I experienced the same thing.
- No start menu function except right-click
- No search function in taskbar
- No right-click functionality in taskbar
- No calendar function in systray
- No Cortana
- No ability to add new users in Settings
After hours (days) of searching and trying every possible option I came across (powershell, registry edits, DISM, sfc scannow, etc.), I recalled that everything seemed to work great when I originally was logged in as a new account. Unfortunately, my settings screen would not allow me to create a new account at all.
Ultimately I created a new user using CMD and was able to assign administrator rights to the new account allowing me to access the files that I'd saved within my original account. The new account works at about 98% - still can't access Microsoft Store and Edge won't allow me to set a new default search engine - but overall the machine is working properly. My suggestion, if you're faced with the same problems, is to create a new user account via elevated CMD (i.e. CMD as Administrator) * See instructions for launching an elevated cmd prompt below, if needed
To create a new user with elevated CMD prompt:
1. Make sure you're logged on under an admin account.
2. To add a new user account on the local computer:
Example: Adds a new user account with the loginid Bill and with password jd8ufi1k9
net user username password /ADD (ex. net user Bill jd8ufi1k9 /ADD)
3. To add new user to the Administrator group:
Example: Adds new user account Bill to administrators
net localgroup administrators Bill /add
At this point you should be able to access a 'working' instance of Windows 10 from which you can transfer files, continue to troubleshoot why your other account isn't loading properly or whatever. To find the files from your original user account, launch File Explorer and navigate to the original user account folder by scrolling down the left-hand navigation window and clicking This PC -> Local Disk -> Users and selecting the original user account. From there you can move files to the new user account, etc. as you wish. Do note that any documents/files/procedures you may have written that explicitly include path names referring to the original account will need to be adjusted.
I'm no Windows expert so there may be a better solution or way to go about it. That said, I was super frustrated with the way Windows 10 was misbehaving and this worked for me. I hope it works for you, too.
* There will be some people who read this and have no idea how to access CMD as Administrator. Here are a couple of ways to do it:
- If your right-click works on the Start menu, you should see 'Command Prompt (Admin)' as the last option in the top section of the menu that appears
- Ctrl + Alt + Del and access Task Manager. Go File -> Run new task. In the 'Create new task' dialog that comes up, type cmd and check the box that says 'Create this task with administrative privileges' and click Ok
Sep. 07, 2018 / Updated by Bessie Shaw to Windows 10
One of the popular features of the latest Windows OS, Windows 10 and its updates like Windows 10 Creators Update, is that users can search anything via the search bar beside the start menu, like what we often do on Windows 8 or 7. But recently, some Windows users come across the Windows 10 start menu search not working issue. The Windows 10 Cortana rejects to show the results and you can’t search the app via the Windows 10 search bar.
If your Windows 10 desktop or laptop runs into such Windows 10 search not working problem, don’t be so worried about it. This post will help to put your Windows search on the right path.
Top 5 Ways to Fix Windows 10 Start Menu Search Not Working Problem
Here we’ve had top 5 solutions for you to make your search bar on Windows 10 Start menu available again. You can try the methods one by one until you get the search results.
Way 1. Configure the UAC and Fix the Windows 10 Start Menu Search Not Working Issue
You can modify the User Account Control in the Local Group Policy and fix the Windows 10 Search bar not working or the Windows 10 Start menu not working problem.
1. Use the Windows shortcut keysWin + R to launch the Run.
2. Type into gpedit.msc.
3. Hit the Enter.
Windows 10 Taskbar Search Window Not Working
4. Expand the Windows Settings under the Computer Configuration item.
5. Expand the Security Settings.
6. Expand the Local Policies.
7. Highlight the Security Options.
8. On the right pane, scroll down and double-click the User Account Control: Admin Approval Mode for the Built-in Administrator account.
9. Choose the Enabled option.
10. Click the Apply and the OK.
Note: If it has been the Enabled, you can choose the Disabled option and click the Apply. Then re-enable it.
Way 2. Make the Windows 10 Search Service Available
If the method one fails to make the search bar work, you may need to check the Windows Search service:
1. Launch the Run.
2. Type into services.msc.
3. Press the Enter.
4. On the right pane, scroll down and double-click the Windows Search service.
5. If the service is stopped, then click the Start button.
6. Select the Automatic from the drop-down menu of the Startup type.
7. Click the Apply and the OK.
Now try the searching from the Start menu of Windows 10 to see if the “Windows 10 Start menu Search not working” problem still persists.
Way 3. Use the Windows PowerShell to Troubleshoot the Windows Search Bar Problem
The Windows 10 Search bar also appears with the Cortana when you use the Windows shortcut keys Win + S. If the Cortana runs into problems, you may not do the search from the Windows 10 search bar. So you can re-register the Cortana via the Windows PowerShell and fix the Windows 10 Search bar not working problem.
1. Click the Start menu.
2. Go to the W category.
3. Expand the Windows PowerShell folder.
4. Right-click the Windows PowerShell for More.
5. Select the Run as Administrator.
6. Paste the command below into the box:
Get-AppXPackage -AllUsers | Foreach {Add-AppxPackage -DisableDevelopmentMode -Register '$($_.InstallLocation)AppXManifest.xml'}
7. When the Windows PowerShell finishes its work, you can restart the computer and try the Windows 10 Search bar again.
Way 4. Restart the Processes to Solve the Windows 10 Search Not Working Issue
You can try to end the Cortana and the Windows Explorer and then restart the processes. This can also fix the Windows 10 Search not working problem.
1. Right-click the blank area of the taskbar.
2. Select the Task Manager.
3. Right-click the Cortana/Windows Explorer on the list.
4. Select the End task or Restart.
Wait for a while and try doing the search from the Windows 10 Search bar. If this still fails to fix the problem, you may need to restore the system to the last state that the Windows Search is working properly. Go on the reading below.
See Also:Top 4 Fixes for Windows 10 Taskbar Not Working
Way 5. Restore the Windows System
You may want to check out Driver Talent, a useful utility for system restore and Windows 10 driver backup. It’s important to backup all the drivers before the system changes and create a new system restore point in case other computer issues occur. The utility is available with the Download button below.
Here’s how to restore the system and fix the Windows 10 Start menu Search not working problem:
1. Choose one restore point you've made and click the Restore button.
2. Read the suggestion and click Restore.
3. Restart your Windows 10 computer.
Note: Don’t forget to backup the Windows drivers before the system restore.
After the system restore your Windows Search bar can work properly as before. Now try to type something into the search bar and perform a search.
Hope this post can help you make your Windows 10 Search bar available again. If you have any other Windows 10 Start menu search not working issues you can check for solutions in our Windows 10 Issues and Fix section, drop a line in the comment section below, or go to the OSToto official forum.
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Everything was fine, and suddenly, the start menu button, including everything else on the taskbar, stopped working. I can right click on start button but if I try clicking volume, battery, action center etc icons, nothing happens.
I have tried the powershell command option and the only solution that seems to work for other people, is creating a new user account, this is my work laptop so I can't do that. Any ideas what might be going on?
I have tried the following solutions with no result:
1)
Right-click at Start and run Command Prompt as Admin Type command: ren %windir%System32AppLockerPlugin*.* *.bak Restart Windows Be happy Thank you UHLIK from THIS thread on the Microsoft Forum after reading THIS thread on the forum.
2)
Right-click at Start and click RUN type SERVICES.MSC and press the enter key right click on APPLICATION IDENTITY and select START Be happy… a reboot is not required UPDATED: August 19, 2015: A third fix I have used successfully is:
3)
Create a new user and log into it Right click on the START button and select COMMAND PROMPT (RUN AS ADMINSTRATOR) Type dism /online /cleanup-image /restorehealth Restart the PC Log back into the problematic profile hopefully you’ll find the store and apps work again
4)
Press Windows Key + R on your keyboard. Key in PowerShell and hit Enter. Right click on the PowerShell icon on the taskbar and select Run as Administrator. Now paste the following command in the Administrator: Windows PowerShell window and press Enter key: Get-AppXPackage -AllUsers | Foreach {Add-AppxPackage -DisableDevelopmentMode -Register “$($_.InstallLocation)AppXManifest.xml”} Wait for PowerShell to execute and complete the command. Ignore the few errors (in red color) that may pop up. When it finishes, try hitting Start and hopefully it’ll start working.
AspiringCanadianAspiringCanadian
4 Answers
I removed everything from the folder:
%localappdata%TileDataLayerDatabase
except the file named 'vedatamodel.edb'. And clicked the start menu, and it worked.
AspiringCanadianAspiringCanadian
OK, I am certain that this seems like some sort of hack, but after hours of searching I found this thread [SOLVED] Cortana -- Search Box Problem which pointed me an app called 'Tweaking.com - Windows Repair.' This app was completely able to fix all of my modernUI applications right between step 5 and 6 of their list of repairs.
Although I'm hard pressed to suggest a solution that links off to an unknown application..whatever this Tweaking.com app is doing during step 5 or 6 has absolutely fixed my Windows 10 instance.
All other fixes, as mentioned by the author, failed for me.
farinafarina
I have tried all these things but unsuccessfully.
The only action that worked for me was to create another account and remove the actual account. After perform this action everything works fine.
robsonrosarobsonrosa
From what you say (taskbar, start buttons, and tray not working) I'd say it is most likely a problem with windows explorer.
Do Control + Shift + Escape
Locate 'explorer.exe' or 'Windows Explorer' in task manager
select it and hit Delete. If prompted, click 'Yes'
Hold the windows button and hit the R key
Type 'cmd' and hit enter.
type 'explorer' and hit enter.
Your taskbar, which runs from explorer, should be fixed now, as explorer has restarted.
mrdorkfacemrdorkface
protected by bwDracoMay 8 '16 at 3:40
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Quite a few Windows 10 users are facing problems, and some of the inbuilt functions are also not functioning as expected, for many. The Start Menu, Cortana and the Taskbar Search functions in Windows 10 operating system have been one of the most useful features that let us search any file without leaving the desktop. However, there are chances that your Cortana might get broken or might not function as intended in Windows 10 – and you may or may not receive such an error message:
Critical Error Start Menu and Cortana aren’t working, We’ll try to fix it the next time you sign in
Or
Critical Error Your Start menu isn’t working, We’ll try to fix it the next time you sign in.
UPDATE: Microsoft has released Windows 10 Start Menu Troubleshooter which promises to fix the issue. Please try it first.
We will walk you through some of the ways by which you can fix the Start Menu, Cortana & Search problem.
NOTE: If Cortana is not working after you upgraded your PC to Windows 10 Anniversary Update, open your Registry Editor and ensure that the value of BingSearchEnabled, as well as CortanaEnabled is set to 1:
HKEY_CURRENT_USERSOFTWAREMicrosoftWindowsCurrentVersionSearch
If this works for all great, else read on!
First of all, make sure that you have set up Cortana in Windows 10 correctly. If after upgrading to Windows 10, you find that Cortana is not available in your region, then this post titled Cortana not available on Windows 10 can help you get Cortana on your Windows 10 PC.
Go through this entire post first and then see which one or more of these suggestions may apply in your case.
Sign out and Sign in
Sign out and Sign in or restart your PC and see if the problem goes away.
Automatic Repairs
If your PC prompts for Automatic Repair, continue with it and let Windows carry it out.
Kill and restart the Cortana process
Storage: 16GB for 32-bit OS 20GB for 64-bit OS. Vista windows 10 yukseltme.
Windows update stuck on pending download. If you find that Cortana is not working properly, the best thing to do would be to kill Cortana process and restart the process via Task Manager. If it were a minor runtime error, Cortana would just take a restart to fix it.
Disable Antivirus software
Some security software are known to create this issue – Avast for instance. Disable it and see if it makes the problem go away. If your security software is the culprit, make sure you are using its latest version – else you may want to change it.
Windows Search Troubleshooter
Open Control Panel > All Control Panel Items and click on Find and fix problems with Windows Search to open the Windows Search Troubleshooter. Run it and follow the wizard.
Create a new User Account
The problem might be associated with your Microsoft credentials. Try creating a new username and password and see if you can fix the Cortana. We need to remember that Cortana will not be switched on automatically and needs to be enabled on by selecting Cortana button on the taskbar.
Re-register the Cortana app
After the November Update, if you use this method to fix this problem using the Appx PowerShell cmdlet, it caused problems with your Windows Store apps. But if you have installed Windows 10 Anniversary Update, it is working now – I have personally tried this – Admin. 1 July 2016.
Open an elevated Powershell prompt, type the following command and hit Enter:
You can also open Task Manager > File menu > Run new task. Type powershell and select the Create this task with administrative privileges check box and click OK to open a PowerShell prompt
If you feel, you may also try the other 2 of the 3 Windows 10 Support, Solutions & Universal fixes.
Rebuild the Windows Search Indexer in Windows 10
Rebuilding the Search Indexer may help in repairing the built-in search tool in Windows 10. To rebuild the Windows search index head to Control Panel > Indexing options. Click on Advanced and ensure that you are on the Index Settings tab in the Advanced Options window.
The rebuilding will take some time, and once it is done, you can start searching for the files you need, and the Search should work properly. If you need more details, you will get them at this post titled Windows Search Indexer tips. See this post if you need to troubleshoot and fix Windows Search or if Search Indexer is not working.
Uninstall programs which may affect with the taskbar
If you are using Dropbox, uninstall it and see if it makes the problem go away.
Tip: See this post if Cortana Ask Me Anything is not working.
PS: Please read the comments below. PeacefulArgument says, the problem went away after he re-enabled the Windows Firewall Service.
Zte blade v8 pro manual. If you have followed the above suggestions, your Cortana and the Windows Taskbar Search should hopefully have been fixed.
Posts that offer additional suggestions:
TIP: This post will help you if your WinX Menu is not working in Windows 10.
TIP: Download this tool to quickly find & fix Windows errors automatically
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