Hello everybody!
In this video I’m going to show you how to fix the problem with disappearing desktop
icons, how to enable showing system icons, and how to add shortcuts manually if you failed
to restore them back to the desktop.
If you faced such a problem, just take my advice.
How to show or hide all icons If you see an absolutely empty desktop like
in my case, don’t panic.
First of all, try creating something on the desktop, for example, a new folder.
Right-click on the desktop, New, Folder.
If the folder doesn’t appear, right-click on the desktop, View, Show desktop icons.
As you can see, the icons are back.
If the icons don’t come back, go to Settings / System / Tabled mode - this option takes
away all unnecessary elements.
Drag the two sliders to “On” position and then to “Off” position - in some cases,
it can help.
If you have the problem with disappearing icons on a Windows 10 laptop, you can try
fixing it by switching the computer off by pressing the power button instead of the usual
Start / Power / Shutdown procedure.
When you turn the laptop on again, the icons should be back to their proper place.
Two monitors If the problem appears when connecting or
disconnecting the other monitor, you should change your display settings.
Right-click on the empty space of your desktop and select “Display settings.”
Try to disconnect the other monitor or sitch it on, change resolution or other settings.
Try changing all possible settings, and then set them back to default.
It can help you fix the problem.
You can watch one of our videos to learn more about setting up two monitors at the same
time.
Find the link in the description.
Tablet mode Sometimes users can enable the tablet mode
by mistake, which makes the desktop look different and all icons are not displayed.
To disable the tablet mode, click on the notification icon and turn it off by clicking on this icon.
System icons are gone If some system icons have disappeared, for
example, the Recycle Bin, This PC or others, Open Settings / Personalization / Themes / Desktop
icon settings.
In the window that opens, check the necessary boxes and click Apply.
If you feel like customizing icons, click “Change Icon” and select the one you like.
Click Ok, and the icons will appear in the desktop.
In Windows 7, you can find these settings by right-clicking on the desktop, Personalization,
Change Desktop Icons, and check the ones you need.
Restoring taskbar icons If icons are gone from the taskbar, for example,
you no longer see the time or the language panel, Open Settings / Personalization / Taskbar
/ Turn system icons on or off, and check the ones you need.
It will make them appear in the taskbar.
Problems with File Explorer A system file named “explorer” is in charge
of displaying shortcuts, folders and icons.
Sometimes icons disappear from the notification area and desktop because this file works incorrectly.
Its job is to display the Windows shell.
This problem can be fixed by restarting the file.
To do it, right-click on the Start menu, run the Task Manager, find Windows Explorer in
the Processes tab, right-click on it and select Restart.
Also, try to run it by clicking on File / Run new task, type “explorer.exe” in the window
that opens, and click OK.
Or, enter “explorer” in the search field and press Enter.
If you can’t find it at all, you should either restore your operating system, or copy
the file from a properly working computer and paste it into a corresponding folder in
your computer.
C:\Windows\explorer.exe
Icon cache The next step in restoring shortcuts will
be cleaning the icon cache.
To do it, follow the path C:\Users\Дмитрий\AppData\Local, and if you don’t see the AppData folder,
the chances are you have “display hidden folders” option disabled.
To enable it, click View and check hidden elements - now hidden folders will be displayed
as well.
Find the file IconCache.db and delete it, then restart the computer.
They should be visible after the restart.
Checking system files for integrity and restoring them in Windows 10
Another way of solving this problem is by checking system files for integrity and restoring
them.
To do it, start the command prompt by typing “cmd” in the search field and running
it as administrator, then type in the command sfc / scannow and press Enter.
After you run the command, the system check begins.
All integrity issues that can be corrected, will be fixed automatically, and if there
were none of them, you’ll see the message saying “Windows Resource Protection did
not find any integrity violations.”
You can watch one of our videos to learn more about checking system files.
Find the link in the description.
Updating Windows If you face a desktop icon problem after installation
of system updates, they should be removed.
To do it, open Settings / Apps & Features / Programs and Features and select “View
installed updates” in the windows that opens.
Select the updates which you think might have harmed your computer.
Click “Uninstall” and confirm your decision.
Changes will take effect after the system restart.
You can watch one of our videos to learn more about removing or disabling updates.
Find the link in the description.
Registry setup Icons may disappear because registry keys
have been modified or damaged.
To start it, press the key sequence Win+R, in the window that opens, type “regedit,”
then follow the path HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Winlogon
and check the following settings: Shell should have the value “explorer.exe,” and Userinit
– C:\Windows\system32\userinit.exe.
Then, follow this path: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Image File Execution Options
If you see a subkey “explorer.exe” or “iexplorer.exe” here, delete it.
The system will suggest a restart for the changes to take effect.
Viruses If none of the methods helped you, then your
computer might have been attacked by a virus.
You can watch one of our videos to learn more about getting rid of them.
Find the link in the description.
Wrong file icons Sometimes, users make a mistake and assign
wrong associations to files, such as .lnk shortcuts or .exe applications, and then such
files are opened with a wrong program.
It can also happen after your computer is attacked by a virus.
In such cases, you may ned to restore file associations.
In Windows 10 settings, there is an option to reset all file associations.
You can find by going to Settings / Apps / Default apps / Reset to the Microsoft recommended
defaults, click Reset, and the associations will be back to default.
You can watch one of our videos to learn more about file associations.
Find the link in the description.
Adding icons manually If the icons are gone and you can’t have
them back with all of the previous methods, you’ll have to add them manually.
I have already shown you how to add system icons, but to restore application shortcuts
you’ll have to create new elements, so right-click on the desktop, New, Shortcut.
Now click Browse and show the path to the necessary application, then click Next and
Finish.
All right, this shortcut is ready, now follow the same steps to create others.
Finally, if all the tricks I have shown you still don’t work, the only thing left to
do is to reinstall or recover the operating system.
You can see how to do it by watching special videos in our channel.
You will find the links in the description.
That is all for now.
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Leave comments to ask questions.
Thank you for watching.
Good luck.