Start Menu All Programs in Windows 7 - Restore Default Shortcuts

How to Restore Missing Default Shortcuts in Windows 7 Start Menu


   Information
This will provide you with all of the default shortcuts in the Start Menu in all editions of Windows 7 that you can use to restore them in your Start Menu.

   Note
If you turned off a Windows Feature, then this could also be a reason why a shortcut may be missing in the Start Menu.

All installed programs that had shortcuts in your Start Menu will have to have new shortcuts manually created from the program's exe file and added to the Start Menu since these are not default shortcuts included in Windows.


EXAMPLE: Start Menu of All Editions of Windows 7
NOTE: To compare and see the features in each edition of Windows 7, see Compare Windows 7 Editions.
Starter_Start_Menu.jpg Home_Basic_Start_Menu.jpg

Home_Premium_Start_Menu.jpg Professional_Start_Menu.jpg

Ultimate.jpg Enterprise_Start_Menu.jpg



OPTION ONE

To Restore Default Start Menu Shortcuts used by Current Logged On User Only


NOTE: All 32 bit and 64 bit editions of Windows 7 have these same default Start Menu shortcuts used by the currently logged on user only.
1. Click on the Download button below to download the file below.
Current_User_Start_Menu.zip

Download


2. Save the Current_User_Start_Menu.zip file to your desktop.

3. Unblock the ZIP file.

4. Right click on the downloaded Current_User_Start_Menu.zip file, and click on Extract All, then extract the contents to your desktop.

5. In the extracted folder, select all of the shortcuts, right click on them, and click on Copy.
NOTE: You can also press and hold the CTRL key while left clicking on a shortcut to select random multiple shortcuts. Release the CTRL key when done. You will only want to include the Internet Explorer (64-bit) shortcut if you have a 64-bit Windows 7 installed.

6. Open the Start Menu, right click on All Programs, and click on Open. (see screenshot below)
Start_Menu_Open.jpg
7. In the Programs folder in the Start Menu folder, navigate to where you want to restore the extracted shortcuts (step 5) to, right click on a empty space, and click on Paste. (see screenshot below)
Open.jpg
8. The shortcuts have been restore. Close all Windows Explorer windows.

9. Continue on to OPTION TWO below if you also need to restore any default Start Menu shortcuts shared by all users.



OPTION TWO

To Restore Default Start Menu Shortcuts Shared by All Users


1. Click on the Download button below the ZIP file for the edition of Windows 7 you have installed.
Starter_All_Users_Start_Menu.zip

Download


Home_Basic_All_Users_Start_Menu.zip

Download


Home_Premium_All_Users_Start_Menu.zip

Download


Professional_All_Users_Start_Menu.zip

Download


Ultimate_All_Users_Start_Menu.zip

Download


Enterprise_All_Users_Start_Menu.zip

Download


2. Save the ZIP file to your desktop.

3. Unblock the ZIP file.

4. Right click on the downloaded ZIP file and click on Extract All, then extract the contents to your desktop.

5. In the extracted folder, select all of the shortcuts, right click on them, and click on Copy.
NOTE: You can press and hold the CTRL key while left clicking on a shortcut to select random multiple shortcuts. Release the CTRL key when done.

6. Open the Start Menu, right click on All Programs, and click on Open All Users. (see screenshot below)
Start_Menu_Open_All_Users.jpg
7. In the Start Menu folder, navigate to where you want to restore the extracted shortcuts (step 5) to, right click on a empty space, and click on Paste. (see screenshots below)
Open_All_Users-1.jpg

Open_All_Users-2.jpg
8. The shortcuts have been restored. Close all Windows Explorer windows.
That's it,
Shawn









 

Attachments

Last edited:
Excellent, as always! :thumbsup:
 

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Thank you Sir. :)
 

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After installation, do the .zip need to be uninstalled or no?
 

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After installation, do the .zip need to be uninstalled or no?
You don't need to extract if you don't want. You can just copy them directly from the .rar. (drag and drop there)

Sorry,wrong read... :o Yes,you can delete it.
 

My Computer

Computer type
PC/Desktop
Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Custom Build
OS
Windows 10 Pro x64
CPU
Intel Core i5 4440 @Stock
Motherboard
Gigabyte Z97 D3H
Memory
4 x 4GB HyperX Fury DDR3
Graphics Card(s)
Gigabyte GTX 1050Ti O4G
Sound Card
Integrated
Monitor(s) Displays
Dell P2417H
Screen Resolution
1920 x 1080
Hard Drives
Samsung EVO 850 120GB / Toshiba DT01ACA050 1TB 7200prm 32MB
PSU
Riotoro Onyx 750W
Case
NZXT H500 Black-Red
Cooling
Stock CPU + NZXT 120mm + 2x120mm red fans
Keyboard
Modecom Volcano Lanparty
Mouse
Asus ROG Gladius / DeepCool E-Pad Plus
Internet Speed
DOCSIS 50/3 Mbit
Browser
Google Chrome
Other Info
Asus K55VJ(i5 3210M, GT635M / 2GB, 8GB DDR3, 500GB HDD)
Hello GRb70,

You could delete the downloaded ZIP file afterwards if you like. You will not need it anymore. :)
 

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64-bit Windows 11 Pro for Workstations
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Intel i7-8700K OC'd to 5 GHz
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64 GB (4x16GB) G.SKILL TridentZ RGB DDR4 3600 MHz
Graphics Card(s)
ASUS ROG-STRIX-GTX1080TI-O11G-GAMING
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Integrated
Monitor(s) Displays
2 x Samsung Odyssey G7 27"
Screen Resolution
2560x1440
Hard Drives
1TB Samsung 990 PRO M.2,
4TB Samsung 990 PRO PRO M.2,
TerraMaster F8 SSD Plus NAS
PSU
Seasonic Prime Titanium 850W
Case
Thermaltake Core P3
Cooling
Corsair Hydro H115i
Keyboard
Logitech wireless K800
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Logitech MX Master 4
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2 Gb/s Download and 100 Mb/s Upload
Antivirus
Malwarebyte Anti-Malware Premium
Browser
Google Chrome
Other Info
Logitech Z625 speaker system,
Logitech BRIO 4K Pro webcam,
HP Color LaserJet Pro MFP M477fdn,
APC SMART-UPS RT 1000 XL - SURT1000XLI,
Galaxy S23 Plus phone
You don't need to extract if you don't want. You can just copy them directly from the .rar. (drag and drop there)

Yes, you do need to extract them first and unblock them to avoid getting the "Open File - Security Warning" everytime you use the shortcut. ;)
 

My Computer

Computer type
PC/Desktop
Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Self built custom
OS
64-bit Windows 11 Pro for Workstations
CPU
Intel i7-8700K OC'd to 5 GHz
Motherboard
ASUS ROG Maximus XI Formula Z390
Memory
64 GB (4x16GB) G.SKILL TridentZ RGB DDR4 3600 MHz
Graphics Card(s)
ASUS ROG-STRIX-GTX1080TI-O11G-GAMING
Sound Card
Integrated
Monitor(s) Displays
2 x Samsung Odyssey G7 27"
Screen Resolution
2560x1440
Hard Drives
1TB Samsung 990 PRO M.2,
4TB Samsung 990 PRO PRO M.2,
TerraMaster F8 SSD Plus NAS
PSU
Seasonic Prime Titanium 850W
Case
Thermaltake Core P3
Cooling
Corsair Hydro H115i
Keyboard
Logitech wireless K800
Mouse
Logitech MX Master 4
Internet Speed
2 Gb/s Download and 100 Mb/s Upload
Antivirus
Malwarebyte Anti-Malware Premium
Browser
Google Chrome
Other Info
Logitech Z625 speaker system,
Logitech BRIO 4K Pro webcam,
HP Color LaserJet Pro MFP M477fdn,
APC SMART-UPS RT 1000 XL - SURT1000XLI,
Galaxy S23 Plus phone
You're most welcome Vicious, and welcome to Seven Forums. :)
 

My Computer

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PC/Desktop
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Self built custom
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64-bit Windows 11 Pro for Workstations
CPU
Intel i7-8700K OC'd to 5 GHz
Motherboard
ASUS ROG Maximus XI Formula Z390
Memory
64 GB (4x16GB) G.SKILL TridentZ RGB DDR4 3600 MHz
Graphics Card(s)
ASUS ROG-STRIX-GTX1080TI-O11G-GAMING
Sound Card
Integrated
Monitor(s) Displays
2 x Samsung Odyssey G7 27"
Screen Resolution
2560x1440
Hard Drives
1TB Samsung 990 PRO M.2,
4TB Samsung 990 PRO PRO M.2,
TerraMaster F8 SSD Plus NAS
PSU
Seasonic Prime Titanium 850W
Case
Thermaltake Core P3
Cooling
Corsair Hydro H115i
Keyboard
Logitech wireless K800
Mouse
Logitech MX Master 4
Internet Speed
2 Gb/s Download and 100 Mb/s Upload
Antivirus
Malwarebyte Anti-Malware Premium
Browser
Google Chrome
Other Info
Logitech Z625 speaker system,
Logitech BRIO 4K Pro webcam,
HP Color LaserJet Pro MFP M477fdn,
APC SMART-UPS RT 1000 XL - SURT1000XLI,
Galaxy S23 Plus phone
Good job here, thanks!:)
 

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You're most welcome NoN. :)
 

My Computer

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PC/Desktop
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Self built custom
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64-bit Windows 11 Pro for Workstations
CPU
Intel i7-8700K OC'd to 5 GHz
Motherboard
ASUS ROG Maximus XI Formula Z390
Memory
64 GB (4x16GB) G.SKILL TridentZ RGB DDR4 3600 MHz
Graphics Card(s)
ASUS ROG-STRIX-GTX1080TI-O11G-GAMING
Sound Card
Integrated
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2 x Samsung Odyssey G7 27"
Screen Resolution
2560x1440
Hard Drives
1TB Samsung 990 PRO M.2,
4TB Samsung 990 PRO PRO M.2,
TerraMaster F8 SSD Plus NAS
PSU
Seasonic Prime Titanium 850W
Case
Thermaltake Core P3
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Corsair Hydro H115i
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Logitech wireless K800
Mouse
Logitech MX Master 4
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Antivirus
Malwarebyte Anti-Malware Premium
Browser
Google Chrome
Other Info
Logitech Z625 speaker system,
Logitech BRIO 4K Pro webcam,
HP Color LaserJet Pro MFP M477fdn,
APC SMART-UPS RT 1000 XL - SURT1000XLI,
Galaxy S23 Plus phone
Shawn,

it should be noted that if the "Common Programs" property under

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\User Shell Folders

is set to anything but the default value then your instructions will not work. Thank you!
 

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Hello svnpenn,

Thank you for the heads up. It would be unusual for that to be changed though.
 

My Computer

Computer type
PC/Desktop
Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Self built custom
OS
64-bit Windows 11 Pro for Workstations
CPU
Intel i7-8700K OC'd to 5 GHz
Motherboard
ASUS ROG Maximus XI Formula Z390
Memory
64 GB (4x16GB) G.SKILL TridentZ RGB DDR4 3600 MHz
Graphics Card(s)
ASUS ROG-STRIX-GTX1080TI-O11G-GAMING
Sound Card
Integrated
Monitor(s) Displays
2 x Samsung Odyssey G7 27"
Screen Resolution
2560x1440
Hard Drives
1TB Samsung 990 PRO M.2,
4TB Samsung 990 PRO PRO M.2,
TerraMaster F8 SSD Plus NAS
PSU
Seasonic Prime Titanium 850W
Case
Thermaltake Core P3
Cooling
Corsair Hydro H115i
Keyboard
Logitech wireless K800
Mouse
Logitech MX Master 4
Internet Speed
2 Gb/s Download and 100 Mb/s Upload
Antivirus
Malwarebyte Anti-Malware Premium
Browser
Google Chrome
Other Info
Logitech Z625 speaker system,
Logitech BRIO 4K Pro webcam,
HP Color LaserJet Pro MFP M477fdn,
APC SMART-UPS RT 1000 XL - SURT1000XLI,
Galaxy S23 Plus phone
Shawn,

I was messing around with the folders that hold the shortcuts yesterday, and if you move the wrong folder it will automatically change this key to where you moved the folder.
 

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OS
Windows 7 Ultimate x64
Yeah, normally you wouldn't want to move the %ProgramData%\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs folder like that. How did you move it though? I didn't see an option to move it like the user folders.
 

My Computer

Computer type
PC/Desktop
Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Self built custom
OS
64-bit Windows 11 Pro for Workstations
CPU
Intel i7-8700K OC'd to 5 GHz
Motherboard
ASUS ROG Maximus XI Formula Z390
Memory
64 GB (4x16GB) G.SKILL TridentZ RGB DDR4 3600 MHz
Graphics Card(s)
ASUS ROG-STRIX-GTX1080TI-O11G-GAMING
Sound Card
Integrated
Monitor(s) Displays
2 x Samsung Odyssey G7 27"
Screen Resolution
2560x1440
Hard Drives
1TB Samsung 990 PRO M.2,
4TB Samsung 990 PRO PRO M.2,
TerraMaster F8 SSD Plus NAS
PSU
Seasonic Prime Titanium 850W
Case
Thermaltake Core P3
Cooling
Corsair Hydro H115i
Keyboard
Logitech wireless K800
Mouse
Logitech MX Master 4
Internet Speed
2 Gb/s Download and 100 Mb/s Upload
Antivirus
Malwarebyte Anti-Malware Premium
Browser
Google Chrome
Other Info
Logitech Z625 speaker system,
Logitech BRIO 4K Pro webcam,
HP Color LaserJet Pro MFP M477fdn,
APC SMART-UPS RT 1000 XL - SURT1000XLI,
Galaxy S23 Plus phone
Shawn,

I am not sure how it happened, but the end result was that it changed that registry key without my knowledge. Then it appeared the only way to fix it was to go into the registry and change it back. I wanted others to be aware that in some cases simply restoring the folders will not work.
 

My Computer

OS
Windows 7 Ultimate x64
Not sure either, but thank you for the heads up again in case anyone else may run into the same.
 

My Computer

Computer type
PC/Desktop
Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Self built custom
OS
64-bit Windows 11 Pro for Workstations
CPU
Intel i7-8700K OC'd to 5 GHz
Motherboard
ASUS ROG Maximus XI Formula Z390
Memory
64 GB (4x16GB) G.SKILL TridentZ RGB DDR4 3600 MHz
Graphics Card(s)
ASUS ROG-STRIX-GTX1080TI-O11G-GAMING
Sound Card
Integrated
Monitor(s) Displays
2 x Samsung Odyssey G7 27"
Screen Resolution
2560x1440
Hard Drives
1TB Samsung 990 PRO M.2,
4TB Samsung 990 PRO PRO M.2,
TerraMaster F8 SSD Plus NAS
PSU
Seasonic Prime Titanium 850W
Case
Thermaltake Core P3
Cooling
Corsair Hydro H115i
Keyboard
Logitech wireless K800
Mouse
Logitech MX Master 4
Internet Speed
2 Gb/s Download and 100 Mb/s Upload
Antivirus
Malwarebyte Anti-Malware Premium
Browser
Google Chrome
Other Info
Logitech Z625 speaker system,
Logitech BRIO 4K Pro webcam,
HP Color LaserJet Pro MFP M477fdn,
APC SMART-UPS RT 1000 XL - SURT1000XLI,
Galaxy S23 Plus phone
Thanks this has saved me a lot of time. The computer I am working on had a load of its short cuts renamed by something or other. It was heavily infected with malware / spyware.

I signed up to say that you don't need to unblock each shortcut individually. If you unblock the zip file before unzipping it, the fact that it has been unblocked is transferred to all of the files in the archive.

I hope this is of use.

Thanks again.
 

My Computer

Computer type
PC/Desktop
OS
Windows 7 Home Premium 64bit
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