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FolderRisk: Caution

Media C:\Windows\Media

Windows system sounds (.wav files for notifications, errors, sign-in and so on). You choose sounds in Control Panel, not by editing this folder.

Updated on By AltF4 Formation

What it’s for

C:\Windows\Media holds the audio files Windows plays for system events: notification, warning, error, sign-in, device connection. Which sound goes with which event is stored in the registry, under HKCU\AppEvents, and you pick it in Control Panel.

What it contains

  • .wav files, for example tada.wav, chimes.wav or Windows Notify System Generic.wav.
  • Subfolders for sound schemes, for example Afternoon or Landscape, depending on the Windows version.
  • No program: the Windows audio service plays these files, using the paths stored under HKCU\AppEvents.

Risks and best practices

  • Do not delete these files: an event that points to a missing sound falls back to a default or stays silent.
  • To change or mute sounds, go to Settings > System > Sound > More sound settings (Sounds tab) and leave the files alone. A “No Sounds” scheme solves the training-room case.
  • Your own sounds do not belong here: an update can restore the folder. Keep them elsewhere and point to them from the Sounds tab.

Useful commands

Fenêtre de terminal
# Available sound schemes
Get-ChildItem "$env:windir\Media" -Directory | Select-Object Name


# Open the Sounds tab of Control Panel
control mmsys.cpl,,2

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