[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":378},["ShallowReactive",2],{"en-post-30":3},{"id":4,"title":5,"body":6,"description":370,"extension":371,"meta":372,"navigation":373,"path":374,"seo":375,"stem":376,"__hash__":377},"content/post/30.md","30",{"type":7,"value":8,"toc":357},"minimark",[9,18,27,32,39,46,50,53,63,66,70,76,96,99,103,106,127,131,134,154,158,161,193,197,200,208,211,215,239,243,323,327,333,342,351],[10,11,12,13,17],"p",{},"\"It worked fine last night, then Windows updated and now my desktop is blank, every icon is gone and the taskbar will not show up.\" That is one of the most common questions after an update. Start here: in the large majority of cases your files are still on the disk, and what broke is the desktop shell (",[14,15,16],"code",{},"explorer.exe",") failing to load, or a display toggle that got switched off. Do not reinstall or format. Work through the steps below and it usually comes back within a few minutes.",[10,19,20,21,26],{},"If you cannot get into Windows at all, stuck at the sign-in screen or staring at a black screen, that is a different problem covered in ",[22,23,25],"a",{"href":24},"/post/11/","Windows Won't Boot, Blue Screen, or Black Screen",". This article is for when Windows loads but the desktop looks wrong.",[28,29,31],"h2",{"id":30},"_1-confirm-the-files-are-still-there","1. Confirm the files are still there",[10,33,34,35,38],{},"Missing icons do not mean deleted files. Desktop icons are a view of the files living in ",[14,36,37],{},"C:\\Users\\your username\\Desktop",". As long as that folder is intact, the files are intact.",[10,40,41,42,45],{},"Press ",[14,43,44],{},"Win + E",", look at Desktop in the left pane, and you will almost certainly find everything there. Once you have confirmed that, the rest of the steps are safe to try.",[28,47,49],{"id":48},"_2-turn-show-desktop-icons-back-on","2. Turn \"Show desktop icons\" back on",[10,51,52],{},"The most common cause is simply this toggle being off.",[54,55,56,60],"ol",{},[57,58,59],"li",{},"Right-click empty space on the desktop and choose View.",[57,61,62],{},"Make sure \"Show desktop icons\" has a check next to it, and click it if not.",[10,64,65],{},"If right-clicking the desktop does nothing, the shell itself is the problem. Skip to step 3 and restart Explorer. This one step covers most cases of a blank desktop with files intact.",[28,67,69],{"id":68},"_3-taskbar-missing-or-desktop-unresponsive-restart-explorer","3. Taskbar missing or desktop unresponsive, restart Explorer",[10,71,72,73,75],{},"A frozen desktop, a missing taskbar and a dead right-click after an update usually mean ",[14,74,16],{}," (the process behind the desktop, taskbar and file windows) has hung or never started.",[54,77,78,84,87,93],{},[57,79,41,80,83],{},[14,81,82],{},"Ctrl + Shift + Esc"," to open Task Manager.",[57,85,86],{},"If Windows Explorer is in the list, right-click it and choose Restart.",[57,88,89,90,92],{},"If it is not listed, choose Run new task from the top right, type ",[14,91,16],{}," and press Enter.",[57,94,95],{},"Wait a few seconds and the icons and taskbar usually reappear.",[10,97,98],{},"This is the first fix to try for a blank desktop or vanished taskbar after an update. It is safe and does not touch your data.",[28,100,102],{"id":101},"_4-personalisation-and-default-apps-reset","4. Personalisation and default apps reset",[10,104,105],{},"Some feature updates reset parts of your personalisation and default app settings, covering Start menu layout, the default browser and file associations. It shows up as a Start menu that looks different, or PDFs opening in the wrong program.",[107,108,109,121],"ul",{},[57,110,111,115,116,120],{},[112,113,114],"strong",{},"Default apps changed."," Go to Settings > Apps > Default apps and set them again. If unwanted software keeps changing them back, see ",[22,117,119],{"href":118},"/post/26/","Default Apps Keep Changing in Windows 11",".",[57,122,123,126],{},[112,124,125],{},"Start menu or taskbar layout changed."," Pin your usual apps again. Restoring the whole Windows 10 look needs one of the tools mentioned later.",[28,128,130],{"id":129},"_5-corrupt-icon-cache-icons-blank-or-mismatched","5. Corrupt icon cache, icons blank or mismatched",[10,132,133],{},"An update occasionally corrupts the icon cache, leaving icons as blank paper, duplicated or mismatched. To rebuild it:",[54,135,136,139],{},[57,137,138],{},"Open Task Manager and restart Windows Explorer, as in step 3.",[57,140,141,142,145,146,149,150,153],{},"Still wrong, press ",[14,143,144],{},"Win + R",", type ",[14,147,148],{},"%localappdata%"," and press Enter. Delete ",[14,151,152],{},"IconCache.db"," (it may be hidden), then restart Explorer once more.",[28,155,157],{"id":156},"_6-damaged-system-files-run-sfc-and-dism","6. Damaged system files, run SFC and DISM",[10,159,160],{},"If the desktop stays unstable or keeps freezing after restarting Explorer, the update may have corrupted system files.",[54,162,163,176],{},[57,164,165,166],{},"Open Command Prompt or Terminal as administrator and run:",[167,168,173],"pre",{"className":169,"code":171,"language":172},[170],"language-text","sfc /scannow\n","text",[14,174,171],{"__ignoreMap":175},"",[57,177,178,179,185,188,189,192],{},"If it reports damage that it repaired, reboot and check again. If SFC cannot fix it, follow with:",[167,180,183],{"className":181,"code":182,"language":172},[170],"DISM /Online /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealth\n",[14,184,182],{"__ignoreMap":175},[186,187],"br",{},"then run ",[14,190,191],{},"sfc /scannow"," once more.",[28,194,196],{"id":195},"_7-the-update-itself-is-broken-uninstall-it","7. The update itself is broken, uninstall it",[10,198,199],{},"If the trouble started with a specific update, roll that one back.",[107,201,202,205],{},[57,203,204],{},"Go to Settings > Windows Update > Update history > Uninstall updates, pick the most recent entry (preview updates are common culprits), uninstall and reboot.",[57,206,207],{},"If you cannot reach the desktop at all, force a shutdown twice during startup to trigger automatic repair, then go to advanced startup and uninstall the update.",[10,209,210],{},"Before uninstalling, consider pausing updates so Windows does not immediately reinstall it.",[28,212,214],{"id":213},"_8-three-things-not-to-do","8. Three things not to do",[54,216,217,223,233],{},[57,218,219,222],{},[112,220,221],{},"Do not reinstall or format."," A blank desktop is almost always non-destructive, and reinstalling is how people actually lose data.",[57,224,225,228,229,232],{},[112,226,227],{},"Do not go deleting files on C."," In particular, leave the ",[14,230,231],{},"Users"," folder alone.",[57,234,235,238],{},[112,236,237],{},"Do not trust \"one-click repair\" utilities."," Stick to built-in tools and software from sources you trust.",[28,240,242],{"id":241},"quick-triage-by-symptom","Quick triage by symptom",[244,245,246,262],"table",{},[247,248,249],"thead",{},[250,251,252,256,259],"tr",{},[253,254,255],"th",{},"What you see",[253,257,258],{},"Most likely cause",[253,260,261],{},"Jump to",[263,264,265,277,290,301,312],"tbody",{},[250,266,267,271,274],{},[268,269,270],"td",{},"Blank desktop, files still visible in File Explorer",[268,272,273],{},"Show desktop icons is switched off",[268,275,276],{},"Step 2",[250,278,279,282,287],{},[268,280,281],{},"Taskbar gone, right-click on desktop does nothing",[268,283,284,286],{},[14,285,16],{}," has hung or never started",[268,288,289],{},"Step 3",[250,291,292,295,298],{},[268,293,294],{},"Icons blank, duplicated or mismatched",[268,296,297],{},"Icon cache is corrupt",[268,299,300],{},"Step 5",[250,302,303,306,309],{},[268,304,305],{},"Desktop keeps freezing, restarting Explorer does not help",[268,307,308],{},"Damaged system files or a bad update",[268,310,311],{},"Steps 6 and 7",[250,313,314,317,320],{},[268,315,316],{},"Cannot reach Windows at all, stuck at sign-in or a black screen",[268,318,319],{},"A different class of failure",[268,321,322],{},"The self-recovery guide linked above",[28,324,326],{"id":325},"common-questions","Common questions",[10,328,329,332],{},[112,330,331],{},"Icons are gone, does that mean I have a virus?","\nUnlikely. After an update, desktop trouble is nearly always the shell process or a display toggle. Do steps 2 and 3, confirm the files are still there, and stop worrying.",[10,334,335,338,339,341],{},[112,336,337],{},"The desktop goes blank again every time I restart Explorer.","\nRun ",[14,340,191],{}," and DISM (step 6), then consider uninstalling the most recent update (step 7).",[10,343,344,347,348,350],{},[112,345,346],{},"My desktop files really are missing.","\nCheck ",[14,349,37],{}," directly. If that folder is empty too, stop writing to the drive, scan it with recovery software instead, and save anything recovered to a different disk rather than back onto the same one.",[10,352,353,356],{},[112,354,355],{},"Can I avoid this next time?","\nDelay updates. Pausing them for a few weeks until Microsoft has fixed the known issues avoids most of these failures.",{"title":175,"searchDepth":358,"depth":358,"links":359},2,[360,361,362,363,364,365,366,367,368,369],{"id":30,"depth":358,"text":31},{"id":48,"depth":358,"text":49},{"id":68,"depth":358,"text":69},{"id":101,"depth":358,"text":102},{"id":129,"depth":358,"text":130},{"id":156,"depth":358,"text":157},{"id":195,"depth":358,"text":196},{"id":213,"depth":358,"text":214},{"id":241,"depth":358,"text":242},{"id":325,"depth":358,"text":326},"\"It worked fine last night, then Windows updated and now my desktop is blank, every icon is gone and the taskbar will not show up.\" That is one of the most common questions after an update. Start here: in the large majority of cases your files are still on the disk, and what broke is the desktop shell (explorer.exe) failing to load, or a display toggle that got switched off. Do not reinstall or format. Work through the steps below and it usually comes back within a few minutes.","md",{},true,"/post/30",{"description":370},"post/30","-fw2IS4q9PBlTtEvYD1xRL5mr6PASUTvb0xu-wbOuVE",1794378303595]