Many users often face problems like the taskbar icons not showing on second monitor Windows 11, or completely disappearing. A problem like this often happens if the computer can’t support the display in color depth, pixel count issues, and many more.
Sometimes damaged monitor cables force your Windows 11 to show the taskbar properly. In contrast to the old proverb, you can also fix this problem if you have the will.
A quick first way to solve this is to reset the explorer.exe process. This will help to control the Windows shell. Windows shell typically has a file explorer app, including a taskbar. Taskbar issues can also be solved by clicking the start button, malfunctioning the system menu, and many more ways. Below you’re introducing all possible ways to solve the taskbar icons problem on your Windows 11.
How to Move Taskbar to a Second Monitor on Windows 11?
While setting up the taskbar icons issues on your computer, you need to know the moving position of the taskbar. In that case, you can move the taskbar to a second monitor by the following steps:
- Open up the “Start menu” and then select “Settings.”
- On the next step, select “System” and click on the “Display” option on the right panel.
- Click on the monitor that you want to move. If you’re unsure which is to move on or which isn’t, select the “Identify Button.”
- Expand the multiple displays menu and select the “make this my main display” option again.
- At the same time, go to the menu bar and choose personalization from the list on the left.
- Select “Taskbar” and expand the “Taskbar behaviors” menu.
Lastly, watch out for the option “show my taskbar on all displays.” As soon as you select this option, the taskbar will now come in front of you which you selected. However, it is also worth mentioning that the display’s taskbar can change later through the main display.
How to Show Taskbar on All Monitors on Windows 11?
Learn from these procedures to move the taskbar on all monitors. This will help you a lot to solve the issue of taskbar icons disappearing at once.
- Open the “menu” and choose settings.
- From the settings, you’ll see the “personalization” option on the left panel.
- Scroll down and zoom into the taskbar menu.
- Again, click on the “Taskbar behaviors” menu.
- Now, search for the “show my taskbar on all displays” option.
Wait for some time. The entire procedure sometimes takes time to settle. You’ll now be able to see the taskbar on all monitors which are connected to Windows 11. Lastly, uncheck the “show my taskbar” on all displays to remove it from all.
How to Solve Taskbar Icons Not Showing on Windows 11?
Follow these tips to fix the taskbar icon problem on Windows 11. A simple solution can be used to solve this problem. Restarting and restoring the data is one among them. This is a very common method to fix the Windows 11 taskbar icons. There are some more ways so that you can move to any section you want.
1. Restart Your Windows Explorer
If the taskbar icons aren’t showing or missing on Windows 11, you must restart this. The easiest way to fix such an issue is to do this. Do the following steps with clarity.
- First, open your P.C./Computer. Press on the Windows 11 keyboard shortcut. Click on “Ctrl+Shift+Esc” to open the task manager.
- From there, under the processes section, scroll down and search for “Windows Explorer”.
- Next, right-click on the button and choose the “Restart” option.
- Your Windows 11 opened up after a while. But the taskbar and the desktop will disappear from there for a second.
- Afterward, everything will appear back almost immediately.
- As soon as the desktop is opened, the taskbar icons appear very soon and work as intended.
If you’re still searching for the taskbar icons, go ahead. Try to restart your P.C. and ensure to restart the system once again rather than shut down the P.C. Keep trying to turn the P.C. on subsequently as far as possible to you. All the taskbar icons will be restored after rebooting the P.C.
2. Delete IconCache.db File From PC
Secondly, you can try out this. To fix the taskbar icons, you can delete the “IconCache.db” file on Windows 11 P.C.s. However, sometimes the file is corrupted for some unknown issues. And the result of such incidents doesn’t bring you any good. Therefore, do the following steps one by one.
- Press on the “Windows+R” shortcut. You may notice the Run prompt will open after that click.
- Now, drive your fingertips on the keyboard, type “%localappdata% onto the text field, and then click “Enter”.
- Under this folder, click on the “Enable” option to hide all the files and folders of the Windows 11 P.C.
- Afterward, press “View” at the top right menu bar and select “Show⇒ Hidden items.”
- Next, scroll down to search the “IconCache.db” file. Right-click on the file, and keep trying to delete it from the computer.
- Once you have deleted the files, restart your P.C. once again. You may then see the taskbar option on the computer screen.
3. Delete All the Taskbar Icons
This is an excellent secondary way to fix the taskbar problem of Windows 11 PCs. Delete all the taskbar icons through commands executed by batch file. Here is the complete process of how to do it.
Step 1: Open Notepad on the Computer
First, open the notepad on your computer and copy and paste some initial commands below. This command helps to remove the icons from the taskbar and deletes the relevant entry. However, let’s write down the Windows Explorer process and restart it.
Copy-Paste This Command:
DEL / F /S /Q / A
“%AppData%\Microsoft
\Internet
Explorer\Quick
Launch\User
Pinned\TaskBar\*”
REG DELETE
HKCU\Software\Micros
oft\Windows\CurrentV
erosion\Explorer\Task
band/F
taskkill/f/im
explorer.exe
start explorer.exe
Step 2: In the top menu, click “File”
Now, click on “File” right in the top menu on a notepad. Then select the “Save as” option.
Step 3: Choose “All files” from There
“All files” should be selected in the “Save as type.” Next, drop the menu once again and pick a file name. You can choose anyone that you like most. For example, I can tell what I used to rename my file folder. Sometimes I save my file by “taskbar,” or sometimes, I name it “.bat” at the end of the file name. Finally, click the ok or “Save” button.
Step 4: Move to The Folder
Now, move to the folder. Find your saved batch file and then right-click on it. Tap on “Run as administrator.”
Step 5: Open Up a Command Prompt
You will then receive a command prompt window within a few seconds. The taskbar icons should start in front of the Windows 11 P.C. screen. If the issue remains, then restart the P.C. once again.
4. Enable & disable the “Hide the Taskbar” Option
This might work for you if the taskbar icons aren’t fixed by the above method. This method differs from others; you may have to play with some taskbar settings. Just enable and disable the taskbar for a few seconds. Thinking of how to do that? Here’s the process.
- Tap on “Windows+I” to open the settings. Next, move to the “Personalization” menu from your computer’s left sidebar. Next, click on the “Taskbar” in the right pane.
- After doing this, click on “taskbar behaviors” at the bottom. Then, expand it.
- Enable the checkbox next to you. Press on the “Automatically hide the taskbar” option. A few seconds later, click on the disable option from the checkbox. Check if the icons reappear on the taskbar or not. If it still does not come before you, try any other method from below.
5. Omit Or Delete the Windows Iris
Iris is another culprit of this, discovered by Microsoft in September 2021, susceptible and responsible for the taskbar icons disappearing problem. Iris is a general setting that handles wallpapers for Windows Spotlight and lock screen suggestions.
Therefore, if your computer is affected by these difficulties, there’s a way to fix it.
Step 1: Press on to Windows Key
Press on the Windows key and open the start menu. From there, scroll down to search for the “CMD” option. There you also find the command prompt, which appears on the right top in the search results. You can run the program as an administrator by choosing “Run as administrator” in the right pane.
Step 2: Save All the Work Before Run the Command
Before you go, don’t forget to save all the work. It is important to execute the command since your P.C. will restart automatically.
Step 3: Paste the Command & Hit Enter
Please copy the below command and paste it into your Windows 11 notepad. Next, hit the Enter option. For your information, the command you get removes all sorts of Iris-related registry entries from the P.C. After that, you have to restart it one more time.
Command:
reg delete
HKCU\SOFTWARE\Micros
oft\Windows\CurrentV
version\IrisService
/f && shutdown -r -t
0
Step 3: Check the Taskbar Icon Existence
After logging in to the P.C., check out the taskbar icons on the Windows 11 computer. Next, click on each option to access the programs and files you wish.
6. Uninstall The Last Windows 11 Update
This is the last option to try out. If the taskbar icons do not appear to you or are still missing, then I suggest one thing. Uninstall all the Windows updates as a last resort, and you’ll be able to fix it.
Also, don’t worry much about your previous Data files. Following this method won’t delete your files or undo any changes. However, let’s jump to the process.
- Go to the settings option from your P.C., and tap on “Windows+I” to open the settings app. From there, navigate the “Windows Update” menu from the left sidebar. Again, click on the “Update history” option.
- Now, scroll down to the bottom and tap on the “Uninstall updates” option.
- Check if there is any latest Windows 11 update available or not. Click on the “Uninstall” option next to it.
- Do follow the on-screen instructions you see on the computer screen. Let your computer uninstall the last Windows updates.
Reboot the taskbar icons, which should be restored to the P.C. Thus; you can fix the problem independently.
Notes: After rebooting the taskbar icons, they may be invisible to you if any issues remain. No worries, open the settings again. Then, enable the "Customize taskbar" option> "Transparent." Next, adjust the taskbar opacity. Keep it up until you're obtained your comfortable position. And that's it.
Final Words
A taskbar is an important option for students and new users to get in touch with multiple screens simultaneously. In this sense, I reveal all the ways if anyone suddenly fails to adjust it. By default, remember that the taskbar icons not showing a second monitor on Windows 11 if the device has manual defects.
If your windows monitor has certain issues, my suggested way may not rescue you. Those actions mentioned above are for fixing normal issues. But they cannot solve the defects. Therefore, you might take your P.C. to the computer engineer to troubleshoot the physical defects.
