I cant type in the start menu win10

Question

I cant type in the start menu win10

huub willems 0

After i got a virus i could not type in my start menu.

I use windows 10 pro.

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4 answers

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Answer 1

Great! Since everything works fine in the new account, we can confirm the issue was corruption in the old user profile, likely caused by the virus.

While there are ways to try to repair the old user account, they are complex, unreliable, and rarely provide a complete solution. Therefore, the most effective and practical alternative is to start using the new user account as your primary account and migrate your data and apps from the old one.

I'm glad you were able to transfer your apps.

For the files, you can transfer from the old user account folder to the new user account folder. User account folders are located in C:\Users. There's no need to copy the "AppData" folder, as it often contains what caused the issue.

Once you're satisfied, you can remove the old user account by following the instructions under "Remove a user account" in the article I shared earlier.

No problem if you prefer to keep the old user until you're sure you've transferred everything.

Feel free to ask any questions you may have.

Answer 2

David-M 109.6K Independent Advisor

Thanks for the clarification.

In this case, I believe the problem might be directly related to the Start Menu, the Windows user account profile, or severe system corruption. Issues that a virus could cause.

I suggest doing the following:

Use the system file checker to repair possible corrupted or missing system files.

Press "Ctrl + Shift + Esc" to open Task Manager;
Select "File > Run new task";
In the "Open" field, type cmd, check "Create this task with administrative privileges", and click Ok;
Run the following commands at the Command Prompt one at a time:

dism.exe /online /cleanup-image /scanhealth
dism.exe /online /cleanup-image /restorehealth
dism.exe /online /cleanup-image /startcomponentcleanup
sfc /scannow

Note: Pay attention to the results of the commands to make sure that the procedure was completed successfully or if there was a problem. If you have any problems, let me know the error that was shown.

Restart (not shutdown) the PC and see if the problem is resolved.

If it persists, re-register the Shell Experience Host as instructed below.

Press "Ctrl + Shift + Esc" to open Task Manager;
Select "File > Run new task";
In the "Open" field, type powershell, check "Create this task with administrative privileges", and click Ok;
Type or paste the following command and press Enter:

Get-AppxPackage -AllUsers Microsoft.Windows.ShellExperienceHost | Foreach {Add-AppxPackage -DisableDevelopmentMode -Register "$($_.InstallLocation)\AppXManifest.xml"}

Note if the command will run correctly or will have a red message.
If you get a red message, you will need to terminate the "Windows Shell Experience Host" process in Task Manager (Ctrl + Shift + Esc) and run the command again.

Restart (not shutdown) the PC.

If the problem persists, please let me know.

Feel free to ask any questions you may have.

huub willems 0 Reputation points

2026-03-18T13:11:57.32+00:00

I stil have the problem the command does not run fully. It wil just stop mid the command. I also have a problem that i cant login in the microsoft store or other microsoft apps.
David-M 109.6K Reputation points Independent Advisor

2026-03-18T13:36:48.5333333+00:00

Thanks for the details

This shifts the situation. It looks like the issue goes beyond the Start Menu, possibly involving deep corruption of the user profile or Windows itself.

Please do the following:

Create a new local account with administrator privileges.

https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/manage-user-accounts-in-windows-104dc19f-6430-4b49-6a2b-e4dbd1dcdf32#WindowsVersion=Windows_10

To add the new user, follow the instructions in "Add a user account". Create the user without a Microsoft account.

To give administrator privileges to the new user, follow the instructions in "Configure a user as an administrator".

Then, log out of the current user and log into the new user. On the new user, see if the Start Menu will work as expected. Also, check if you will be able to log in to the Microsoft Store.

Please let me know how it goes.

Feel free to ask any questions you may have.
huub willems 0 Reputation points

2026-03-18T15:00:44.2466667+00:00

Yes it finally works. But now i dont have all my apps that i had on my old user. Do you now a way to get all the apps on my new account?
huub willems 0 Reputation points

2026-03-18T15:41:38.8366667+00:00

I already transferred all my apps and thanks for fixing my problem.

Answer 3

Hi. I'm David, and I'm happy to help you.

Have you already run any tools to remove the infection from your computer and ensure that the system is clean?

If not, I suggest you do a full scan using Microsoft Safety Scanner. Download from the link below.

https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/security/threat-protection/intelligence/safety-scanner-download

Also, do a full scan using Malwarebytes as a second opinion.

Download through this link: https://malwarebytes.com/

After scanning, you can uninstall it.

After scanning the system and removing any potential infections, you need to restart (not shutdown) your PC to ensure the infection is completely removed from the system.

If you've already done that and the problem persists, I suggest you do the procedure below:

Press "Windows + R";
Type or paste C:\Windows\system32\ctfmon.exe and press Enter.
See if the problem is resolved.

If the problem is resolved with the above procedure, do the following procedure so that the problem does not return after restarting the PC.

Open Start and type cmd, right-click on "Command Prompt", and select "Run as administrator".
Copy the command below, paste it into Command Prompt, and press Enter:

REG ADD "HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run" /T REG_SZ /D "%windir%\system32\ctfmon.exe" /v CTFMON /F

Restart (not shutdown) your PC and test.

If the problem persists, please let me know.

Feel free to ask any questions you may have.

Standard Disclaimer: There is a link to a non-Microsoft website. The page appears to be providing accurate, safe information. Watch out for ads on the site that may advertise products frequently classified as a PUP (Potentially Unwanted Products). Thoroughly research any product advertised on the site before you decide to download and install it.

huub willems 0 Reputation points

2026-03-17T18:57:56.2266667+00:00

I tried but i stil have the problem.
David-M 109.6K Reputation points Independent Advisor

2026-03-17T19:01:36.5533333+00:00

Please confirm if you can type in other native Windows applications.

For example, open the Microsoft Store and try typing in the search bar.

Please let me know the result.
huub willems 0 Reputation points

2026-03-17T19:02:40.0066667+00:00

I can type in the Microsoft Store.

Answer 4

Run through these checks and fixes in order:

Check the Start menu service dependencies
1. Press Ctrl+Shift+Esc to open Task Manager.
2. Select File > Run new task, type services.msc, and press Enter.
3. In Services, find Background Tasks Infrastructure Service (BrokerInfrastructure).
4. Make sure Startup type is set to Automatic and the Status is Running. If not:
  - Double‑click it, set Startup type to Automatic, select Start, then OK.
5. If it fails to start, open Command Prompt as administrator and run:
```
      sc query pdc
```
  Confirm the STATE is 4 RUNNING. If the PDC driver or its registry key is missing or disabled, restore them from backup or installation media, then reboot and test Start menu typing again.
Repair possible Start menu data corruption
1. Open Command Prompt as administrator.
2. Run this command to repair Start menu tile and cache data:
```
      C:\Windows\System32\tdlrecover.exe -reregister -resetlayout -resetcache
```
3. Sign out and back in, or restart the PC, and test typing in the Start menu.
Install the latest Windows 10 updates
1. Select Start > Settings > Update & Security > Windows Update.
2. Select Check online for updates from Microsoft Update.
3. Install all available updates and restart.
If the issue started after an upgrade and profiles are roaming (domain/enterprise scenario) If using a roaming user profile and Start menu problems appeared after a Windows 10 upgrade, apply the profile workaround:
1. Install the latest monthly cumulative update.
2. As a local admin, create this registry value:
  - Subkey: HKLM\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\ProfSvc\Parameters
  - Name: UseProfilePathMinorExtensionVersion
  - Type: DWORD
  - Value: 1
3. Reboot, then sign in with the roaming profile account and test the Start menu.

If the virus infection modified system files or services, these steps repair the Start menu infrastructure and layout so typing in Start works again.

References:

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I cant type in the start menu win10

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