The essential task bar made a welcome back in Windows 10 but, it wasn’t what some of the users were expecting. Many people reported that their task bar froze or didn’t display any icons. We ran some diagnostic tests and came up with a list of possible solutions. Work your way down starting from the top and hopefully, your issue will be resolved in no time.
Solution 1: Running System File Checker
System File Checker (SFC) is a utility present in Microsoft Windows which allows the users to scan their computers for corrupt files in their operating system. This tool has been there in Microsoft Windows since windows 98. It is a very useful tool for diagnosing the problem and checking if any problem is due to corrupt files in windows. We can try running SFC and see if our problem gets solved. You will get one of the three responses when running SFC.
Windows didn’t find any integrity violationsWindows Resource Protection found corrupt files and repaired themWindows Resource Protection found corrupt files but was unable to fix some (or all) of them
If an error was detected and was fixed using the above methods, restart your computer and check if the taskbar started working normally.
Solution 2: Reinstalling Windows Applications.
Most of the Windows inbuilt applications allow uninstalling option directly from their properties. However, utilities like taskbar don’t have such an option. We can uninstall such applications with a PowerShell cmdlet. This trick is also limited and won’t allow you to uninstall other important applications like Microsoft Edge or Cortana. Get-AppxPackage -AllUsers| Foreach {Add-AppxPackage -DisableDevelopmentMode -Register “$($_.InstallLocation)\AppXManifest.xml”}
A restart might be necessary to implement the changes necessary. Restart your computer and check if this fixed the problem for you.
Solution 3: Install the latest Windows updates
Windows roll out important updates targeting the bug fixes in the operating system. One of the bugs is our case; the problem with the task manager. If you are holding back and not installing the Windows update, we strongly recommend that you do. Windows 10 is the latest Windows operating system and new operating systems take a lot of time to get perfect in every regard. There are a lot of issues still pending with the OS and Microsoft rolls out frequent updates to target these issues.
Solution 4: Restarting Windows Explorer
This is a simple fix which worked for a lot of people. If the problem with the taskbar isn’t as critical, this method should fix it instantly. We won’t need to meddle with other system settings and just restart the windows explorer.
Solution 5: Re-registering the Taskbar
We can try re-registering the taskbar in your operating system using the Windows PowerShell. This command is very system dependent and can cause a problem in your operating system if it isn’t installed properly. Create a restore point of your Windows just in case things go bad.
Get-AppXPackage -AllUsers | Foreach {Add-AppxPackage -DisableDevelopmentMode -Register “$($_.InstallLocation)\AppXManifest.xml”} C:/Users/name/AppData/Local/ Here name is your account’s username.
Solution 6: Making new user account
It is possible that your account doesn’t meet the requirements as set by the UAC to access the taskbar correctly. UAC is also known as User Access Control. It is an infrastructure developed by Microsoft. It ensures that only users trusted with using applications can access them. Only certain users can get administrative privileges to keep malware off the system. If you have a limited account on a computer and also can’t access the calculator, it means there is a conflict with UAC. You can ask the administrator to make you a new account or if you access to the administrative account, you make a new one yourself. We can guide you on how to make a new account so all the account settings in the new will be the same as your current account. This way you won’t feel any difference and also get to run the calculator perfectly.
Solution 7: Repairing your Windows
As a last resort, we can try repairing your Windows. It is advised that you backup your data and save all your work before continuing with this process. This process can also consume some time so it is advised that you start it when you are absolutely sure there will be no interruptions. Follow our instruction in our article which explains how to repair your Windows 10.
Some Taskbar Icons Are Missing from Windows 11’s Taskbar? Here’s How to Fix ItFIX: System Icons Missing from Taskbar (Windows Vista / 7)How to Fix Taskbar Icons Missing After Reboot on Windows 11Fix: Can’t Right Click on Windows 10’s Taskbar Icons
