Fix Icons Missing Problem in Windows 10 and Previous Windows

Windows is designed to retrieve icon thumbnails from a cached database instead of using the original program icons.

This helps improve system performance and quickly load the icons. Sometimes, the Desktop icons may not show up but the icon names are still there. This indicates the shell icons path is invalid or the icons cache has gone corrupt. Let us examine both the possibilities in detail.

But before we get towards fixing the issue, we must perform a simple fix that can help not just address issues like missing icons but a whole host of issues as well. All you’ve got to do is use an efficient system optimizer like ST Cleaner for this purpose. It is extremely light on system resources and is always up to the task!

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Specify Shell Icons Path

Windows cannot retrieve the shell icons as the Shell Icons path specified in the system Registry is invalid. You might want to set the valid path to get rid of missing icons.

1. Type RegEdit in the Search Box on the Taskbar.
2. Open it from the Search Results.
3. Registry Editor will now open up. Locate the following subkey:
   • HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE | SOFTWARE | Microsoft | Windows | CurrentVersion | Explorer
4. Click Edit | New | Key.
5. Specify Shell Icons as the name of the newly created key, and then expand it.
6. Right-click Shell Icons, choose New | String Value.
7. Name the newly created string as 29
8. Double click the string named 29.
9. Enter the following value:
   • C:\Windows\System32\shell32.dll,29
10. Click OK.
11. Exit out of the screen; reboot the machine for the new changes to take effect.

Note: Overwrite existing path with the new path in Step # 9.

 

Purge & Rebuild Icon Cache

The icon cache, stored in a hidden application data directory, might be corrupted. Purge and rebuild it to automatically fix the problem.

1. Click the File Explorer icon on the Taskbar.
2. Click View tab.
3. Check the Hidden items.
4. Open the following location:
   • C:\Users\Your_User_Name\AppData\Local\
5. Right-click IconCache.db and choose Rename.
6. Specify a new name. e.g. IconCache.db.old
7. Exit the File Explorer and restart the system.

Alternatively, you can rebuild the Icon Cache using the following command-lines.

1. Press Windows Key + X; choose Command Prompt (Admin).
2. Execute following commands in the given sequence:
   • cd /d %userprofile%\AppData\Local
   • attrib –h IconCache.db
   • del IconCache.db
   • start explorer

 

Restore System

Once you’ve restored your system at the point of time when the System Restore Point was created, the previous icons will be restored.

1. Right-click This PC shortcut on the Desktop, choose Properties.
2. You have a new window. Click System protection.
3. On the System Properties dialog, click System Restore.
4. Click Next on the welcome screen.
5. Select a Restore Point prior to the time in which all the icons were showing up perfectly.