How to Show Detailed File Information in Windows Explorer Hover Tooltips

Windows Explorer already knows a surprising amount of information about your files. The problem is that it does not always show all of it.

Hover over a normal file and Windows may show only a few basic details such as the file type, size and date modified. For media files, however, you may want much more useful information.

For example, when hovering over a video, you might want to see:

• Resolution
• Duration
• Frame rate
• Video bitrate
• Audio channels
• Audio bitrate
• Sample rate

For music files, you might want:

• Track title
• Artist
• Album
• Duration
• Bitrate
• Sample rate
• Channel count
• Year
• Genre

Windows has a built-in Property System that controls much of this information. With the help of Icaros and a small Registry modification, you can customize the information displayed in these Explorer hover popups.

This guide shows how to do it for video, audio, image and document files.

What We Are Changing

When you hover your mouse over a file in Windows Explorer, Windows displays an InfoTip.

The information shown in that popup is controlled by Windows' Property System and, for specific file types, an InfoTip property list.

Windows allows this list to contain multiple property names separated by semicolons.

For example:

prop:System.ItemType;System.Size;System.Video.FrameWidth;System.Video.FrameHeight;System.Media.Duration

This tells Windows to display the file type, size, video dimensions and duration in the InfoTip.

The important part is that these are not arbitrary names. They are Windows canonical property names.

In simple terms: Icaros helps Windows understand additional media-file metadata, while the Registry tells Windows which of those available properties should actually be displayed in the hover popup.

Why Icaros Is Useful

Windows does not necessarily have a property handler capable of reading every piece of metadata from every media format.

This becomes particularly noticeable with formats such as MKV, FLAC and OGG.

Icaros provides Windows with additional media property and thumbnail handling, allowing Explorer to obtain more information from supported media files.

Icaros can expose information such as video dimensions, frame rate, bitrate, audio channels, sample rate and additional audio metadata.

It also supports additional formats and metadata beyond what Windows may expose by default.

Step 1: Install Icaros

Download Icaros from its official project page:

Download Icaros from GitHub →

Install Icaros normally.

After installation, open IcarosConfig.

The exact appearance of IcarosConfig can vary between versions, but the relevant settings are the ones related to the Property Handler and supported file extensions.

Step 2: Enable the Icaros Property Handler

If you want Icaros to provide metadata to Windows Explorer, make sure its Property Handler is enabled.

In IcarosConfig:

1. Open IcarosConfig.
2. If necessary, click Deactivate Icaros so the configuration can be changed.
3. Find the Properties section.
4. Make sure Enable Property Handler is enabled.
5. Check that the file extensions you want to use are included.
6. For example, make sure .mkv and .mp4 are included for video files.
7. Click Activate Icaros.

The Property Handler is particularly important when Windows Explorer displays the property labels but cannot retrieve the actual metadata from a file.

If the data is blank: changing the InfoTip alone may not be enough. Windows also needs a component capable of reading the relevant metadata. This is where Icaros' Property Handler becomes important.

Step 3: Choose the Appropriate Icaros Preset

Icaros provides presets that control which file types it handles.

If you want Icaros to provide metadata for as many supported video formats as possible, look for the preset options in IcarosConfig.

Depending on the version, options may include presets such as:

• Video Only
• Most Known Video Formats
• Other format-specific presets

Choose a preset that includes the formats you actually use.

There is no need to enable every possible format if you only need Icaros for MKV and MP4 files.

Step 4: Back Up the Registry

The next part involves editing the Windows Registry.

Before making any Registry changes, create a backup.

Press:

Win + R

Type:

regedit

and press Enter.

When Registry Editor opens, you can export the relevant key before modifying it.

For example, if you are modifying the MP4 settings, navigate to:

HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\SystemFileAssociations\.mp4

Right-click the key and select Export.

Save the resulting .reg file somewhere safe.

Registry warning: Registry modifications can affect Windows behavior. Do not delete unrelated values or keys. If you are unfamiliar with Registry Editor, create the backup before making any changes and only modify the InfoTip value described in this guide.

Step 5: Customize the Video InfoTip

Let's start with video files such as MP4, MKV and AVI.

Navigate to:

HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\SystemFileAssociations\.mp4

Replace .mp4 with the extension you want to customize.

For example:

HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\SystemFileAssociations\.mkv

Look for a string value named:

InfoTip

If it does not exist, create a new String Value named InfoTip.

Then enter a property list beginning with prop:.

A useful video configuration is:

prop:System.ItemType;System.Size;System.Video.FrameWidth;System.Video.FrameHeight;System.Media.Duration;*System.Video.TotalBitrate;*System.Video.FrameRate;*System.Audio.ChannelCount

This can give you a compact but useful popup containing:

• File type
• File size
• Video width
• Video height
• Duration
• Video bitrate
• Frame rate
• Audio channel count

Understanding the Asterisk

You may have noticed the * before some properties:

*System.Video.TotalBitrate

The asterisk is useful because it tells Windows to include the property only when a value is available.

Without it, a property that cannot be retrieved may result in an unnecessary empty field.

For example:

prop:System.Title;System.Media.Duration;*System.Audio.SampleRate;*System.Music.Genre

Here, the title and duration are requested normally, while sample rate and genre are displayed only when they contain data.

Frame Rate: One Important Detail

Windows' System.Video.FrameRate property does not store the frame rate as a normal decimal FPS value.

It uses FPS multiplied by 1000.

For example:

Actual frame rate	Windows property value
23.976 FPS	23976
24 FPS	24000
29.97 FPS	29970
30 FPS	30000
59.94 FPS	59940

Therefore, if Explorer shows a value such as 23976, that represents approximately 23.976 FPS.

Useful Video Properties

These are some of the most useful Windows properties for video files:

Property	Information
System.Video.FrameWidth	Video width in pixels
System.Video.FrameHeight	Video height in pixels
System.Media.Duration	Duration
System.Video.FrameRate	Frame rate × 1000
System.Video.TotalBitrate	Total video bitrate
System.Video.DataRate	Video data rate
System.Audio.ChannelCount	Number of audio channels
System.Audio.EncodingBitrate	Audio bitrate
System.Audio.SampleRate	Audio sample rate

Step 6: Customize Audio Files

The same technique works extremely well for music files.

You can customize extensions such as:

• .mp3
• .flac
• .m4a
• .wav
• .ogg

For example, to customize FLAC files:

HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\SystemFileAssociations\.flac

Then create or edit the InfoTip string.

A useful audio configuration is:

prop:System.Title;System.Music.Artist;System.Music.AlbumTitle;System.Media.Duration;System.Audio.EncodingBitrate;*System.Audio.SampleRate;*System.Music.Genre;*System.Media.Year

This produces a much more useful music popup than the basic Windows information.

It can show:

• Track title
• Artist
• Album
• Duration
• Bitrate
• Sample rate
• Genre
• Year

Why Use System.Title for the Track Name?

Windows uses System.Title as the general title property for many types of files, including music.

This is preferable to relying on the filename.

For example, your filename might be:

01_track_final_v2_edit.flac

while the embedded title might be:

Bohemian Rhapsody

Using:

System.Title

allows the Explorer popup to display the actual metadata title instead of simply repeating the filename.

Useful Audio Properties

Property	Information
System.Title	Track title
System.Music.Artist	Artist
System.Music.AlbumTitle	Album
System.Music.AlbumArtist	Album artist
System.Music.Genre	Genre
System.Music.TrackNumber	Track number
System.Music.Composer	Composer
System.Music.Conductor	Conductor
System.Media.Year	Year
System.Media.Duration	Duration
System.Audio.EncodingBitrate	Encoding bitrate
System.Audio.SampleRate	Sample rate
System.Audio.ChannelCount	Number of audio channels

The Ultimate Audio InfoTip

If you want a clean and comprehensive music popup, use:

prop:System.Title;System.Music.Artist;System.Music.AlbumTitle;System.Media.Duration;System.Audio.EncodingBitrate;*System.Audio.SampleRate;*System.Music.Genre;*System.Media.Year

I would avoid adding every possible music property. A popup containing twenty different fields becomes difficult to read and can also take longer to populate.

Properties such as lyrics can also make the popup unnecessarily large.

Step 7: Customize Image Files

The same principle works for images.

For example:

• .jpg
• .jpeg
• .png
• .psd

For a JPEG file, navigate to:

HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\SystemFileAssociations\.jpg

A useful image InfoTip is:

prop:System.ItemType;*System.DateModified;*System.Image.Dimensions;*System.Size

This gives you basic information such as file type, modification date, dimensions and size.

If you want more photographic information, you can use:

prop:Type;System.Photo.DateTaken;System.Image.Dimensions;System.Image.HorizontalResolution;System.Image.VerticalResolution;System.Image.BitDepth;System.Image.ColorSpace;System.Photo.CameraManufacturer;System.Photo.CameraModel;System.Size

This can expose information such as:

• Date taken
• Image dimensions
• Horizontal and vertical resolution
• Bit depth
• Color space
• Camera manufacturer
• Camera model
• File size

Step 8: Customize Document Files

The Property System is not limited to multimedia.

Documents can also expose metadata through Explorer.

Useful properties include:

• Author
• Title
• Subject
• Comments
• Page count
• Date modified
• File size

For example:

prop:Type;DocAuthor;DocTitle;DocSubject;DocComments;System.Document.PageCount;System.DateModified;System.Size

The exact properties available depend on the document format and the property handler installed on the system.

Apply the Audio Settings to Multiple Formats at Once

If you want the same audio InfoTip for several file types, you do not have to edit each Registry key manually.

You can create a .reg file.

Open Notepad and paste:

Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\SystemFileAssociations\.mp3]
"InfoTip"="prop:System.Title;System.Music.Artist;System.Music.AlbumTitle;System.Media.Duration;System.Audio.EncodingBitrate;*System.Audio.SampleRate;*System.Music.Genre;*System.Media.Year"

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\SystemFileAssociations\.flac]
"InfoTip"="prop:System.Title;System.Music.Artist;System.Music.AlbumTitle;System.Media.Duration;System.Audio.EncodingBitrate;*System.Audio.SampleRate;*System.Music.Genre;*System.Media.Year"

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\SystemFileAssociations\.m4a]
"InfoTip"="prop:System.Title;System.Music.Artist;System.Music.AlbumTitle;System.Media.Duration;System.Audio.EncodingBitrate;*System.Audio.SampleRate;*System.Music.Genre;*System.Media.Year"

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\SystemFileAssociations\.wav]
"InfoTip"="prop:System.Title;System.Music.Artist;System.Music.AlbumTitle;System.Media.Duration;System.Audio.EncodingBitrate;*System.Audio.SampleRate;*System.Music.Genre;*System.Media.Year"

Save it as:

AudioHover.reg

Make sure Notepad does not save it as AudioHover.reg.txt.

Double-click the file and confirm the Registry changes.

Afterward, restart Windows Explorer or restart Windows if the changes do not immediately appear.

Always inspect a Registry file before importing it. A .reg file can make system-wide changes. The example above modifies only the four specified file-type InfoTip values.

Apply the Same Idea to Video Files

You can also create a Registry file for your video formats.

For example:

Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\SystemFileAssociations\.mp4]
"InfoTip"="prop:System.ItemType;System.Size;System.Video.FrameWidth;System.Video.FrameHeight;System.Media.Duration;*System.Video.TotalBitrate;*System.Video.FrameRate;*System.Audio.ChannelCount"

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\SystemFileAssociations\.mkv]
"InfoTip"="prop:System.ItemType;System.Size;System.Video.FrameWidth;System.Video.FrameHeight;System.Media.Duration;*System.Video.TotalBitrate;*System.Video.FrameRate;*System.Audio.ChannelCount"

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\SystemFileAssociations\.avi]
"InfoTip"="prop:System.ItemType;System.Size;System.Video.FrameWidth;System.Video.FrameHeight;System.Media.Duration;*System.Video.TotalBitrate;*System.Video.FrameRate;*System.Audio.ChannelCount"

Save it as:

VideoHover.reg

Then import it in the same way.

Using Icaros' Own Extended Properties

Icaros can expose additional properties that are not part of the standard Windows property namespace.

For example, Icaros can provide properties such as:

Icaros.BitDepth
Icaros.VideoTracks
Icaros.AudioTracks

The Icaros configuration supplied with the files used for this guide includes these properties in its extended audio and video property lists.

For example, an Icaros-oriented audio property list can include:

prop:Type;System.Music.TrackNumber;System.Title;System.Music.AlbumTitle;System.Music.AlbumArtist;System.Media.Duration;System.Media.Year;System.Audio.ChannelCount;*Icaros.BitDepth;System.Audio.EncodingBitrate;System.Audio.SampleRate;System.OfflineAvailability;System.Size

And a video property list can include:

prop:Type;System.Media.Duration;System.Video.FrameWidth;System.Video.FrameHeight;System.Video.FrameRate;Icaros.VideoTracks;System.Video.TotalBitrate;System.Video.DataRate;Icaros.AudioTracks;System.Audio.ChannelCount;System.Audio.EncodingBitrate;System.Audio.SampleRate;System.OfflineAvailability;System.Size

This is one of the reasons Icaros can be useful when you want more technical media information directly inside Windows Explorer.

What If the InfoTip Still Shows Nothing?

If the popup displays the labels but the actual values are blank, there are several possibilities.

1. The file does not contain the metadata

A property cannot be displayed if the file does not contain the information and no component can derive it.

For example, a music file without an embedded sample-rate value cannot magically provide one through a metadata property.

2. Windows does not have a suitable property handler

This is where Icaros can help.

Make sure the Icaros Property Handler is enabled and that the relevant extension is included in its supported formats.

3. Another application is overriding the Explorer integration

Third-party applications can install their own shell extensions and metadata handlers.

This can affect which properties Explorer displays and which component supplies them.

4. Explorer has not refreshed the settings

Restart Windows Explorer.

You can do this from Task Manager:

1. Press Ctrl + Shift + Esc.
2. Find Windows Explorer.
3. Right-click it.
4. Select Restart.

If that does not work, restart Windows.

Using PropertySystemView

If you prefer not to dig through the Registry manually, PropertySystemView from NirSoft can be useful for investigating Windows' Property System.

It can display and modify file properties through the Windows Property System and can also show the properties available on a system.

Download PropertySystemView from NirSoft →

This is particularly useful when you want to discover what properties are actually available before building your own InfoTip string.

For example, you can use it to inspect a media file and determine whether the Windows Property System can see the metadata you are trying to display.

Windows' Property Names Are the Key

The most important concept in this entire guide is the canonical property name.

Windows uses names such as:

System.Title
System.Media.Duration
System.Audio.SampleRate
System.Audio.ChannelCount
System.Video.FrameWidth
System.Video.FrameHeight
System.Image.Dimensions
System.Photo.CameraModel

These names identify individual properties in Windows' Property System.

Once you know the canonical name of a property, you can often add it to an InfoTip list.

That makes the system surprisingly customizable.

Don't Add Too Many Properties

It can be tempting to add every property you can find.

I would recommend against it.

A hover popup containing twenty or thirty fields becomes difficult to read, and Windows may need to retrieve additional metadata every time you hover over a file.

A better approach is to choose the information you actually care about.

For example, for music I would use:

prop:System.Title;System.Music.Artist;System.Music.AlbumTitle;System.Media.Duration;System.Audio.EncodingBitrate;*System.Audio.SampleRate;*System.Music.Genre;*System.Media.Year

For video:

prop:System.ItemType;System.Size;System.Video.FrameWidth;System.Video.FrameHeight;System.Media.Duration;*System.Video.TotalBitrate;*System.Video.FrameRate;*System.Audio.ChannelCount

These provide useful information without turning the popup into a wall of metadata.

What About dBpoweramp?

If you already use dBpoweramp, you may notice that it provides much more detailed information for audio files directly in Windows Explorer.

That is because dBpoweramp provides its own shell integration and metadata handling.

If dBpoweramp's InfoTips are enabled, they can take precedence over the normal Windows InfoTip behavior.

If you are testing your own Registry configuration and nothing appears to change, check dBpoweramp's shell integration settings.

In dBpoweramp Configuration, look under the Music Converter settings and check the Shell Integration options.

If necessary, temporarily disable Enable InfoTips and test the Windows configuration again.

Important: You do not need to disable dBpoweramp if you prefer its InfoTips. This is mainly useful when you want Windows' own customized InfoTip configuration instead.

Icaros vs MediaInfo

Icaros is useful when you want Windows Explorer itself to understand and display additional media properties.

However, if your goal is to see every technical detail about a media file, a dedicated analyzer such as MediaInfo is usually a better tool.

MediaInfo can expose significantly more information about a media file, including codec details, individual audio and video streams, encoding information and other technical metadata.

It can also integrate information into Windows Explorer through its Shell InfoTip option.

So the two tools serve slightly different purposes:

Tool	Best For
Icaros	Adding media property and thumbnail support to Windows Explorer
Windows Registry InfoTip	Choosing which available properties Explorer displays
PropertySystemView	Inspecting Windows properties and troubleshooting the Property System
MediaInfo	Deep technical analysis of audio and video files
dBpoweramp	Detailed music metadata and audio-file integration

My Recommended Setup

If your primary goal is to make Windows Explorer more informative without turning it into a full media-analysis application, I recommend this combination:

1. Install Icaros.
2. Enable its Property Handler.
3. Make sure the media extensions you use are enabled.
4. Customize the Windows InfoTip for the file types you care about.
5. Use the * prefix for optional properties.
6. Keep the number of properties reasonably small.
7. Restart Windows Explorer after making changes.

For music, a compact metadata-focused InfoTip works particularly well.

For video, I would prioritize resolution, duration, bitrate, frame rate and basic audio information.

For images, dimensions, date taken and camera information are usually the most useful.

Final Thoughts

Windows Explorer does not necessarily lack the information you want. In many cases, it simply isn't configured to display it.

The combination of the Windows Property System, Icaros' Property Handler and custom InfoTip definitions gives you considerably more control over what appears when you hover over files.

The most useful part is that you can customize it according to your own needs.

If you mainly work with music, create an audio-focused InfoTip.

If you have a large movie collection, create a video-focused one.

If you work with photographs, expose the camera and image properties that matter to you.

And if you want absolutely every technical detail available from a media file, use MediaInfo instead of trying to turn the Explorer hover popup into a complete media analyzer.

The basic idea is simple:

Icaros
   ↓
Reads / exposes additional media properties
   ↓
Windows Property System
   ↓
Custom InfoTip
   ↓
Windows Explorer hover popup

Once you understand how the InfoTip property list works, you can build your own custom Explorer metadata display without installing a heavyweight file manager.

Useful links:

Icaros on GitHub →

PropertySystemView →

MediaInfo →

Windows Property System: Microsoft Learn →

Icaros: https://github.com/Xanashi/Icaros