How do i fix taskbar and start menu not working after update.

I tried to fix the issue by reseting my computer and reinstalling windows while keeping all my files.

That only broke things more. I then decided to try and fix it with windows recovery which did absolutely nothing.

I verified the files with cmd commands like sfc /scannow as well as the dism commands. Which also did nothing.

Eventually it got to the point where nothing worked and i decided to cut my losses and re install windows completely. I removed my storage devices except my C boot drive and reinstalled completely.

Im tired of windows, really wish windows had as good documentation and help as linux.

Currently in the process of reinstalling, my boot drive may potentially be broken or something, ill find out.

Hi,

Since you say reinstall is not working which is a good fix for the issue, the problem is something else. Let us find the root cause of it.

Let us check the Installation log to find why the update failed. Please share the following logs. Please paste the Path in Run directly as the folders may be hidden(Win+R).

The Panther logs. Files named Setupact.log and Setuperr.log from the following path:

C:$Windows.~BT\Sources\Panther

The Rollback logs: These usually are created if Windows Update rolls back. Files named Setupact.log and Setuperr.log from the following path C:$Windows.~BT\Sources\Rollback

[Only if the error code is 0xC1900101-0x30018] The Device Install Log from C:/$Windows.~bt\Sources\Rollback\setupapi\setupapi.dev.log

[Only if the error code is 0xC1900101-20017] Setupact.log and Setuperr.log in %windir%\Panther

Please upload the files on a file-sharing website like https://onedrive.com and share the link in the next response.

As the log size might be large consider zipping everything before uploading.

To fix the taskbar and Start menu issues after your recent update, you can try the following steps:

1. Restart Windows Explorer: Sometimes, simply restarting Windows Explorer can resolve taskbar issues. You can do this by opening Task Manager (Ctrl + Shift + Esc), finding "Windows Explorer" in the list, right-clicking it, and selecting "Restart".
2. Check Background Tasks Infrastructure Service: Ensure that the Background Tasks Infrastructure Service is running. You can do this by:
   • Pressing Win + R, typing services.msc, and pressing Enter.
   • Finding "Background Tasks Infrastructure Service" in the list and ensuring it is set to "Automatic" and is currently running.
3. Clear the Icon Cache: If the taskbar icons are blank, clearing the icon cache can help. Follow these steps:
   • Open Task Manager and end the task for "Windows Explorer".
   • Open a command prompt with administrative privileges and run the following commands:

          CD /d %userprofile%\AppData\Local
          DEL IconCache.db /a
     

   • Restart Windows Explorer again.
4. Re-register Shell Experience Host: You can re-register the Shell Experience Host, which may resolve issues with the Start menu:
   • Open Windows PowerShell as an administrator and run:

          Get-AppXPackage -AllUsers | Where-Object {$_.InstallLocation -like "*ShellExperienceHost*"} | Foreach {Add-AppxPackage -DisableDevelopmentMode -Register "$($_.InstallLocation)\AppXManifest.xml"}
     

   • Restart your computer after running the command.
5. Check for Updates: Ensure that you have the latest updates installed, as subsequent updates may fix bugs introduced in the previous ones.
6. Rollback the Update: If the issue persists, consider rolling back the recent update to see if that resolves the problem. You can do this through Settings > Update & Security > Windows Update > View update history > Uninstall updates.

If you continue to encounter error 0xc1900101 while trying to reinstall updates, this may indicate a driver issue or hardware compatibility problem. Ensure that all drivers are up to date, especially for your GPU and other critical components.

References:

• Start menu troubleshooting guidance
• Application shortcuts on the desktop, Start menu, and taskbar show blank icons