However, there are a few basic remedies for the missing desktop icons that you can try to potentially remedy the issue on your computer. If you’d rather watch a video, we’ve included a YouTube instructional below that walks you through a few of the possibilities. If none of those work, make sure you read the rest of the post for more steps and answers.
Make sure the desktop icons aren’t turned off.
Before you try any of the other techniques, make sure that the option that displays your desktop icons is turned on. Your Windows 10 desktop icons have vanished since you or someone else turned off the feature for whatever reason. You can, however, bring them all back with only a few clicks.
Reconfigure the settings of your desktop icons
You should also double-check your desktop icon settings to make sure the ones you want are selected and enabled. It’s possible that customising your icon settings caused your icons to vanish from your desktop.
Restart Windows Explorer.
The explorer.exe process that runs on your computer is responsible for your desktop icons. If there’s a problem with the process, you can notice that your Windows 10 desktop icons are missing or vanishing. The good news is that you may quickly resolve the problem by restarting the process on your computer.
Select Run new task from the File menu at the top
In the window on your screen, type explorer.exe and hit Enter. It will relaunch Windows Explorer on your behalf. Toggle the Tablet Mode on and off Tablet mode in Windows Settings modifies how icons and other items show on your system, and it’s worth trying toggling it to see if it helps with the Windows 10 desktop icons missing issue.
Scan Your System for Corrupt Files and Repair Them
Corrupt files are frequently the cause of your computer’s inability to perform certain operations. Your files may get corrupted for a variety of reasons, but you may easily repair them using a built-in utility. The Windows operating system has a program that allows you to look for and repair faulty files on your computer. Press Windows + R at the same moment, then type cmd and press Enter. Press Enter after typing the following command into the CMD window. sfc /scannow sfc /scannow sfc /s Wait for it to scan your computer for corrupt files and fix them.
Toggle the Full-Screen Start Menu option.
Because there’s no obvious explanation why your Windows 10 desktop icons are missing, you can try enabling and disabling user interface choices to see if it fixes the problem.
Your Computer’s Icon Cache Should Be Rebuilt
The icon cache file is used by your computer to show icons on your desktop. It’s possible that if there’s a problem with this file, your desktop icons will vanish. Fortunately, you can rebuild this cache file on your computer by following a few simple steps.
Make sure your Recycle Bin is also empty.
Restarting your computer should result in the creation of a new cache file for your icons. To go back to a previous restore point, click the “Back to a Previous Restore Point” button. If the problem started after you installed software or changed your computer’s configuration, you can fix it by restoring your machine to a previous state. It will restore your settings to the state they were in when the icons displayed correctly on your desktop.
Restart the computer
Finally, if nothing else works, try resetting your PC to factory settings to see if it fixes the problem. It’s most likely going to fix it because that’s what it’s designed for. Your Windows 10 desktop icons can be missing for a variety of reasons, but you can always attempt some of the typical remedies to see if they help restore your icons. If the preceding technique was helpful in resolving the desktop icons gone issue on your PC, please share your solution in the comments section below so that others can benefit from it.
