Taskbar icons missing in Windows 11? Here are 6 easy fixes!
Windows 11 is a great desktop OS, no doubt about it. However, some classic Windows issues occur quite frequently and are annoying for the average user. We recently found out that Wi-Fi is not showing up in Windows 11 for some users, while others have found that the Start menu doesn't work at all for them. Now we hear about problems with taskbar icons, so in this guide, we will explain how to fix the problem of missing taskbar icons in Windows 11. We have included basic solutions in advanced methods for restoring taskbar icons. So if you are also facing the same problem and your Windows 11 PC is missing icons on the taskbar, follow our guide to fix this problem right away.
Fix missing taskbar icons in Windows 11 (2022) edition
In this guide, we have added six easy ways to fix the problem with missing icons on the taskbar in Windows 11. You can use both the simple method, like restarting File Explorer, and the extreme methods, like uninstalling the latest update. Expand the table below and navigate to any section you want.
1. Restart Windows Explorer.
If your Windows 11 PC is missing taskbar icons, you should restart Windows Explorer before trying anything else. This is one of the simplest solutions that can fix any issues related to the taskbar, start menu, or action center. So let's look at the steps.
1. First, press the Windows 11 keyboard shortcut "Ctrl + Shift + Esc" to open the Task Manager.
2. Here, under Processes, scroll down and find Windows Explorer. Now right-click it and select Restart.
3. All open windows, taskbar and desktop will disappear for a second, and then almost immediately everything will return back. This time, the icons on the taskbar should also show up and work as expected.
4. If there are still no icons on the taskbar, restart your computer. Be sure to restart your system instead of shutting down your computer and then turning it back on. Taskbar icons should be restored after reboot.
2. Delete the IconCache.db file.
As the name suggests, the "IconCache.db" file is responsible for handling all the icons on a Windows 11 PC. However, if the file is corrupted due to some unknown issues, you may not end up with icons on the Windows 11 taskbar. Thus , the simple solution is to delete the file so that Windows rebuilds the icon cache from scratch. Let's see how it works:
1. Use the keyboard shortcut "Windows + R" to open the "Run" window. Now type %localappdata% into the text box and press Enter.
2. In this folder, enable hidden files and folders on your Windows 11 PC. To do this, click View on the top menu bar and choose Show -> Hidden Items.
3. Now scroll down and find the "IconCache.db" file. Right-click the file and delete it from your computer. That's all.
4. After deleting the file, restart your Windows 11 PC. The taskbar icons should now appear on your PC.
3. Remove Taskbar Icons
Another way to fix taskbar icons missing on Windows 11 PC is to remove taskbar icons using command line executed by batch file. Here's how to do it.
1. Open Notepad on your computer and paste the entire command below. It basically removes the icons from the taskbar and removes the corresponding registry entry. After that, it terminates the Windows Explorer process and restarts it automatically.
DEL /F /S /Q /A "%AppData%MicrosoftInternet ExplorerQuick LaunchUser PinnedTaskBar*"REG DELETE HKCUSoftwareMicrosoftWindowsCurrentVersionExplorerTaskband /F taskkill /f /im explorer.exe start explorer.exe
2. Now click "File" in the top menu of Notepad and select "Save As".
3. Here, select "All Files" from the "File Type" drop-down menu and give it a file name. For example, I used the file name - "Taskbar". Then add .bat at the end of the filename to create a batch file. Finally, click Save.
4. Now go to the folder where you saved the batch file. Right-click it and select "Run as administrator".
5. A command prompt window will open and after a few seconds, your Windows 11 PC should have taskbar icons. If the problem persists, try restarting your PC.
4. Enable or disable the "Hide taskbar" option.
If the taskbar icons are still missing on your Windows 11 PC, you may need to play around with some taskbar settings to re-enable the icons and get them to work again. Here's how to do it.
1. Press "Windows + I" to open Windows Settings. Here, go to the "Personalization" menu from the left sidebar and click on "Taskbar" in the right pane.
2. Then click "Taskbar Behavior" at the bottom to expand it.
3. After that, check the "Auto-hide the taskbar" checkbox. After a few seconds, uncheck the box and see if the icons appear on the taskbar. If not, try another method from this list.
5. Remove the Windows Iris Service
In September 2021, Microsoft discovered an issue that caused icons to disappear from the taskbar on Windows 11 PCs. The culprit was the Iris service, which usually handles Windows Spotlight wallpapers and offers screen lock options. So, if you are facing the same error, here is how you can fix the taskbar icons missing issue in Windows 11.
1. Press the Windows key to open the start menu and search for "CMD". The command line will appear at the top of the search results. In the right pane, click "Run as administrator".
2. Before running the command, be sure to save all your work before running the command as it will automatically restart your computer. Now go ahead and paste the command below and press Enter. FYI, the command basically removes the registry entry associated with Iris and restarts the computer.
reg delete HKCUSOFTWAREMicrosoftWindowsCurrentVersionIrisService /f && shutdown -r -t 0
3. After logging in, you should see the taskbar icons on your Windows 11 PC and be able to click on them to access programs and files as desired.
6. Uninstall the latest Windows 11 update.
If your taskbar icons are missing after a recent Windows 11 update, I suggest uninstalling the update as a last resort. This will definitely solve the problem for you. Don't worry, this process won't delete your files or undo any changes you've made to files and folders. Let's start on that note.
1. Press Windows + I to open the Settings app. Here, go to the Windows Update menu on the left sidebar and click on Update History on the right pane.
2. Now scroll down and click Uninstall Updates.
3. Find the latest Windows 11 update here and click Uninstall next to it.
4. Follow the instructions on the screen and let the computer uninstall the latest Windows update. After the reboot, the taskbar icons should be restored to your PC.
Restore Taskbar Icons in Windows 11
So, these are six surefire ways to fix missing taskbar icons problem on Windows 11 PC. We have mentioned both basic and advanced methods so that you don’t have to reinstall Windows 11 to get your taskbar icons back. That's pretty much all for this guide. If you want to enable taskbar overflow in Windows 11, head over to our linked guide. And for customizing the taskbar in Windows 11, we also have a comprehensive guide. Finally, if you have any questions, please let us know in the comments section below.