In some of our earlier posts, for eg – 2 small blue arrow overlays which appear on desktop icons, overlay icon on encrypted files & blue and yellow shield icon, we explained what these icons overlay are and how to remove them. In this post, we will explain & show how to remove the chevron (>>) character in a blue box icon overlay on some files in Windows 11/10.
Generally, Windows supplies default icons for every item displayed on the desktop and in Windows Explorer. These icons often provide insight to the user as to the contents of the file or what program is associated with it.
Chevron (>>) character in a blue box icon overlay
This particular icon overlay occurs if you have third-party antivirus software installed. This happens after an auto-created backup of files by the AV software, therefore showing a checkmark or double forward-facing arrow (chevron) in a blue box overlay along with the icon. The icon displayed, indicates that the file has been changed by its last backup.
How to remove the chevron (>>) character in a blue box icon overlay
This icon overlay is more or less not harmful to your PC, as explained above. However, if you feel slight discomfort about the icon overlay, you can easily remove it.
To remove this icon overlay, you must uncheck Backup status indicators on the third-party antivirus software settings. Below, we outline how to do that on Norton Security. You can turn off backup from the Settings window, Backup Settings window, or from the Backup Details window.
Turn off backup from the Settings window
- Start Norton.
- If you see the My Norton window, next to Device Security, click Open.
- In the Norton main window, click Settings.
- In the Settings window, under Quick Controls, do the following:
- To turn off backup, uncheck Backup.
Turn off backup from the Norton Backup Settings window
- Start Norton.
- If you see the My Norton window, next to Device Security, click Open.
- In the Norton main window, click Settings.
- In the Settings window, click Backup Settings.
- In the Backup Settings window, do the following:
- To turn off backup, move the On/Off switch to Off.
- In the Settings window, click Apply.
Turn off backup from the Backup Details window
- Start Norton.
- If you see the My Norton window, next to Device Security, click Open.
- In the Norton main window, click Backup, and then click View Details.
- In the Backup Details window, under Things You Can Do, do the following:
- To turn off backup, click Turn Off Backup.
If you have any other third-party AV program installed other than Norton, check the program guide on how to turn off Backup for the software.
Related: How to remove Green Check Marks on Desktop Icons
Disable the icon overlay using AutoRuns or ShellExView
You can download AutoRuns from the official website of Microsoft. After downloading it, extract the zip file and open the extracted folder. You will find the exe file of AutoRuns there. Run it as an administrator to enable or disable the shell extensions.
After launching AutoRuns, scroll down and locate the icon overlay that you want to remove and disable that entry by unchecking its checkbox. Then restart your PC and see if it has worked.
You can also use the ShellExView tool from Nirsoft.net, you will be able to identify the program responsible for this or any icon overlay. You will also be able to disable it here.
