Solved Desktop icon missing from Navigation, Home and my personal folder


Calab

Calab

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In the navigation pane of the Explorer window I do not have a "Desktop" icon. If I go to Home in Explorer, I don't see a Desktop icon there either. If I open my personal folder I don't see a Desktop folder there either... but if I try to create a new folder named Desktop, I'm told that it already exists.

I have the system set to show hidden files and show protected system files, yet it still does not appear.

I have uninstalled OneDrive, if that makes any difference. There is no longer a OneDrive folder in my personal folder.

How can I get my Desktop icon back?
 
Windows Build/Version
Version 23H2 (OS Build 22631.3085)

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 11 / Linux Mint
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    C.S.D.
    CPU
    i9-12900k
    Motherboard
    Gigabyte Z690 UD AX DDR4
    Memory
    32 GB DDR4
    Graphics Card(s)
    Strix RTX 3060
    Sound Card
    Onboard
    Monitor(s) Displays
    LG QNED75URA 43" TV
    Screen Resolution
    3840x2160
    Hard Drives
    One 1tb M.2 for Windows, one 500gb M.2 for Linux, and a 8 TB HDD for data
    PSU
    850 watt
    Case
    Cougar
    Cooling
    upHere D6SEC CPU Cooler
    Keyboard
    Cherry Stream wireless
    Mouse
    iClever MD172
    Internet Speed
    1Gbit/100mb
    Browser
    Edge
    Antivirus
    Microsoft
    Other Info
    Bluray optical writer drive
If you had OneDrive running at one point it does make a difference. There's no nice way to say this but it permanently damages the system folder structure. The only way I could fix it was a complete reinstall and following a very precise method of killing OneDrive immediately.

This thread may help --

www.elevenforum.com

Pictures Folder MIA

Greetings, I replaced my Asus Expertcenter Mini Tower with a Beelink Ser5 Pro 5700U. The bad news is the Mini market has devastated the value of Towers and Mini Towers (I got $50 for an i5 10th Gen 12GB Ram 512 SSD that was $599 in the day) but the good news in these newer Minis are quiet and...
www.elevenforum.com www.elevenforum.com
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    11 if on this site
Calab said:
In the navigation pane of the Explorer window I do not have a "Desktop" icon. If I go to Home in Explorer, I don't see a Desktop icon there either. If I open my personal folder I don't see a Desktop folder there either... but if I try to create a new folder named Desktop, I'm told that it already exists.

I have the system set to show hidden files and show protected system files, yet it still does not appear.

I have uninstalled OneDrive, if that makes any difference. There is no longer a OneDrive folder in my personal folder.

How can I get my Desktop icon back?
Click to expand...
Can you give us a screen shot?
 

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Windows 11 23H2 22631.2861
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    HP Envy TE01-1xxx
    CPU
    Intel(R) Core(TM) i7-10700 CPU @ 2.90GHz 2.90 GHz
    Motherboard
    16.0GB Dual-Channel Unknown @ 1463MHz (21-21-21-47)
    Memory
    16384 MBytes
    Graphics Card(s)
    Intel UHD Graphics 630
    Sound Card
    Realtek High Definition Audio
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Monitor 1 - Acer 27" Monitor 2 - Acer 27"
    Screen Resolution
    1920 x 1080
    Hard Drives
    WDC PC SN530 SDBPNPZ-512G-1006 (SSD)
    Seagate ST1000DM003-1SB102
    Seagate BUP Slim SCSI Disk Device (SSD)
    PSU
    HP
    Case
    HP
    Cooling
    Standard
    Keyboard
    Logitech Wave K350
    Mouse
    Logitech M705
    Internet Speed
    500 mbps
    Browser
    Firefox
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
    Other Info
    That's all Folks!
  • Operating System
    Windows 11
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    HP
    CPU
    Intel Core i7 (10th gen) 10700
    Motherboard
    Intel
    Memory
    16 GB
    Graphics card(s)
    Intel UHD Graphics 630
    Sound Card
    Built-in
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Acer 27" & Samsung 24"
    Screen Resolution
    1920 x
    Hard Drives
    SSD (512 GB)
    HDD (1 TB)
    Seagate
    PSU
    Intel i7 10th Generation
    Case
    HP
    Cooling
    HP/Intel?
    Mouse
    Logitech M705
    Keyboard
    Logitech Wave K350
    Internet Speed
    50 mbps
    Browser
    Firefox 90.2
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
    Other Info
    Headphone/Microphone Combo
    SuperSpeed USB Type-A (4 on front)
    HP 3-in-One Card Readr
    SuperSpeed USB Type-C
    DVD Writer
Hello Calab, :alien:

For now, you could see if using option three to restore the Desktop folder may fix it.

www.elevenforum.com

Move or Restore Default Location of Desktop Folder in Windows 11 Tutorial

This tutorial will show you how to move or restore the default location of the Desktop folder for your account in Windows 10 and Windows 11. The Desktop folder (shell:Desktop) is a component of the user profile that is used as a unified location for storing personal data. By default, the...
www.elevenforum.com www.elevenforum.com
 

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Windows 11 Pro for Workstations
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Custom self build
    CPU
    Intel i7-8700K 5 GHz
    Motherboard
    ASUS ROG Maximus XI Formula Z390
    Memory
    64 GB (4x16GB) G.SKILL TridentZ RGB DDR4 3600 MHz (F4-3600C18D-32GTZR)
    Graphics Card(s)
    ASUS ROG-STRIX-GTX1080TI-O11G-GAMING (11GB GDDR5X)
    Sound Card
    Integrated Digital Audio (S/PDIF)
    Monitor(s) Displays
    2 x Samsung Odyssey G75 27"
    Screen Resolution
    2560x1440
    Hard Drives
    1TB Samsung 990 PRO M.2,
    4TB Samsung 990 PRO M.2,
    8TB WD MyCloudEX2Ultra NAS
    PSU
    Seasonic Prime Titanium 850W
    Case
    Thermaltake Core P3 wall mounted
    Cooling
    Corsair Hydro H115i
    Keyboard
    Logitech wireless K800
    Mouse
    Logitech MX Master 3
    Internet Speed
    1 Gbps Download and 35 Mbps Upload
    Browser
    Google Chrome
    Antivirus
    Microsoft Defender and Malwarebytes Premium
    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
  • Operating System
    Windows 11 Pro
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Surface Laptop 7 Copilot+ PC
    CPU
    Snapdragon X Elite (12 core) 3.42 GHz
    Memory
    16 GB LPDDR5x-7467 MHz
    Monitor(s) Displays
    15" HDR
    Screen Resolution
    2496 x 1664
    Hard Drives
    1 TB SSD
    Internet Speed
    Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 5.4
    Browser
    Chrome and Edge
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
You can not just arbitrarily uninstall onedrive. It doesn't work that way if you use a MS account. There is a series of steps to get the folders from onedrive back into your user folder before onedrive can be safely installed. Did you follow them? What about your other personal folders (documents and Pictures) do they show up? (You can try the individual folder procedures in step 1 below but I can not guarantee it will work. If it doesn't you'll have to create a new local user account with administrative privileges, restart, login into new account, go to onedrive on the web, and manually download all your files)

Here is what should have been done to safely get rid of onedrive.

Step 1. You first have to turn off backup folder syncing. This tutorial tells you how and also how to get your files onto your local drive.
https://www.elevenforum.com/t/turn-on-or-off-onedrive-folder-backup-syncing-across-windows-11-devices.4321/

NOTE: ONLY IF FOLDERS DO NOT MOVE TO DEFAULT LOCATION IN STEP 1 ABOVE DO THIS

If this happens, then you could try option three below to restore the default folder location and move your files manually from Onedrive into the folders..

Step 2. Then you have to unlink account & PC from onedrive.
https://www.elevenforum.com/t/unlink-account-and-pc-from-onedrive-in-windows-11.15162/
Once you do this the files you have in onedrive will remain there until you login to Onedrive on the Web and delete them.
Sign in - Microsoft OneDrive

Step 3. You can then either uninstall Onedrive or disable it. I prefer to disable it. Open Task Manager>Startup Apps
Find Onedrive in the list and, right click on it, select disable. This prevents Onedrive from auto-starting.

Step 4. If you want to uninstall it instead use Revo Uninstaller Freeware Portable. Be sure to delete any leftover files and registry entries Revo finds. Download Revo Uninstaller Freeware - Free and Full Download
 
Last edited:

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Windows 11 Pro 24H2 26100.2314
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Dell Optiplex 7080
    CPU
    i9-10900 10 core 20 threads
    Motherboard
    DELL 0J37VM
    Memory
    32 gb
    Graphics Card(s)
    none-Intel UHD Graphics 630
    Sound Card
    Integrated Realtek
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Benq 27
    Screen Resolution
    2560x1440
    Hard Drives
    1tb Solidigm m.2 nvme+256gb SKHynix m.2 nvme /External drives 512gb Samsung m.2 sata+1tb Kingston m2.nvme+ 4gb Solidigm nvme
    PSU
    500w
    Case
    MT
    Cooling
    Dell Premium
    Keyboard
    Logitech wired
    Mouse
    Logitech wireless
    Internet Speed
    so slow I'm too embarrassed to tell
    Browser
    Firefox
    Antivirus
    Defender+MWB Premium
  • Operating System
    Windows 10 Pro 22H2 19045.3930
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Dell Optiplex 9020
    CPU
    i7-4770
    Memory
    24 gb
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Benq 27
    Screen Resolution
    2560x1440
    Hard Drives
    256 gb Toshiba BG4 M.2 NVE SSB and 1 tb hdd
    PSU
    500w
    Case
    MT
    Cooling
    Dell factory
    Mouse
    Logitech wireless
    Keyboard
    Logitech wired
    Internet Speed
    still not telling
    Browser
    Firefox
    Antivirus
    Defender+MWB Premium
Usually the items in the Navigation pane between Home and This PC are shortcuts to folders that in a default install of Windows are in C:\Users\USERNAMEHERE\. I've had success just creating a new shortcut to one of those folders, also to files I might want in Home or Quick Access.
 

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Win11 Pro RTM
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Dell Vostro 3400
    CPU
    Intel Core i5 11th Gen. 2.40GHz
    Memory
    12GB
    Hard Drives
    256GB SSD NVMe M.2
  • Operating System
    Windows 11 Pro RTM x64
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Dell Vostro 5890
    CPU
    Intel Core i5 10th Gen. 2.90GHz
    Memory
    16GB
    Graphics card(s)
    Onboard, no VGA, using a DisplayPort-to-VGA adapter
    Monitor(s) Displays
    24" Dell
    Hard Drives
    512GB SSD NVMe, 4TB Seagate HDD
    Browser
    Firefox, Edge
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender/Microsoft Security
I just wanted to invite people here to UPVOTE this complaint. I just posted it at the Feedback Hub

2024-02-12 10_50_51-Feedback Hub.jpg
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    11 if on this site
glasskuter said:
You can not just arbitrarily uninstall onedrive. It doesn't work that way. There is a series of steps to get the folders from onedrive back into your user folder before onedrive can be safely installed.
Click to expand...
This was a fresh installation of Windows 11, and the first thing I did when I got to the desktop was go to Settings->Apps and uninstall OneDrive.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 11 / Linux Mint
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    C.S.D.
    CPU
    i9-12900k
    Motherboard
    Gigabyte Z690 UD AX DDR4
    Memory
    32 GB DDR4
    Graphics Card(s)
    Strix RTX 3060
    Sound Card
    Onboard
    Monitor(s) Displays
    LG QNED75URA 43" TV
    Screen Resolution
    3840x2160
    Hard Drives
    One 1tb M.2 for Windows, one 500gb M.2 for Linux, and a 8 TB HDD for data
    PSU
    850 watt
    Case
    Cougar
    Cooling
    upHere D6SEC CPU Cooler
    Keyboard
    Cherry Stream wireless
    Mouse
    iClever MD172
    Internet Speed
    1Gbit/100mb
    Browser
    Edge
    Antivirus
    Microsoft
    Other Info
    Bluray optical writer drive
I found my issue... The desktop folder had gotten renamed while I was moving some of my backed up files to the clean Windows installation.

I think it happened when I was moving folders out of the OneDrive folder.

The folder icon text showed "Desktop from backup", but if I tried to create a Desktop folder I was told that it already existed. I renamed the icon to "Desktop" and I was able to get to it from Home and the Navigation pane.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 11 / Linux Mint
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    C.S.D.
    CPU
    i9-12900k
    Motherboard
    Gigabyte Z690 UD AX DDR4
    Memory
    32 GB DDR4
    Graphics Card(s)
    Strix RTX 3060
    Sound Card
    Onboard
    Monitor(s) Displays
    LG QNED75URA 43" TV
    Screen Resolution
    3840x2160
    Hard Drives
    One 1tb M.2 for Windows, one 500gb M.2 for Linux, and a 8 TB HDD for data
    PSU
    850 watt
    Case
    Cougar
    Cooling
    upHere D6SEC CPU Cooler
    Keyboard
    Cherry Stream wireless
    Mouse
    iClever MD172
    Internet Speed
    1Gbit/100mb
    Browser
    Edge
    Antivirus
    Microsoft
    Other Info
    Bluray optical writer drive
What happens if you paste 'shell: Desktop' into the run bar (without quotes and without the space between : and D)

If i type it properly i get a smilie!
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    WIN 11 Pro 24H2 - 26100.2161
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Custom
    CPU
    Intel Core i7-5820K
    Motherboard
    ASUS X99-A
    Memory
    48G Teamgroup UD4-3600
    Graphics Card(s)
    NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1080 Ti
    Sound Card
    Integrated
    Monitor(s) Displays
    ACER X34 Predator
    Screen Resolution
    3440 x 1440
    Hard Drives
    Crucial CT1000P 3P SSD8 1TB
    PSU
    GameMax Pro
    Case
    Fractal Design
    Cooling
    Corsair H110iGT
    Keyboard
    Corsair K4
    Mouse
    G-Skill G402
    Internet Speed
    50MBs
    Browser
    Chrome
    Antivirus
    OEM
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