Guide: Windows 10 Desktop Icon Recovery - 12 Solutions

NOTE: Windows 10 desktop icons are sometimes very slow to load. If one or two Taskbar and Desktop Icons are missing it may take 20 - 30 minutes for Windows 10 to load them. If all of your desktop icons are missing, one of the various methods listed below may help you recover them.

I've noticed when using a laptop, just closing the lid (to put computer in sleep mode) frequently causes this error. Whereas using Start > Shutdown menu > Sleep does not cause this error.

These methods are not listed in any particular order. Theoretically, it should only take one of the methods to recover your desktop icons. That said, these are all the methods that I have tried at some point over the last few months. Some are rather simple and others complex.

While Windows 10 has been touted as a great product, I doubt the veracity of that claim. At this point, I am certain that users with computers that originally came with XP, Vista, or 7 SHOULD NOT upgrade to Windows 10. The reason being that older hardware does not work well with Windows 10. 

Method 0 (least likely to work)
1. rt. click desktop
2. click refresh

Method 1 (may work even if not using Tablet Mode)
1. open Settings
2. click System
3. click Tablet Mode
4. toggle on/off switches: Make Windows more Touch-Friendly and Hide App Icons on the Taskbar

Method 2
1. rt. click desktop
2. hover over View
3. click Show Desktop Icons (uncheck)
4. repeat steps 1 - 3 (check)

Method 3
1. rt. click desktop
2. click Personalize
3. click Change Desktop Icons
4. click Restore Default

Method 4
1. rt. click desktop
2. click Personalize
3. click Themes
4. click Desktop Icon Settings

Method 5
1. rt. click desktop
2. click New
3. click Folder
4. drag new folder to Recycle Bin

Method 6 (My favorite method)
1. rt. click desktop
2. click Sort By
3. click Name

Method 7
1. open File Explorer
2. rt. click on file or program (doesn't matter which)
3. click Send to Desktop
4. if unneeded, drag shortcut to Recycle Bin

Method 8 (See my article, Methods to Adding New User in Windows 10)
1. create new user profile
2. manually transfer files

Method 9 (Likely to work for Black Screen with or without Mouse)
1. restart computer
2. press CTRL (puts cursor in password box)
3. type password, wait 30 - 45 seconds
4. Win Key + P
5. press Down Arrow twice
6. hit Enter

Method 10 
1. restart machine
2. repeatedly press F1, F2, or DEL to enter BIOS (depends on computer)
3. enter Settings, Acceleration, or Display (depends on computer)
4. verify Display setting (ex. Switchable, Internal)
5. press F10
6. choose Yes
7. hit Enter
8. computer will restart, login normally (desktop icons may have returned)

                  Method 11

1. rt. click taskbar
2. click Task Manager
3. in Processes tab, rt. click Windows Explorer
4. click restart