Desktop icons the same 8 disappear sometimes

[Keithuk]

Hi guys.

I've searched the forum for my problem but nothing useful shows.

I've had this problem ever since I've been using Windows 7. I have all the desktop icons I use all the time.

When I startup my laptop all desktop icons show. I open folders to do other things and when I go back to the desktop the same 8 icons are all missing.

I have a separate folder for my desktop icons and another one for the 8 that go missing, I just copy them back.

These are:

Action Center
Desktop gadgets
Device Manager
Network and Sharing Center
Recovery
ULTIMA-WARLORD my other computer
View all problem reports
Windows Update

This doesn't happen every time its just occasionally.

My laptop basic spec:

SAMSUNG NP350E7C-A04UK
Windows 7 Professional 32-bit SP1
CPU: Intel Pentium B970 @ 2.30GHz, Sandy Bridge 32nm Technology
RAM: 6.00GB Dual-Channel DDR3 @ 665MHz
Motherboard: SAMSUNG ELECTRONICS CO. LTD. NP350E7C-A04UK (SOCKET 0)
Graphics: Generic PnP Monitor (1600x900@60Hz), Intel HD Graphics (Samsung)
Storage: 31GB Seagate ST1000LM024 HN-M101MBB (SATA)
Optical Drives: TSSTcorp CDDVDW SN-208DN
Audio: Sound Cards, Realtek High Definition Audio, High Definition Audio Device

I have Avast Professional running all the time and Malware Bytes nothing picks up.

Does any one else have the same problem?

 

[iko22]

Hello Keithuk,


a) Try copying the eight icons into the Public Desktop folder. See if they stay put there. Otherwise,

b) Try rebuilding the Icon Cache. Please see this tutorial:

:ar:Icon Cache - Rebuild

 

[Keithuk]

Hello Keithuk,


a) Try copying the eight icons into the Public Desktop folder. See if they stay put there. Otherwise,


:ar:Icon Cache - Rebuild

Thanks for your suggestion.

Why would I want to make a Public Desktop folder just to put the missing 8 icons in? As I've said I have my own folder with icons and a separate one with the 8 icons that go missing. I just copy them back to the desktop.

I trying your Rebuild_Icon_Cache.bat file before I shut the laptop down last night.

With the message:

Success The process "explorer.exe" with PID 1752 has been terminated
Success The process "explorer.exe" with PID 4468 has been terminated
Success The process "explorer.exe" with PID 4764 has been terminated
Success The process "explorer.exe" with PID 4856 has been terminated

Could Not Find C:\User\me\Appdata\Local\Mircosoft\Windows\Explorer\iconcache

I start it up today all icons are there. I do the normal forums online. When I go back to the desktop all 8 are missing again.

 

[iko22]

Hello Keithuk,

Apologies. I have not suggested that you need create a new folder. Let me expand on this. I meant copy icons into the existing C:\Users\Public\Desktop folder. Can you find this folder okay? Perhaps you had not notice it was there or took it for granted.
You can use Windows Explorer to navigate to C:\Users\Public\Desktop. By default this folder is hidden. So you need setup Windows Explorer to show hidden files and folders. Which you can easily do on the View Tab of Explorer. Once Explorer is setup to show hidden files and folders, then you be able to navigate to this in-built location.
The Public Desktop folder is designed to store shortcuts common to all users. My query was to copy the eight shortcuts into C:\Users\Public\Desktop folder, and see if the shortcuts stay put. Am I making myself any clearer, and sorry for any earlier confusion?

 

[Keithuk]

Ok I put the 8 icons in C:\Users\Public\Desktop which are still there. When I've just look at the desktop it added the 8 icons when the existing 8 are still there.

So how come its added the 8 again? Generally you can't add the same icons as it asks do you want to replace existing icons.

 

[iko22]

The User Desktop space that everyone sees when logging on is in actual fact made up from a combination of C:\users\<username1>\desktop AND C:\users\Public\Public Desktop.

Usually you use the Desktop space to store Shortcuts to favourite programs, like what you are presently doing.

If you store the shortcuts in C:\users\<username1>\desktop then the shortcuts are only available locally to that user - no other user account can see them. If you store the shortcuts in C:\users\Public\Public Desktop, then the shortcuts will appear global to any user account that you have created.

However, if you store the same shortcuts in both C:\users\<username1>\desktop and C:\users\Public\Public Desktop, and you logon as <username1>, and look at the Desktop, then you will see that the shortcuts appear to have been installed twice - which, as youve said, you cannot normally do, as the system will normally ask to overwrite the existing items with the new items.

However, you ended up with two sets of shortcuts on <username1> Desktop space, because they are in actual fact in separate folders. The separate folders represent the local desktop and the global desktop.
If you have another user account on the computer, say <username2>, you could log on to that user, and they would have one set of icons displayed on the Desktop space. This is because, that user can see the icons stored in the Global Public folder, but not the icons stored in the Local <username1> desktop folder.

Anyway, that is getting away from the problem. All I wanted to know was, have any icons vanished yet? If so - does both sets of icons vanish, or is it only the icons from one desktop folder that vanish?

 

[Keithuk]

I'm the only user that uses my laptop.

Today the 8 icons I added are now missing C:\Users\Public\Desktop. So how come those have disappeared now.

C:\Users\Public\Desktop only has 12 icons of installed apps.

My desktop has 37 icons.

As I've said this doesn't happen all the time its only occasionally. So why is the same 8 that disappear and not any others that is the strange bit.

 

[iko22]

That is odd.
I wonder if there is a program running on your computer that zealously thinks the links are something that they are not supposed to be, and decides that they need to be removed. What Security software are you running? Have you checked scan history for quarantined items and scan logs for evidence of software removal? Could also be a registry scanner thinking that you have broken links, and removing them.
Also check this solution. Desktop shortcuts disappear in Windows 7 | Microsoft. I mention it because it looks related to the problem that you are experiencing. However, the troubleshooter in question runs about once a week, and your icons seem to be disappearing more regularly than that.
Hope it helps.

 

[Lance1]

There might be an error in the registry. Windows key + R Type regedit go to

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Winlogon.

Click Winlogon and in the right pan look for "SHELL" Double click it and check that the Value Data is explorer.exe If it is spelled any other way change it to explorer.exe. Click OK and close regedit. If it changes again you may have a bug.

 

[Keithuk]

There might be an error in the registry. Windows key + R Type regedit go to

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Winlogon.

Click Winlogon and in the right pan look for "SHELL" Double click it and check that the Value Data is explorer.exe If it is spelled any other way change it to explorer.exe. Click OK and close regedit. If it changes again you may have a bug.

Thanks for the update. I looked in regedit and it shows exactly as you say.


I've had the 8 icons disappear a few times. I tried your Rebuild_Icon_Cache.bat but that didn't do anything.

 

[RoWin7]

I know not every problem on my computer can be solved in a reasonable amount of time. I often create temporary workarounds, and some become permanent.

I have some shortcuts in my StartMenu that aren't for programs, but links to items I access a lot, like manuals, my Firefox profile and particular folders. Place an empty folder in your StartMenu and put a 2nd set of your 8 icons inside. If the ones on the desktop disappear, use the one in the StartMenu. You can give it a favorite icon if you want it to stand out, or just start the folder name with AAA--.

 

[Keithuk]

The same 8 desktop icons still disappear. I thought it might be the screensaver I made many years ago (I write programmes) it worked perfectly on the old Vista laptop.

I thought it should work on Windows 7 it does.

I changed it the text Windows 7.

The same 8 desktop icons still disappear.

The strange annoying thing is why is it the 8 desktop icons disappear and not any other desktop icons.

 

[iko22]

Well, I understand how re-occurrence of this can be frustrating.

Do you suspect the missing 8 icons is something to do with changing your Windows 8 computer to Windows 7? That is useful to know, but I cannot find a connection at the moment.

- Had you tried to disable your screensaver? If you were to disable this for a long enough period, then you would have certainty.

- Alternatively, some people say that this kind of problem is caused by explorer.exe malfunctioning. To eliminate that possibility, had you tried a different File Explorer program? For example, use "Everything" (by Voidtools) instead of using Explorer.exe.

If either of these small changes provide a work around, then they would have been worth the effort.

 

[Keithuk]

Well, I understand how re-occurrence of this can be frustrating.

Do you suspect the missing 8 icons is something to do with changing your Windows 8 computer to Windows 7? That is useful to know, but I cannot find a connection at the moment.

- Had you tried to disable your screensaver? If you were to disable this for a long enough period, then you would have certainty.

- Alternatively, some people say that this kind of problem is caused by explorer.exe malfunctioning. To eliminate that possibility, had you tried a different File Explorer program? For example, use "Everything" (by Voidtools) instead of using Explorer.exe.

If either of these small changes provide a work around, then they would have been worth the effort.

Thanks for your input.



When I bought this Samsung laptop in July 2012 it has Windows 8 Pro 64bit, I tried that for 6 months to see if all my usual programmes worked. Which a lot of Goggling I got my VB6 to work, everything else worked.


I didn't like Windows 8 so I bought a new 1TB HD as it was still under warranty and installed the current Windows 7 32bit.


I always Windows explorer/explorer as I need to look at files to change things then copy them back the main Windows XP computer. I have a shortcut on the taskbar/desktop and start menu. That is another slight cockup of Windows 7 I've long story I've talked about on here.


I know Windows XP is old a with no support the only reason I still use it is because of the email system Outlook Express 6. That is another M$ cockup as Bill Gates said Windows system can run all Windows applications.


I have the same Microsoft Office 2003 Pro install in XP, I have to open Microsoft Office Outlook 2003 and import files from another system, it imports them all from Outlook Express 6 and saves them as Outlook.pst I copy that file to my laptop and import all emails and address book.


They don't make Outlook Express for Windows 7 or above, I've asked this question on here before.


My laptop has Microsoft Office 2003 Pro install and I can use Microsoft Office Outlook 2003. I know what your going to say.


That is an old Office version, I know its old but it works perfectly for ever app. I've installed the newer Office 2007 Pro and Office 2010 Pro which is another M$ cockup its all picture on the menu bar there is no useful menu items, There is no Help/About just to check the version number.


Every application I make always has the menu bar you select what you want to use, even the Help shows and help file.