Have all your shortcuts disappeared from your desktop? The article is dedicated to those who have not yet encountered this problem. Congratulations, you still have everything ahead of you. Don't be alarmed - this problem may never affect you. But since you are reading this article, then, most likely, it was not bad. You probably accessed the Internet from a friend’s computer or something else. The fact is that you could not read this article from your computer. We are all like that. We don’t learn anything in advance, but start rushing around in search of a solution to the problem only when it’s already reached. I'm in the same category, so I understand you well.
I'll try to help you. The main thing is to calm down and don’t despair – this is not the worst thing in life.
Shortcuts have disappeared from the Desktop, what should I do?
When working on a computer, not only shortcuts from the desktop often disappear, but also the sound icon, and the icon itself, and the icon, and, and everything, and sometimes.
Let's start with the easiest thing - missing Desktop shortcuts.
Displaying Desktop Icons
Right-click on the now completely empty Desktop, and select the item from the drop-down menu Arrange icons, check if the checkbox is checked Show desktop icons .
If this is all it is, then in a couple of seconds all your shortcuts will return to the Desktop.
The first step is to check your computer for viruses, otherwise your further steps will be useless.
System Restore
This method will only work for you if you have the mode enabled.
- Press the keys on your keyboard at the same time Ctrl +Alt+Delete ;
- In the window that opens Task ManagerWindows , go to the tab Applications and press the button New task... ;
In the window Create a new task in the field next to the button Review, type the command % SystemRoot%\system32\restore\rstrui.exe and press the button OK. Same file rstrui.exe you can find it with the button Review .
Select the disk first WITH:, then the folder with the system (for me this is the folder WINDOWS, then go to the folder system32, then to the folder restore, and find the file rstrui.exe .
A window will open System Restore.
- Without changing anything, press the button Further ;
- Select an earlier date and press the button again Further ;
- In the next window, press the button again Further ;
The computer will reboot and restore everything to the day the point was created. Be patient and don't touch anything.
Starting the Desktop Recovery Process
We have a very necessary file for this explorer.exe don't confuse it with InternetExplorer . Although their names are similar, their functions are completely different.
- Press the three saving keys again: Ctrl +Alt+Delete ;
- In the window that opens Task ManagerWindows , go to the tab Applications and press the button New task... ;
- In the window Create a new task in the field next to the button Review, type the command explorer.exe and press the button OK. You can find the same file using the button Review .
- Restart your computer.
If it doesn’t help again, then we try another method.
We go online and find thereReg-file
- Press three keys again: Ctrl +Alt+Delete ;
- In the window that opens Task ManagerWindows , go to the tab Applications and press the button New task... ;
- In the window Create a new task in the field next to the button Review, type the command C:\ProgramFiles\InternetExplorer\IEXPLORE.EXE and press the button OK .
- In the search we type nodesktop.reg we find it and launch it;
- You can download this file in the archive.
- Restart your computer.
There are a couple more ways, but they will be too complicated for beginners, so I won’t describe them.
Working with a computer is based mainly on interaction with the desktop, on which the most frequently used programs and folders are located. But what to do if your Windows 7 desktop disappears? Where to look for a lost folder?
Launch the folder
Explorer.exe– the process responsible for displaying the desktop on Windows. If this process fails while working on the computer, the entire interface disappears and only the picture remains (sometimes a completely black screen). The reasons for this system behavior can be both ordinary problems and serious failures. In any case, the problem can be solved quite simply.The desktop is an ordinary folder, the work of which is initiated by the explorer.exe process. Therefore, the answer to the question of how to restore the Windows 7 desktop is obvious - you just need to start the process.
This method is only relevant if the folder and its path are not damaged, otherwise explorer.exe will not work correctly.
There are two ways to restore the process:
- Via task manager;
- Via the command line.
First way
To do this, you need to open the task manager using the combination Ctrl+Alt+Delete and click on the “File” control panel:Select “Create a new task” and enter explorer.exe into the window that appears. After this action, the desktop should appear. If this does not happen, then we use the second option.
Second way
To implement process recovery via the console, you need to run command line with administrator rights. To do this, press WIN+W and enter “Command Prompt” in the search bar. Right-click the manipulator and select “Run as administrator”:
Enter explorer.exe into the console without any commands. The program will automatically start the process; if successful, all desktop icons will appear again:
Recovery tool
If the method described above did not help or Windows boots to a black screen on which no action can be performed, then you will have to use the recovery tool to return the desktop:
In this case, you can choose to run Last Known Good Configuration. However, the method is unreliable if the computer is infected with a virus program.
We start the device in safe mode and call the Task Manager again . We repeat the algorithm, launching a new process through a modal window. But in this case we need the rstrui.exe command:
This command will run system utility recovery, which will allow you to select a rollback point, which will allow you to return the state of the computer to the date and time the point was created.
It is not necessary to create rollback points yourself. Windows does this automatically as soon as the user installs programs that affect the system, updates drivers, etc.
The rstrui.exe process, similar to explorer.exe, can also be launched through Command line with administrator rights.
This method allows you to restore your desktop even when the explorer.exe file is damaged/deleted/modified.
After a rollback, be sure to check the system for malware, since there is a high probability that the problem lies precisely in them.
Working with the registry
The registry is a database of all parameters assigned to the system. This is where all viruses are first registered, changing values and rewriting paths. Of course, you can load the last known good configuration or roll back the system, but if the device starts in normal mode, but without a desktop, then it’s faster to check everything yourself:
As a precaution, before manipulating the registry, it is recommended to do backup copy on third-party media (flash drive or disk). So, if the values change incorrectly, you can easily restore the previous copy and start all over again.
Final computer cleanup
As soon as Windows has loaded and the desktop has not disappeared, you can begin cleaning up the system, which will allow you to finally get rid of this incident:- Loading on external media antivirus with a new database;
- We look for a file called explorer.exe on the Internet, download it and put it on the flash drive where the antivirus is located;
- Using the latter, we check the computer and remove all suspicious utilities and files;
- We look for explorer.exe on the computer (the search is carried out in the section where the operating system is installed) and change it to a file downloaded from the network (after checking it with an antivirus);
- Reboot the device.
It is possible that Windows Remote Desktop is not working due to a video card failure. Don't forget to update your video and audio drivers after restarting.
Video instructions for restoring your desktop
The video shows the main recovery methods if the remote desktop does not work:Desktop restoration is an easy and fairly quick process. The most difficult procedures will be finding the cause, ways to solve them, and finally cleaning up the computer manually or using special utilities.
Recovering hidden shortcuts, files and folders on the desktop
The simplest reason why you can see an empty desktop is no checkmark opposite the item " " in the submenu " Arrange icons » context menu called when you right-click on an empty area of the desktop. It won’t be difficult to find empty space on your desktop now, call this menu, go to the submenu “ Arrange icons " and check if the bird is standing near " Show desktop icons ».
If after this the shortcuts do not appear on the desktop, then perhaps someone made a bad joke and set the attribute “ hidden » to all folders and files on the desktop. To check whether this is true or not, go to " Start -> Control Panel -> Folder Options" , open the tab " View ", go to the end of the list of parameters and select the radio button " Hidden files and folders " to position " Show hidden files and folders ».
If after this the contents of the desktop begin to be displayed, then to restore the display of your shortcuts, files and folders you need to remove the “” attribute from them hidden " This can be done as follows:
- Let's go to " Start -> Run ", write there " cmd " and click " Ok " - the command line should start.
- Remove the attribute " hidden » from all files and folders on common for all users desktop with this command (you may need administrator rights for this): attrib /D /S -h "%ALLUSERSPROFILE%/Desktop/*"
- Now make all files and folders on yours desktop with the following command: attrib /D /S -h "%USERPROFILE%/Desktop/*"
Just in case, click on an empty space on your desktop and press F5, in order to update the desktop.
If previously missing icons, files and folders from the desktop are no longer faded in color, then they are no longer hidden and can be seen in the “ Folder properties » expose « Don't show hidden files and folders ».
Returning desktop items from the Recycle Bin or Unused Shortcuts folder
This may be obvious, but nevertheless, missing shortcuts are often located in the “ Unused shortcuts ", and files and folders from the desktop may accidentally end up in cart .
Folder " Unused shortcuts
"may be on your desktop if there is a mechanism to remove unused Windows shortcuts was used at least once and they found shortcuts that had not been accessed for 60 days or more. It can also work automatically if the “ Display Properties -> Desktop -> Desktop Customization -> Clean desktop every 60 days
». 
To get files back from this folder, simply go into it and drag the files back to your desktop.
The same thing with the recycle bin - go into it and check if your files are there and if they are there, then restore your shortcuts, files and folders that have disappeared from the desktop.
The advice about the trash can may seem trivial, but I once received a laptop whose owner assured me that all the shortcuts and files from the desktop had disappeared and she looked for them everywhere and could not find them. She wanted me, if possible, to restore the files, give her an answer to where they were and how it happened that they themselves disappeared somewhere from the desktop.
I didn’t look into the trash right away, because I was sure that the owner of the laptop was looking there first, but when I looked, all the missing files were there. From event log It became clear that before the files were deleted, the last time the laptop was used was at lunchtime the day before the loss was discovered. Explorer logged that the user decided to turn off the computer at 13:35:58. Deleted files from the desktop were found in the Recycle Bin, which got there between 13:35:40 and 13:35:47.
The version about viruses was not confirmed because AVG antivirus with fresh databases launched with boot disk I didn't find anything.
This means that the user, in a hurry, wanting to quickly turn off the computer, somehow selected all the shortcuts and dragged them to the icon baskets and hit the key out of habit Enter to another operating system question ( often user-oriented operating systems ask stupid questions in large quantities, so the habit of constantly reaping Enter easily acquired in any situation). Ten seconds later, when half a gigabyte of files from the desktop was transferred to cart , she finally got to " Start -> Turn off computer ».
Actually, the above incident prompted me to write this article.
Recovering deleted files
If all of the above did not help restore icons, files and folders from your desktop, then there is a high probability that the files were actually deleted - directly from the desktop with a key pressed Shift, from the command line, using your file manager configured to delete files by baskets (for example, FAR) or as a result of a virus attack.
In any case, now it’s better to turn off the computer and find an operating system that you can load and then work with the disk in it. It is very important not to start Windows from the drive from which you need to recover your files. This is necessary so that the areas of the disk that still store information from your recently deleted files are not overwritten by other, new data. As a last resort, if you have several logical drives, for example C And D , then do not work at least with the drive on which your user folder is located, but work with another drive. You can find out the path to your user profile using the command line by running this:
Echo %USERPROFILE%
But, since most often the profile, and therefore the desktop, is located on system disk, then the system itself will write data to this disk (for example, temporary files, paging file, Windows registry) and the data of your missing files may disappear. Therefore, it is better not to work on this system now.
I think at this stage, if you are a completely respected specialist in a field far from IT, you can contact an equally respected IT specialist. But if you have the desire and inspiration, then you can try to move on.
So, we need access to a hard drive with missing files from another operating system. If possible, you can remove the hard drive from your computer and connect it to another computer, or you can use a boot disk or flash drive (for example, Hiren's BootCD: http://www.hirensbootcd.org/download/).
If the hard drive is not visible when booting the system from a CD or flash drive, then try specifying the mode in the BIOS Compatibility instead of AHCI for your SATA controller (mode names may vary depending on motherboard). Just don't forget to return it later BIOS settings back.
Having gained access to the hard drive in another, clean operating system, make sure that there really are no files on the desktop: look in the folder “ <ВАШ ДИСК>:/Documents and settings/<ИМЯ ПОЛЬЗОВАТЕЛЯ>/Desktop» if you have Windows XP or in " <ВАШ ДИСК>:/Users/<ИМЯ ПОЛЬЗОВАТЕЛЯ>/Desktop» if you have installed Windows 7. If there are files there and you have read the previous parts of this article, then the virus is probably preventing the contents of the desktop from being displayed. In this case, proceed immediately to treating viruses.
If there are still no files, then we proceed directly to recovery. There are many programs for this, and if you decide to restore on another computer, you need to find and install them. If the boot disk you choose already has utilities for this, then just use them (in Hiren's BootCD about six programs are included to recover deleted files).
- Get Data Back For NTFS with default settings restored 53 deleted file(of which 22 files were “broken”) and one folder with files measuring 393 megabytes
- Recuva recovered 19 files (of which 9 files were “broken”), and one file successfully recovered by this program was not recovered Get Data Back For NTFS
- Restoration recovered only one file (a very recently deleted temporary Word file)
After the file recovery procedure, we move on to virus treatment.
A few words about the treatment of viruses
To avoid the influence of the virus on the anti-virus program, it is better to treat viruses on a “clean” system (use a boot disk or connect an infected one HDD to another computer).
I can recommend it as an anti-virus boot disk AVG Rescue CD (http://www.avg.com/ww-en/avg-rescue-cd-download). On the website of the developer of this antivirus there is a video on using this tool: http://www.avg.com/ww-en/avg-rescue-cd
Delete from the antivirus all files that cannot be cured, and after treatment, if the virus has replaced the conductor Windows, the registry changes contained in this file will put Explorer as a conductor Windows. Download and extract it. To run this file, call Task Manager by using hot combination keys Ctrl + Shift + Esc go to " File -> New task ", find the unpacked reg file (most likely now you will have it on a flash drive), click Ok and answer affirmatively about your desire to make changes to the registry. Then restart your computer: "" V Task Manager.After this it should appear Explorer with the taskbar, desktop and shortcuts on it.
Usually the shortcuts appear after a short delay. But sometimes, even after some time, there is nothing on the screen except the splash screen. Why did the Windows 7 desktop disappear? What to do? Let's try to identify and solve the problem.
Icon display disabled
In all new versions of the OS, personalization settings allow you to completely disable the display of shortcuts. If you are not the only one using the computer, there is a chance that someone else did it accidentally. This is the simplest and most harmless reason explaining why the WIndows 7 desktop disappeared. What to do?
Right-click anywhere on the screen. Find in context menu"View" tab. Make sure that the display of shortcuts is turned on - there should be a check mark next to the corresponding item.
Shortcuts have been marked as hidden
It is almost impossible to do this by accident, so in this case, most likely, someone decided to play a joke on you. Icons and folders marked as hidden are still there, but are not displayed by default. If you have lost shortcuts and icons in Windows 7 for this very reason, first of all you need to enable the display of hidden elements. To do this, go to the "Control Panel" and open "Folder Options". In the list on the "View" tab, you need to scroll through the list of parameters and turn on the display hidden files and folders (there should be a checkmark next to the corresponding item). If the shortcuts appear, all that remains is to remove the “hidden” attribute in the properties.
The system has moved the items to the "Unused Shortcuts" folder
This is another one possible reason, explaining why the desktop disappeared. Windows 7 can produce automatic cleaning desktop and, at certain intervals, remove from the work area those icons that you do not use.
By default, the "Unused Shortcuts" folder should be displayed on the desktop (if not, you can find it through the search). If this is your case, it will be enough to simply move the necessary shortcuts back. After this, you should disable cleaning. To do this, open the screen properties, find the “Desktop” tab and click “Settings…”. You just need to uncheck the box next to “Clean up every 60 days” and save the changes. Although the advice to check the "Trash" may seem stupid to many, we recommend doing so. In practice, it often happens that shortcuts were simply deleted.
The file explorer.exe is missing
Now let's talk about more complex options when it becomes unclear why the Windows 7 desktop disappeared. What to do if the above tips did not help? Most likely, when the system boots, explorer.exe, the process responsible for external display systems. To check this, go to Task Manager > Processes (Ctrl+Shift+Del) and try to find explorer. Sometimes when you try to open the manager, nothing happens. In this case, start Windows in Safe Mode by pressing the F8 button during boot and try again.
In the manager menu, select "File", click "New task" and in the window that appears, enter In the window that opens, you need to enter the path to the file (by default it is in Windows folder, located on drive C:). If the shortcuts appear after this, it means the file is on the computer and you just need to fix a few registry errors.
What should I do if explorer.exe is missing from my computer and cannot be started? In this case, you will need your Windows installation disk.
- Open the disk from another PC and find the explorer.ex_ file in the i386 directory.
- Copy it anywhere and then change the extension to .EXE (to do this you just need to rename it).
- Write the finished file to a USB flash drive and connect it to your computer.
- Run command cmd line through the "Task Manager".
- Navigate to the files located on the flash drive. To do this, you need to enter the name of the disk (E:, D: or another).
- Copy the file to the system folder using the copy explorer.exe C:\\Windows command. If everything is done correctly, a message will appear indicating that the operation was successful.
- Restart your PC.
If installation disk no, you can copy explorer.exe from another computer to Windows 7.
Explorer.exe has disappeared from the registry
Let's talk in more detail about what to do if the Windows 7 desktop disappears due to registry errors. In this case, when you start the process through the "Task Manager", the shortcuts appear, but after restarting the computer they disappear again. This means that the launch conditions for explorer.exe are incorrectly written in the registry. Launch the Run application and type regedit. The Registry Editor will open. You need to find the following directory:
The Shell line should contain explorer.exe. If some other file is registered instead, or nothing at all, change the value of the parameter. Ready? Go ahead. Now we need to open another folder from the same directory.
If there is an explorer.exe (or iexplorer.exe) entry here, you need to delete it and then restart your PC. If the icons still don't appear, the file is likely corrupted and will need to be replaced.
System settings failed
Sometimes even after adding the file to the registry, the problem persists. This may indicate a glitch in the system settings. Fortunately, the "seven" has special application- "System Restore", which returns the computer to an earlier state. You can run it using the same Run program. To do this, you need to enter the command shown in the screenshot below.
The computer was infected with viruses
A trivial option is when your Windows 7 desktop has disappeared due to malware. You probably know what to do in this case. To open an antivirus, you can enter the full address of its executable file in the Run window (for example, C:\\Programs\Antivirus\antivirus.exe). It is recommended to scan your PC in Safe Mode. After scanning, delete all infected files and restart your computer.
Even if this does not help, the best solution is to simply reinstall Windows. Required files can be copied to a flash drive via the command line (of course, if you can remember their location).
Greetings to all readers of my blog and this is Denis Trishkin again.
Some computer users may encounter a situation where they turn on the device and see that the icons from the desktop have disappeared Windows desktop 7. If you have such a situation, do not immediately panic and immediately reinstall the operating system. There are many reasons why this could happen. So, for example, in the office it often becomes just a joke on the part of employees. Or this is the result of a virus. In any case, the situation is fixable, so don’t immediately panic and think about buying new equipment.
Solution( )
There are many options to help cope with this problem. What to do depends on the causes of the malfunction. Next I will try to talk about everyone possible options solutions.
So, how can you get your icons back on your desktop without much effort? To begin with, you can simply restart the system. After all, no matter how reliable it is, processes can still occur that affect the performance of the computer and programs as a whole.
If this does not help, right-click on an empty space on the monitor and select “ View", and then the line "". Everything should return to its place. To be sure, you can pin the icons. Then they will be located in the right order and place.
If this does not lead to success, we install an antivirus (if there is none), update the database and check the system. Often it is malware that causes chaos.
But sometimes all of the above may lead to nothing. In this option, you will have to do more complex manipulations:
Thus, we return the active desktop. These types of errors occur due to equipment overload. This method also helps when the pictures disappear, but the inscriptions remain.
If this does not help, perhaps you should think about whether a serious error has occurred. To fix it, you should resort to work " System Restore" For this:
After some time, everything should return to its place.
You can read more about system recovery in
If the desktop icons still haven’t appeared, it’s time to fix the registry, as problems could arise due to errors in it. We make several movements:
Additional Information( )
In addition to restoring icons, sometimes there is a need to simply change icons, because they may not fit the overall theme or are simply boring. To do this, go to “”, where we select “”. On the left side of the menu you can find the line you need.
By the way, sometimes some users (again as a prank) simply change the icons to transparent ones. Because of this, the signature remains, but the picture itself does not. Therefore, first you should try to restore everything in a simple way, and only then resort to complex ones.
Windows itself has a limited number of files with the extension " *.ico" This situation can be corrected by simply downloading icons from trusted resources. This will help you customize your shell in as much detail as possible so that each element looks harmonious.
Such drawings are created in special programs. In fact, they are simple graphic editor. Today it is considered the most popular program for icons. It provides well-known effects that allow you to create the pictures that are right for you.
It is important to note that when creating, the artist works with large icons - full-fledged pictures. And only after everything is done, the large drawing turns into a small icon. In this case, the icon size usually does not exceed 32*32 pixels. It's important to remember this when you're working on your own drawing. After all, not everyone will look equally good in large and small sizes.enlarge
Well, as you can see, there are many reasons for icons disappearing from the desktop - from practical jokes to serious problems with the system. Despite this, there are many ways to cope with any troubles.
In addition, it can be improved appearance your operating system, changing the desired small pictures. Special tools and programs are provided for this.
I hope my article helped you. Subscribe to always know useful information about your computer.
