Cursor with hour glass when on desktop

John Ridgeway 40 Reputation points
2026-06-30T12:58:32.1333333+00:00

My cursor started constantly showing an hour glass when it is on the desktop. Can not tell what might be running and causing this. Have restarted the PC several times and it keeps showing the pointer with hour glass. Hour glass does not show if I move cursor to the task bar or if I have a program open, just shows on desktop display. Windows 10.

Windows for home | Windows 10 | Performance and system failures
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John DeV 170.2K Reputation points Independent Advisor
2026-06-30T14:20:23.37+00:00

Thank you for updating me with that information. While you're in Task Manager, sort the Processes tab by CPU or Disk usage and see if any process is consistently active. If you notice anything, please tell me its name or take a screenshot of the process tab window and post it in your next reply.

You may also try to boot and test in Safe Mode.

If the issue doesn't occur in Safe Mode, that would suggest a third-party application or service is likely causing the behavior.

https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/experience/startup-boot/windows-startup-settings

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Answer accepted by question author
John DeV 170.2K Reputation points Independent Advisor
2026-06-30T13:41:57.66+00:00

Hi, good day!

A few questions that may help narrow this down

  1. How long has this issue been occurring?
  2. Have you recently made any other significant changes to your computer?

A good first step would be to restart Windows Explorer

Open Task Manager by pressing Ctrl + Shift + Esc, locate Windows Explorer under the Processes tab, right-click it, and select Restart. Once it restarts, check whether the loading cursor is still present.

I look forward to receiving your update and I'm willing to collaborate with you till we resolve the issue. Do keep me informed by clicking "Add comment" below.

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  1. John Ridgeway 40 Reputation points
    2026-06-30T14:00:22.2333333+00:00
    1. Just noticed in the last week or two.
    2. No changes by me.

    Restarted Windows Explorer and a new issue surfaced...Desktop disappeared all together. No Taskbar, no icons, etc. Just a couple small bars that allow me to get back to this page.

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