Taskbar

tmarsh · Dec 17, 2021

Just upgraded to windows 11 with a fresh install. Any programmes pinned to the task bar don't appear to work correctly. I can open any one e.g. Firefox but after that iof I click on one e.g. Thunderbird it will not open unless I exit Firefox. Any ideas?

glasskuter · Dec 17, 2021

Are you using Firefox from the windows store or the full fledged installable version? Do the programs open correctly if you start then from the start menu or is the problem exclusive to taskbar?
Also just to clarify, you say you upgraded with a fresh install. Upgrade and fresh install are not the same. You do mean booted from .iso bootable media, wiped out Windows 10 , and installed 11, right?

tmarsh · Dec 19, 2021

glasskuter said:
Are you using Firefox from the windows store or the full fledged installable version? Do the programs open correctly if you start then from the start menu or is the problem exclusive to taskbar?
Also just to clarify, you say you upgraded with a fresh install. Upgrade and fresh install are not the same. You do mean booted from .iso bootable media, wiped out Windows 10 , and installed 11, right?

Firefox full install, actually I installed it with ninite but never had issues.

Exclusive to the taskbar, just to clarify, if I ctrl+D any programme will open, appears to not work wnen a programme is running. If I have say Firefox and Thunderbird running and wanted to open Excel from the taskbar I have to show desktop first.

And sorry, yes I bought a 1TB m.2 to replace my 512gb so a fresh install on that.

glasskuter · Dec 19, 2021

First, If you are using any 3rd party tools that control the taskbar, uninstall them to see if the issue is fixed.

Thunderbird and Firefox are both Mozilla projects and probably use some of the same DLLs. A corrupted install of either could affect the other.

To eliminate it from being a Windows problem, try resetting taskbar to default. You can reset your taskbar to default using a script.
Note: This will remove all your taskbar toolbars, cache and restart explorer.exe.
Copy and paste the following script in a Notepad file and save it as a BAT file. You can do so by entering .BAT at the end of the file name and under "save as type" select all files

REG DELETE HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Streams\Desktop /F
taskkill /f /im explorer.exe
taskkill /f /im shellexperiencehost.exe
del %localappdata%\Packages\Microsoft.Windows.ShellExperienceHost_cw5n1h2txyewy\TempState\* /q
start explorer.exe

After saving the BAT file, run it by double-clicking on it. Restart and pin FF & TB again

If the problem still exists, completely uninstall and reinstall both FF and TB. I would use one of the many free uninstallers like Revo Uninstaller or Advanced Uninstaller Pro as they scan for leftover remnants after the uninstall. Be sure to check the boxes to remove all leftover items.
Restart PC and reinstall TB and FF using the latest version of both. Don't use any old installer you might have. Since it works fine when you start them from the start menu, I doubt the programs themselves are the issue but at least this way you know you've covered all your bases.