This guide will help you fix the Desktop Icons Missing Windows 10 problem. The Desktop Icons Missing issue is merely an annoyance and it is easy to fix – if you know how.

What to do if your Desktop Icons in Windows 10 have disappeared:

A number of people have a wierd problem with Windows 10. Somehow all the little images, which represent shortcuts to programs, files or folders have disappeared and you are not sure why such a thing is happening to you. If your icons are not present, you won’t be able to access any program via its shortcut or open any folder from your desktop. Most of the time this is not caused by a bug, but certain errors or crashes might contribute to the issue.

What could cause such an error?

The origins of a problem like this could be numerous, all of them varying greatly from one another. Here are some of them:

  • Your computer might have crashed and the disappearance of your desktop icons might be a result of that.
  • It is also possible that such an error could be cause by the presence of a malicious program on your PC.
  • The infamous ‘Microsoft’ phone scam calls could be the causes for this problem.
  • This issue could also have appeared by accident, if you had clicked right and left on your desktop in the right sequence, this might have caused the disappearance of your items.

Fortunately, we have come up with a very useful guide and maybe we will be able to help you. All you have to do is implement the instructions inside it in a careful way.

Windows Desktop Icons Missing – The Guide for Windows 10

In order to restore your desktop items, you have to:

– place your mouse pointer anywhere on your currently empty desktop. Then push the right button of your mouse.

– you will see a small context menu come up. It normally looks like this:
view_desktop_items_1

– after that, navigate your cursor to the ‘View’ feature inside this context menu. A submenu willll appear (like the one below):
show-desktop-icons_2

“Show desktop icons” is supposed to be among the features that you will notice there. Most probably it will not be marked with a check mark. All you have to do is tick the box next to it. After that you will have solved your problem and will be able to see all your icons and shortcuts on your monitor. 

Most of the time this will be enough to restore the missing icons to where they belong. If your problem is rooted deeper, however, it might be necessary to take other steps – such as loading a restore point to a time when this problem did not occur. Check our guide to see how.

Sometimes, though, this fix may not be the one for you. If that’s the case, perhaps you have found another successful one? Make sure to share it with us in the comments below, so that we can update our solutions list and help more users in need.