Why has the Attached Icon suddenly appearing on my Desktop?

Mike Lynch

Mike Lynch

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It is a subdued Grey.
 

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My Computer My Computer

At a glance

Microsoft Windows 7 Professional 64-bit 7601 ...Intel(R) Core(TM) i7-3770 CPU @ 3.40GHz8.00 GBIntel(R) HD Graphics 4000
Computer type
PC/Desktop
Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Two HP Desktops. One in the Laundry Room / Bed Room.
OS
Microsoft Windows 7 Professional 64-bit 7601 Multiprocessor Free Service Pack 1
CPU
Intel(R) Core(TM) i7-3770 CPU @ 3.40GHz
Motherboard
Hewlett-Packard 3396
Memory
8.00 GB
Graphics Card(s)
Intel(R) HD Graphics 4000
Sound Card
(1) Realtek High Definition Audio (2) Intel(R) Display Aud
Monitor(s) Displays
Hanns-G
Screen Resolution
1440 x 900 x 32 bits (4294967296 colors) @ 59 Hz
Hard Drives
(1) ATA WDC WD40EZRX-00S SCSI Disk Device (2) HP Officejet Pro 86 USB Device (3) WD My Book 1230 USB Device
PSU
Whatever came with the CMT.
Case
HP CMT Black.
Cooling
Whatever came with the CMT.
Keyboard
Logitech K740.
Mouse
Microsoft Optical Mouse 1000.
Internet Speed
Spectrum 25Mbs.
Antivirus
WebRoot, Microsoft Security Essentials.
Browser
EDGE
Other Info
HP Officejet Pro 8600 Plus.
WD MyBook 4TB.
Mike Lynch said:
It is a subdued Grey.
Click to expand...
That's perfectly normal. It's because you have turned on 'show hidden files' in Explorer. If you had also turned off 'hide known extensions' you'd see that it's full name is desktop.ini. The greying indicates that this is a hidden file. Here's mine....

image.png
 

My Computers My Computers

System One System Two

  • At a glance

    Windows 7 Home Premium x64AMD V1204GB
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
    Toshiba satellite C650D
    OS
    Windows 7 Home Premium x64
    CPU
    AMD V120
    Memory
    4GB
    Internet Speed
    150 Mbps
    Antivirus
    MSE
    Browser
    IE11, Edge, Firefox
    Other Info
    I also have W7 Pro on my System Two, and several W7 Hyper-V VMs. My other machines run Windows 10/11. Their specs are in my Ten Forums & Eleven Forum profiles.

  • At a glance

    Windows 7 Pro x64Intel i5-3320M8 GB
    Computer type
    Laptop
    System Manufacturer/Model Number
    Lenovo Thinkpad T430
    OS
    Windows 7 Pro x64
    CPU
    Intel i5-3320M
    Memory
    8 GB
    Hard Drives
    250GB Samsung SSD 860 EVO
    Antivirus
    MSE
It is safe to delete from the desktop.
Ignore the warning that appears.
 

My Computer My Computer

At a glance

Windows 7 Professional SP1 64-bitIntel Core i7-4790 3.60 GHz32 GB DDR3-1600 MHzIntegrated Intel HD Graphics 4600
Computer type
PC/Desktop
Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Dell OptiPlex 9020
OS
Windows 7 Professional SP1 64-bit
CPU
Intel Core i7-4790 3.60 GHz
Memory
32 GB DDR3-1600 MHz
Graphics Card(s)
Integrated Intel HD Graphics 4600
Monitor(s) Displays
Viewsonic 32" LCD
Hard Drives
Kingston SATA 3 240 GB SSD
Internet Speed
Spectrum Internet 1000 Mbps
I wouldn't delete it. Just turn off show hidden files... It's found under Folder Options in the Windows Control Panel.
 

My Computer My Computer

At a glance

Windows 7 Ultimate x64
Computer type
PC/Desktop
OS
Windows 7 Ultimate x64
Desktop.ini - What is this file? Why are there two of them on my desktop?
Just a moment...
 

My Computers My Computers

System One System Two

  • At a glance

    Windows 7 Professional 64bit / Windows 10 Hom...AMD FX-8350GSKILL Ripjaw-X PC3 12800 12GB (2x4GB, 2x2GB)ASUS ENGTX560 DCII OC/2DI/1GD5 1GB
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
    Custom build
    OS
    Windows 7 Professional 64bit / Windows 10 Home 64bit
    CPU
    AMD FX-8350
    Motherboard
    Gigabyte GA-990FXA-UD3 (AM3+) Rev. 4.0
    Memory
    GSKILL Ripjaw-X PC3 12800 12GB (2x4GB, 2x2GB)
    Graphics Card(s)
    ASUS ENGTX560 DCII OC/2DI/1GD5 1GB
    Sound Card
    Integrated
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Asus VE228H (21.5-in)
    Screen Resolution
    1920x1080 60Hz
    Hard Drives
    SAMSUNG 870 EVO 1TB (2.5" SATA SSD)
    SAMSUNG 870 EVO 500GB (2.5" SATA SSD)
    PSU
    Antec TruePower (new) TP-650 (650 watts)
    Case
    Antec Three Hundred
    Cooling
    AMD stock (plan to upgrade to Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO)
    Keyboard
    Logitech K540 (wireless)
    Mouse
    Logitech M310 (wireless)
    Internet Speed
    Comcast Gigabit X2 Internet (2100Mbps down / 300Mbps up)
    Browser
    Firefox, Edge, Chrome
    Other Info
    Optical drive: ASUS DRW-24B3ST/BLK/G (Black) (24X)
    External hard drives: 2TB & 6TB
    Internet Gateway: Comcast XB8
  • Computer type
    PC/Desktop
F22 Simpilot said:
I wouldn't delete it. Just turn off show hidden files... It's found under Folder Options in the Windows Control Panel.
Click to expand...
Quite the oposite, there is no reason not to show everything on the computer. Hiding files and extensions has been the cause of many security problems trivially avoidable ("Coolpicture.jpg.exe" being still common to this day).
Hidden files are just a leftover from the DOS days (and they were questionable at best back then), there should be no reason not to show them.

On the other hand, desktop.ini files have long been know as useless on Windows. Deleting it would solve both problems at once.
 

My Computer My Computer

At a glance

Windows 7 Ultimate x64Intel Core i7-740QM8 GB DDR3NVIDIA GeForce 330GT
Computer type
Laptop
Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Toshiba Sattelite A665-S6092
OS
Windows 7 Ultimate x64
CPU
Intel Core i7-740QM
Memory
8 GB DDR3
Graphics Card(s)
NVIDIA GeForce 330GT
Screen Resolution
1366x768
Hard Drives
Samsung 840 SSD 500GB
1TB USB3 external HD
Cooling
Coolermaster Notepal U3 notebook cooling pad
Internet Speed
3mbps ASDL
Antivirus
ClamWin 0.98.7
Browser
Opera 12.17 x86 (main), Firefox 38 (sec), IE11 (last resort)
I made no mention of file extensions. I ALWAYS turn on show file extensions with every OS install I do. In fact, just installed Winblows 10 on a mini ITX yesterday and that was one of the first tings I did; to show file extensions. I know all about the cybersecurity threat involved and have been showing file extensions since my XP days.

As to a thumbs or desktop.ini file, those are part of the way the OS operates and really shouldn't be touched unless there's an issue requiring their removal. As the saying goes, 'leave well enough alone...'https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/INI_file
 

My Computer My Computer

At a glance

Windows 7 Ultimate x64
Computer type
PC/Desktop
OS
Windows 7 Ultimate x64
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