Start Menu Programs Disappeared

wvcectech · 06 May 2009

I am running 64 bit version of Windows7 RC. Sometime during the night, the start menu changed. The user picture went back to the default (no big deal) however a lot of programs just went missing. Most of the programs that are missing seem to be 32 bit programs. Example: Outlook 2007 is missing from the start menu, it was previously pinned to the start menu, and a search brings up Microsoft Outlook folders, not the program.

Anyone else having this issue?

Thanks for any help

pooch · 06 May 2009

wvcectech said:

I am running 64 bit version of Windows7 RC. Sometime during the night, the start menu changed. The user picture went back to the default (no big deal) however a lot of programs just went missing. Most of the programs that are missing seem to be 32 bit programs. Example: Outlook 2007 is missing from the start menu, it was previously pinned to the start menu, and a search brings up Microsoft Outlook folders, not the program.

Anyone else having this issue?

Thanks for any help

Hi wvcectech, Welcome to the forum.

No I have not had this problem, have you tried a system restore to see if it helps?
System Restore

Pooch

johngalt · 07 May 2009

i9f it was overnight, Pooch may be on to something - as it might have been and overnight patch (as that would have been late *Tuesday* night and M$ is notorious for Patch Tuesdays)....

greenlink23 · 11 Jun 2009

im having this problem too. im running win7 rc 32 bit. all the programs in 'all programs' have disappeared, but only in my regular account. i have a separate admin account and the 'all programs' are fine. i even created a new account and they're fine too.

i noticed that in the programs folder, under C:, all the folders had 'hidden' checked under properties. so i unchecked them all, nothing. i took ownership of all the folders, nothing. following some advice i got by googling(spelt right?), i typed this:
regsvr32 /i shell32.dll into a run command, restarted, nothing. i typed it into a command prompt, nothing. i reseted the start menu to it's default settings, nothing. i did a system restore, nothing. i did an earlier system restore, still nothing. finally i did a repair install.............still bloody nothing!

screenshot:

what the hell is going on!?
does anyone, ANYONE, know what is going on and how to fix this. it is very frustrating and annoying. will i have to do a clean install? cause i don't want to do that again.
i have to type/search for the program i want to run.
remember im running win7 RC 32bit.

--------------------------------edit/solve-----------------------------------------
ok i've seem to have solved the issue, although i want to to a cold boot just to make sure. i think that some sort of malware was messing around with the desktop.ini(protected system file), so what i did was copied my admin account desktop.ini file to my start menu folder.

skoozar · 06 Jul 2009

There are too many shortcuts listed in 'all programs' The fix is to delete shortcuts till there are about 15 (I don't know the exact number)

-go to:
C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs
and/or
C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu

-Delete shortcuts (.lnk) Do not delete the folders.

-Reboot your computer

greenlink23 · 10 Jul 2009

the problem came back. i uninstalled some programs that i don't use anymore and it's working again. i think that there were too many entries in 'all programs'.

i have about 17 shortcuts 'C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs' and 26 shortcuts in total in the start menu 'all programs'

i think the best solution is a combination of what skoozar suggested and uninstalling unnecessary programs

commons · 10 Jul 2009

greenlink23 said:

the problem came back. i uninstalled some programs that i don't use anymore and it's working again. i think that there were too many entries in 'all programs'.

i have about 17 shortcuts 'C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs' and 26 shortcuts in total in the start menu 'all programs'

i think the best solution is a combination of what skoozar suggested and uninstalling unnecessary programs

others had same problem. me too.

i found _one_ reasonable attempt... that is: create a "new user" ;-)

there had been _a lot_ of other proposals. that, imho, all lack sustainability.

what _i_ personally do now... is to create sys-restore points b/4 install of any app.

as far as i can say now after some weeks... prob is w the install apps/routines.

just imho. it's rc, 7100, x86.

Snufffed · 10 Jul 2009

It has been noted on many different news sources, that MS is having the GHOST installs and no log reports seem to be found. I would venture to say I have this weekly. something changes ca be found. If you want to check your log.

X:\Windows\SoftwareDistribution\Reportingevents.log

I am a MUv4 tester so I have not complaints. I simply accept this strange happenings. Remember all this is BETA-Unofficial Testing.

RyanB · 23 Jul 2009

skoozar said:

There are too many shortcuts listed in 'all programs' The fix is to delete shortcuts till there are about 15 (I don't know the exact number)

-go to:
C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs
and/or
C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu

-Delete shortcuts (.lnk) Do not delete the folders.

-Reboot your computer

I did that, removing all shorcuts from this two folders then rebooting, and it still doesn't work. I still have the same problem, no programms in my Startmenu.

It's like that since I'm on Windows 7. I made an upgrade from Vista to Windows 7 so, but in Vista I never had this problem.

RyanB · 25 Jul 2009

Hi, still no solution ?
Thanks.