The drag and drop feature allows you to easily move files or folders to a new location. You can always move a file by pressing Ctrl + X and Ctrl + V or browse through folders when you want to attach a file to an email, but the drag and drop feature is simply more convenient.

That's why it's very annoying when this handy feature stops working on your computer. If this happens to you, don't worry; here are eight solutions to help you fix it.

1. Restart the Program You're Using

If you notice you can’t drag and drop into a specific program, there is a chance the software froze. To quickly fix it, save your work and restart the program. Then, try dragging and dropping again.

2. Check Your Hardware

The inability to drag and drop on a Windows computer might be related to hardware issues. First, take a closer look at your mouse’s left button to ensure nothing is stuck there and it’s working as usual.

Mouse next to a laptop

Then, check if a device isn’t interfering with the mouse functionality. If you’ve connected a joystick or a similar device, try to unplug it and check if you can now drag and drop.

Additionally, if you’re using a third-party app for your mouse, take a look at its settings. Besides this, try updating the app to the latest version available.

3. Make Windows Forget the Last Drag and Drop

Sometimes, your computer is still processing the last drag and drop process, stopping you from initiating a new drag and drop event. Fortunately, you can easily fix it without having to restart your computer or configure your system settings.

In File Explorer, click any file or folder and hold the left button on your mouse. Then, press the Esc key. Now, try dragging and dropping again.

4. Check Touchpad Gestures

If you can’t drag and drop using your laptop’s touchpad, chances are you’re dealing with incorrect touchpad settings. Press Windows key + I to bring up the Settings menu and go to Devices > Touchpad. There, scroll down the Taps section and check the Tap twice and drag to multi-select option.

Check touchpad gestures in Windows 10

You can also check out essential touchpad gestures in Windows 10 if you want to make the most out of your laptop's touchpad.

5. Restart File Explorer

Sometimes File Explorer encounters issues with dragging and dropping. Fortunately, you can fix this issue by restarting the service. However, doing so isn't as easy as closing all your open File Explorer windows, as the service is always running in the background.

Follow these steps to restart File Explorer:

  1. Right-click the Start button and select Task Manager.
  2. In the Details tab, look for explorer.exe.
  3. Right-click it and select End task. Your desktop will vanish, but don't worry; it's part of the process!
  4. Click File > Run new task.
  5. Type explorer.exe and click OK to restart the process.
Restart File Explorer in Windows 10

If this method didn't work on your computer, there are more ways to restart File Explorer in Windows 10.

6. Check Windows Version

There is a chance you can’t drag and drop on your computer if you are running an outdated version of Windows 10. As such, follow these steps to check and manually update Windows to the latest version:

  1. Open Settings.
  2. Go to Update & Security.
  3. From the left pane, select Windows Update.
  4. Click Check for updates.
Update Windows 10 to the latest version

Windows will search and install any available updates. Once it finishes, try to drag and drop to check if updating your system fixed the issue.

7. Check Mouse Drivers

If you can’t use your mouse to drag and drop, your mouse's drivers may need updating. This goes double if you're using a laptop and you can still drag and drop using the touchpad.

Follow these steps to check your mouse drivers:

  1. Right-click the Start button and select Device Manager.
  2. Extend the Mice and other pointing devices menu.
  3. Right-click your mouse driver and select Update driver.
  4. Select Search automatically for drivers > Search for drivers on Windows Update and Windows will find and install any available driver updates.
Update mouse drivers in Windows 10

Additionally, if you are using a third-party app to customize your mouse control settings, it could interfere with how it usually works. Take a look at the app settings and see if there is anything that could stop your mouse from working properly.

If it’s an app that you use for gaming, stop it from running at startup. Open Task Manager, go to Startup, select the app and click Disable.

8. Run the SFC and DISM Scans

SFC will check all your system files for any damaged or corrupted system files. Once it detects such files, it will automatically replace them. Also, the System File Checker will provide you with detailed information about the scan that you can access in its log file.

Follow these steps to run an SFC scan:

  1. Input command prompt in the Start menu search bar and select Run as administrator.
  2. Type sfc /scannow.
  3. Press Enter to launch the scan.
Run SFC scan in Windows 11

Do not close the Command Prompt window until the scan is not complete. The length of the scan will depend on your total system resources.

If the System File Checker detects any corrupted or damaged system files it will display the Windows Resource Protection found corrupt files and successfully repaired them message. If it doesn’t find corrupted files, you will see the Windows Resource Protection did not find any integrity violations message.

If the SFC scan didn’t fix the problem, you should try running a DISM scan. Open Command Prompt with admin rights as shown before and type in the next commands:

  • Dism/Online/Cleanup-Image0/ScanHealth
  • Dism/Online/Cleanup-Image/RestoreHealth

Once your system completes the scans, check if you can drag and drop.

9. Run Hardware & Devices Troubleshooter

Another tool you can use to fix your problem is the Hardware & Devices troubleshooter. In older Windows 10 versions, this tool was located in Control Panel. Now, you need to use Command Prompt to launch it. Here is how you can do it:

  1. Open Command Prompt with administrative rights as shown above.
  2. Type msdt.exe -id DeviceDiagnostic.
  3. Press Enter.
  4. Click Advanced > Apply repairs automatically.
  5. Click Next.
Running the hardware and devices troubleshooter

10. Edit Windows Registry

Windows Registry is one of the main elements of your system as it contains Windows and software settings, driver info, and user passwords. So when you encounter an issue on your computer, it’s worth the time to take a look at the Windows Registry.

Before making any changes to Windows Registry, you should create a backup for the registry database. If an editing mistake has a negative impact on your system, you will be able to get the original settings from the backup.

Here is how you can safely edit the Windows Registry so you can get drag and drop working again:

  1. Input the registry editor in the Start menu search bar and select Run as administrator.
  2. Head to Computer > HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE > SOFTWARE > Microsoft > Windows > CurrentVersion > Policies > System.
  3. On the right side of the window, open EnableLUA.
  4. Set Base to Hexadecimal.
  5. Set Value data to 0 and click OK.
  6. Restart your computer and check if you can drag and drop.
Edit Windows registry

Edit the Drag Height and Width

Registry Editor also contains the settings for the drag height and width. If the previous solution didn’t fix your issue, give this one a try. Follow these steps to continue:

  1. Open Registry Editor with administrative rights as shown above.
  2. Head to Computer > HKEY_CURRENT_USER > Control Panel > Desktop.
  3. From the right pane, open DragHeight.
  4. Enter a new value within the Value data field and click OK.
  5. Open DragWidth.
  6. Enter a new value within the Value field and click OK.
Edit the drag values in Windows Registry

The default value for DragWidth and DragHeight is 4. When changing it, don’t set it to an incredibly high value such as 2000 because it might lead to new problems.

Easy Fixes for the Drag and Drop Feature

Hopefully, one of the listed solutions fixed the drag and drop function on your computer. Most of the time, it’s just a temporary glitch that you can fix by restarting File Explorer or by making Windows forget the last drag and drop.

But if you still can’t drag and drop, you should use a different method to move your files. You can even use Command Prompt or have Windows automatically move them for you.