How To Fix Blank Icons In Windows 11- Guide #2023

Byadmin

Windows has had the “Blank Icon” problem for a very long period of time. In Windows 10, it appeared much more frequently. Even though this problem is less frequent with Windows 11, several customers have complained about running across it. When Windows cannot generate an application’s logo file, a blank icon is shown. The item may not have been updated, or there may be a problem with the icon cache file. Follow this article to learn how to fix blank icons in Windows 11 if you have one.

Even while it can seem like a minor problem to individuals who don’t keep anything on their pc, the user experience is frustrating. You’ll be disappointed if you want to commence from the Desktop but don’t have a shortcut on the taskbar.

Updating a Blank Icon from the Properties Menu

The very first action you should take if you have a blank icon on your computer is to explicitly alter the icon of that item from its Properties panel. Even if the replacement icon might not be an exact replica of the original.

  • First, you have to right-click the empty desktop icon and choose “Properties.”
  • Once the Properties window has shown, select “Change Icon” from the menu.
  • There will be a smaller box with the title “Change Icon” emerging. Next, choose an icon you can recognize right away, and then hit “OK.”
  • Hit “Apply” and then “OK” from the Properties box after choosing the new icon.

Conduct a DISM Scan To Fix the Issue

  • First, launch the Command Prompt window in administrator mode by putting “Command Prompt” into the Windows search box. You need to right-click on it from the search results, and choose “Run as administrator.”
  • Run the following command into the command line after the Command Prompt window has appeared.

Dism /Online /Cleanup-Image /ScanHealth

  • After that, you need to run the following command.

Dism /Online /Cleanup-Image /restorehealth

  • The damaged or blank icons on your display should now be repaired, however, it is suggested that you do an SFC scan right after running these two commands.

Alter the blank icon by running an SFC scan

A command-line utility called SFC, or System File Checker, scans your computer for damaged or faulty files and also restores them. By using the command “sfc /scannow” from the Command Prompt window open in Administrative mode, you may execute the SFC scan.

  • Look for “Command Prompt” in the Start Menu and then, from the search results, you just have to right-click on it and choose “Run as administrator.”
  • Put “sfc /scannow” onto the command line after the Command Prompt window has shown. The scan will begin, and it might require 5 to 10 minutes to conclude.
  • You will be able to see if your machine has any damaged files when the scan is finished. You may now check to see if the blank item has been repaired.

Windows Explorer may be updated to fix a blank icon

If you see a blank icon on your computer, there’s a chance that Windows Explorer’s background process made a mistake. This problem may be quickly resolved by just rebooting Windows Explorer. Launch the Task Manager by typing its name into Windows search to get started.

Scroll to the bottom of the “Windows Explorer” program in the Task Manager panel. Next, hit the “Restart” option in the bottom-right corner of the window to choose it by giving it one click.

To replace the empty icon, delete the icon cache file

All icons in Windows 11 are stored in a single cache file. Windows will immediately recreate the cache file and recover any damaged or blank icons if you remove this file and reboot your computer.

  • Access the File Explorer by pressing Windows+i on your keyboard or by searching for it in Windows search before deleting the icon cache folder.
  • Once the File Explorer window has loaded, select ‘View’ from the menu to bring up a dropdown menu. Click “Show” from the drop-down menu, and then “Hidden items” from the enlarged menu.
  • Afterward, your next move is to choose “This PC.”
  • Pick the local drive where Windows 11 is loaded or the “C” drive.
  • In the next stage, double-click the “Users” folder to access it.
  • Then, your next job is to double-click the folder that has your PC name on it now.
  • Now, access the “AppData” folder, and you will find a  little fading of the folder icon. Due to the fact that this folder is often hidden.
  • You need to access the “Local” folder now.
  • The “IconCache” file may be found by scrolling down when you’re in the Local folder. Now, remove this file by selecting it with your mouse, then hit the “DEL” button on the keyboard, or by right-clicking it and selecting the “Delete” option.
  • Close the File Explorer window immediately, then choose “Empty Recycle Bin” from the context menu when you right-click on the “Recycle Bin” symbol on your computer.
  • Simply reboot your pc to remove the blank icons after that.

Verify if the application has received an update

The icon of an app may go blank if it hasn’t received an update in a while. It could take place, especially if the app is online. As a result, you must upgrade your applications as frequently as feasible. The majority of the time, if an application has an update waiting, it should alert you by sending a notification to your desktop or by popping up when you launch the app.

There are now several ways to upgrade an application, and the approach to choose mostly relies on how the software is delivered. If you got the app from the Microsoft Store, you must use the Microsoft Store to upgrade it. You must visit that website and get the most recent version of the product if you obtained it from a third-party source, such as the user’s website.

Restart the computer to replace the empty icon

The majority of these UI-related problems are typically resolved by rebooting the computer. So reboot your pc properly and then verify to see whether the problem has been fixed.

Conclusion

Finally, there are some of the strategies applying which you can fix blank icons in Windows 11.