Some shortcut icons become plain white icons on Windows 10 client PCs.

Question

Some shortcut icons on Windows 10 client PCs are turning into plain white icons.

[Situation]

We have configured GPO in Active Directory and created shortcuts on hundreds of client PCs, but all shortcut icons created in GPO are plain white icons.

Shortcuts created by GPO are links to web pages (e.g., internal web portal ).

Icon files of shortcuts created by GPO are saved in the sysvol area of ActiveDirectory (create an ico folder in the same hierarchy as Policies and save it).

The issue was confirmed after the Windows Update (KB5028166) of 2023/07 was applied to the client PC.

[Environment]

Windows 10 Enterprise 22H2 (client PC)

Windows Server 2016 (Active Directory server)

[What we tried]

Checked the operation of the shortcut.

　Double-clicked the shortcut and confirmed that the web page could be accessed.

Change the location of the icon file

　- Save the icon file on Active Directory to the local disk of Windows 10 PC.

　- Select "Change Icon" from the properties of the shortcut, and select the icon file on the local disk.

　- Confirm that the shortcut is displayed with the selected icon.

Clear the cache of the icon file

　- Move to C:\Users\username\AppData\Local

　- Delete IconCache.db

　- Restart PC

　- Confirm that shortcut icons are still plain white

Uninstall Windows Update Update (KB5028166) for 2023/07

　- Uninstall the 2023/07 update from the Control Panel

　- Restart the PC and confirm that the shortcut icons are displayed correctly.

　- Install the Windows Update for 2023/07 (KB5028166)

　- Restart the PC and confirm that the shortcut icon is now plain white (the correct icon was displayed for a while after the restart, probably due to the cache).

Enable GPO

　- Enable [Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > Windows Components > File Explorer Allow the use of remote paths in file shortcut icons

　- Reboot the PC and verify that the shortcut icons are displayed correctly.

I have confirmed that enabling GPO [File Explorer Allow the use of remote paths in file shortcut icons] improves the issue, but I do not know why it was working fine before.

Since uninstalling the 2023/07 update (KB5028166) improved the issue, we assume that there was some kind of specification change in KB5028166.

We would appreciate it if you could provide us with any promising information regarding this phenomenon.

Answer 1

Hello there,

Based on the information provided, it seems that the issue with plain white shortcut icons on Windows 10 client PCs is related to the Windows Update (KB5028166) that was applied in July 2023. Here are a few points to consider and possible explanations for the phenomenon:

Icon Cache: The icon cache is a database file that stores icons for faster display. Clearing the icon cache, as you tried, should have caused Windows to rebuild the cache and display the correct icons. However, it seems that this step didn't resolve the issue.

GPO and Icon Files: It's possible that the Windows Update (KB5028166) introduced some changes related to how GPO handles icon files for shortcuts. Since the icons are saved in the sysvol area of Active Directory and the GPO configuration affects the appearance of the shortcuts, it might be worth investigating any changes related to GPO behavior in the Windows Update.

Remote Paths in File Shortcut Icons: Enabling the GPO setting "Allow the use of remote paths in file shortcut icons" seems to have improved the issue. This setting might be relevant when the icon files are stored in a remote location, such as Active Directory in your case. However, it's unclear why this setting was working fine before the Windows Update.

Icon File Format: Check if the icon files used for the shortcuts are in the proper format (e.g., .ico format). Sometimes, if the icon file is in a format that Windows cannot read, it might cause issues with the display of icons.

Windows Update Documentation: To understand the specific changes introduced by the KB5028166 update, it would be beneficial to refer to the official documentation or release notes provided by Microsoft. Unfortunately, as of my last update in September 2021, I do not have access to specific details about this particular update. You may need to refer to official Microsoft sources for the update details.

Feedback and Support: If the issue persists and you cannot find a satisfactory solution, consider providing feedback to Microsoft and seeking support from their official channels. They may be aware of the issue and could provide more insights or even release a patch to address it.

Since you mentioned that uninstalling the update temporarily resolved the issue, it is likely that the update introduced some changes affecting GPO behavior or icon handling. Investigating the update documentation and seeking support from Microsoft should be the next steps to gain a deeper understanding and possible resolution of the issue.

I used AI provided by ChatGPT to formulate part of this response. I have verified that the information is accurate before sharing it with you.

--If the reply is helpful, please Upvote and Accept as answer--