How to restore icons on the Windows 10 desktop

When someone says they have “blank or white icons” on their desktop, they may be referring to the absence of icons or the icons turning a solid white color. Unfortunately, icons are essential for app navigation, so their sudden absence can cause problems. And while the problem may lie in Windows Explorer, it could also be your Windows settings to blame. Here are some methods to help you restore icons to your Windows 10 desktop. Many of these solutions will be surface-level, but others may be more technical.

How to restore icons on the Windows 10 desktop

How to install Windows without DVD or USB

1. Restart File Explorer

Browsing in Windows is controlled by the built-in navigation tool, File Explorer. The program provides a graphical interface to access all files on your system. Restarting File Explorer may fix the temporary problem that causes blank icons on the desktop. Before moving on to the main fixes, let’s restart File Explorer.

To restart File Explorer, follow these steps:

1. Right-click on the taskbar and select Task Manager.
2. Go to the Processes tab and locate Explorer (File Explorer is often referred to as Windows Explorer on some systems.)
3. Touch Restart at the bottom right of the Task Manager window.

Restarting File Explorer usually fixes most browsing problems. Otherwise, try other fixes from this list.

2. Turn off tablet mode

Tablet mode replaces icons on your Windows laptop or tablet with navigation panes. Therefore, you need to check if tablet mode is enabled and disable it if so. To do this, follow these steps:

1. Go to the action center on the taskbar. (It will be right next to the date and time, represented by a pop-up message symbol)
2. Expand it if it’s not already expanded and click the thumbnail of the tablet mode to disable it if it is already enabled.

If you can’t find it in Action Center, follow the steps below to disable it.

1. go to Settings on Windows.
2. go to System.
3. go to Tablet settings in the left sidebar.
4. click on Change additional tablet settings.
5. Disable the Tablet Mode switch by turning it to the left if it was already enabled.

The next step is to run an SFC scan if Tablet mode did not cause the problem.

3. Perform an SFC scan

SFC stands for System File Checker and an SFC scan helps Windows users locate and restore corrupt files. Damaged files can interfere with other Windows tools such as File Explorer, resulting in blank desktop icons. Hopefully the SFC scan will restore the icons after fixing the damaged files.

To run the SFC scan, follow these steps:

1. In the Windows search bar, type cmd.
2. Right-click on the application of the command prompt and choose Run as administrator from the menu.
3. Enter the following command in the command prompt and press Sending:sfc /scannow

The SFC scan will alert the user if any damaged files have been repaired or replaced with new ones as the process progresses. Command Prompt will notify you when the process is complete.

4. Update the display driver

Your icons may also turn white due to an outdated video driver. When you update the display driver, you restore the original settings and replace the damaged files. Therefore, updating the display driver will likely fix the problem. To do this, follow these steps:

• On the desktop, right-click This PC and select Manage.
• click on Management devices in the left menu and expand the category Cards video.
• Right-click the GPU / adapter currently in use and click Update Driver.
• Then click Automatically searches for drivers and follow the on-screen instructions.

You can also reinstall the display drivers if the driver update doesn’t work.

5. Clear the icon cache

By clearing the icon cache, you can restore icons on the Windows 10 desktop that have disappeared from the screen or turned white. The icon database will be rebuilt from scratch, restoring all icons that have disappeared into thin air. Follow these steps to clear the icon cache:

• Open your file explorer using This PC.
• Click File in the upper left corner, then choose Change folder options from the list drop-down.
• Go to the card View and select the circle for Show hidden files, folders and drives.
• Now you go to drive C> Users>% Your user account%> AppData> Local.
• Find the file IconCache with a DataBase file type and delete it.

6. Run a malware scan

Running a malware scan will reveal any hidden third-party malware that may be interfering with Windows functionality. The scan will detect and remove this threat.

Scan through third-party antivirus application or follow the steps below to run Microsoft’s built-in security scan. How to use Microsoft Defender

• You open Settings on Windows.
• go to Update and security.
• go to Windows security in the left sidebar.
• click on Virus and threat protection.
• Then, click Scan options under the button Quick scan and select the scan you want to run.

It is recommended a full scan, but it takes longer because it scans all the files on your computer. If you’re short on time, you can also do one quick scan.

7. Update Windows

Update your Windows if yours is out of date, as this will automatically fix all relevant visible issues on its own. You can skip this step if your Windows is already up to date. Plus, if you keep the automatic update option enabled all the time, you won’t have to worry about updating Windows. Follow the steps to update your Windows:

1. You open Settings of Windows.
2. Go up Update and security, then select Windows Update from the left sidebar.
3. Click Verify updates and Windows will find the latest update for you.
4. Once available, you can click Download and install.

If updating Windows doesn’t fix the problem, you can try resetting your PC.

8. Reset your PC

When you reset your PC, all settings will be reset to factory defaults, including registries, group policies, and any customizations you have made up to now. The default setting will likely fix your icon problem if no other solution worked, but you should be aware of the risks involved. Follow these steps to reset your PC:

• You open Settings of Windows.
• Go up Update and security, then select Restoration from the menu on the left.
• Click the button Start in Reset this PC.
• In the window Reset this PC, select your preference to keep or delete your files on your computer.

It is important to remember that if you choose the Delete All option, all data and files will be deleted and your drives will be wiped. Don’t complicate your life by deleting your data.

Reset the icons on the Windows 10 desktop

Hopefully, the fixes in the list will bring back all disappeared icons and normalize empty icons. If nothing seems to work, you may have no choice but to manually change the icons one by one and create shortcut icons for the missing ones. If that still doesn’t work, reinstall the operating system.

Would you like to give your operating system a unique look? Consider adding custom icon packs to fully customize your Windows by choosing from hundreds of styles.