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Recycle bin icon disappears after emptying trash.

Anonymous
2010-03-02T09:40:00+00:00

When I empty the trash, the recycle bin disappears from my desktop. The words "Recycle Bin" are still shown on the desktop, and when I put the curser over the spot where the icon is supposed to be, the area still "hilights" as if the bin were still there.

I am not using a custom icon. I am using the default recycle bin icon.

I am using Windows 7 Professional.

When I reboot the computer the recycle bin comes back. I may be able to empty the trash several times before it disappears again, but eventually (usually within the first 5 times emptying the trash) it disappears again.

I realize that this isn't a huge issue, but it is more than a little bothersome. Any help that anybody can offer would be greatly appreciated.

Windows for home | Previous Windows versions | Accessibility

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  1. Anonymous
    2010-03-11T20:49:24+00:00

    Hello A1A2Z,

    Thank you for visiting the Microsoft Answers Community.

    First, lets try changing from 32 bit True Color to 16 bit High Color.

    • Right-click the desktop > select Screen Resolution
    • On the right select Advanced settings
    • Select the Monitor tab > under Colors select 16 bit and click OK

    Test to determine if the issue is still present on your system.

    Second, Have you tried to refresh your desktop when this happens to determine if it brings your icon back without the restart?

    Chris.H

    Microsoft Answers Support Engineer

    Visit our Microsoft Answers Feedback Forum and let us know what you think.

    3 people found this answer helpful.
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  1. Anonymous
    2011-01-25T07:24:54+00:00

    I believe I have finally figured out the problem (in my case anyway).

    I deleted my TrendMicro anti-virus software just after Christmas and replaced it with Norton Internet Security. Since I removed TrendMicro from my system I haven't had any issues at all with this problem.

    Another apparently related problem was with Microsoft Office. It would sometimes take a long time to open Word and Excel documents. Then when I would "save" an Excel document the computer would create a "temp" file and save it to the folder that the original document was located in. It wouldn't delete the original document. It would just create a temp file that couldn't be opened. After I removed TrendMicro from the computer, those problems went away too.

    I'm curious.......how many of you are using TrendMicro and having these issues?

    2 people found this answer helpful.
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  1. Anonymous
    2016-02-12T08:07:11+00:00

    I am having this problem in Windows 10 Pro, 64 bit.  Refresh brings it back, but it is still a simple, silly glitch that apparently Microsoft hasn't fixed in 6 years.  Sigh.

    8 people found this answer helpful.
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  2. Anonymous
    2010-04-25T04:07:35+00:00

    I have also noticed that after the recycle bin disappears, I can press the F5 key and it comes back.

    4 people found this answer helpful.
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  3. Ramesh 176.1K Reputation points Volunteer Moderator
    2010-03-02T13:07:52+00:00

    Hi A1A2Z,

    See if clearing the thumbnail cache using Disk Cleanup Utility helps.

    1. Click Start, type cleanmgr and press ENTER
    2. Select the system drive letter from the drop-down list
    3. Uncheck all the entries except Thumbnails
    4. Click OK

    Ramesh Srinivasan, Microsoft MVP [Windows Desktop Experience]

    1 person found this answer helpful.
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