Components › File Explorer

Registry

MaxRecentDocs

REG_DWORDUser

HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\Explorer Current key

Enabled value: Depends on the option value
Element: Maximum number of recent documents
Value type: REG_DWORD
Required: true

Apply with .reg · CMD · PowerShell

.reg

Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00

[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\Explorer]

; Value names and types follow the ADMX. Replace <enter value> below with your own data
"MaxRecentDocs"=dword:<enter value>

CMD

:: Value names and types follow the ADMX. Replace <enter value> below with your own data

reg add "HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\Explorer" /v "MaxRecentDocs" /t REG_DWORD /d "<enter value>" /f

PowerShell

# Value names and types follow the ADMX. Replace <enter value> below with your own data

New-Item -Path 'HKCU:\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\Explorer' -Force | Out-Null
New-ItemProperty -Path 'HKCU:\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\Explorer' -Name 'MaxRecentDocs' -PropertyType DWord -Value '<enter value>' -Force | Out-Null