Start Button is no longer in taskbar--how to get it back!!

Question

Start Button is no longer in taskbar--how to get it back!!

Ralph Longobardi 0

WindowsExplorer/restart brings Start Key back for a moment, but then it disappears.

I have tried many ways to bring back Start Key but I cannot get it to show on taskbar??

Ralph Longobardi 0 Reputation points

2026-07-29T18:07:08.81+00:00

I am using a tool stardock which by the way does not work automatically--the stardock tool allows shortcuts to open saved applications or files. The Task Manager WindowsExplorer right-click restart does bring the start key for a moment, then it disappears. I tried the commands you show below, no issues were found for SFC /SCANNOW.

I tried the DISM commands below (it took some time but it finished 100%) but the start key does not return after a reboot.
Virginia M 41,990 Reputation points Independent Advisor

2026-07-29T18:14:53.3+00:00

I am sorry that the steps did not resolve the issue. Sometimes questions have more than one solution.

Does Stardock change Windows explorer in any way? If yes then try resetting any changes to default.

Otherwise try this command to reset Start button/menu using powershell with admin:

Get-AppxPackage Microsoft.Windows.StartMenuExperienceHost | Reset-AppxPackage

If that doesn’t work then let’s reregister it:

Get-AppxPackage Microsoft.Windows.ShellExperienceHost | Foreach {Add-AppxPackage -DisableDevelopmentMode -Register "$($_.InstallLocation)\AppXManifest.xml"}

If those don’t fix the problem try an in-place repair:

In a nutshell you just download the Windows 11 .iso, right click & choose Mount, then double click on setup & follow instructions to continue with the install.

Ensure keep apps & files is automatically selected.

Please note a repair install is not a reset, this is a last attempt at repairing a PC without a clean install. If this fails to repair the problem then usually a clean install is required.

Download here:

https://www.microsoft.com/software-download/windows11

This should remove any modifications stardock has made or repair any Windows problems.

2 answers

Your answer

Ralph Longobardi 0 Reputation points

2026-07-29T18:07:08.81+00:00

I am using a tool stardock which by the way does not work automatically--the stardock tool allows shortcuts to open saved applications or files. The Task Manager WindowsExplorer right-click restart does bring the start key for a moment, then it disappears. I tried the commands you show below, no issues were found for SFC /SCANNOW.

I tried the DISM commands below (it took some time but it finished 100%) but the start key does not return after a reboot.
Virginia M 41,990 Reputation points Independent Advisor

2026-07-29T18:14:53.3+00:00

I am sorry that the steps did not resolve the issue. Sometimes questions have more than one solution.

Does Stardock change Windows explorer in any way? If yes then try resetting any changes to default.

Otherwise try this command to reset Start button/menu using powershell with admin:

Get-AppxPackage Microsoft.Windows.StartMenuExperienceHost | Reset-AppxPackage

If that doesn’t work then let’s reregister it:

Get-AppxPackage Microsoft.Windows.ShellExperienceHost | Foreach {Add-AppxPackage -DisableDevelopmentMode -Register "$($_.InstallLocation)\AppXManifest.xml"}

If those don’t fix the problem try an in-place repair:

In a nutshell you just download the Windows 11 .iso, right click & choose Mount, then double click on setup & follow instructions to continue with the install.

Ensure keep apps & files is automatically selected.

Please note a repair install is not a reset, this is a last attempt at repairing a PC without a clean install. If this fails to repair the problem then usually a clean install is required.

Download here:

https://www.microsoft.com/software-download/windows11

This should remove any modifications stardock has made or repair any Windows problems.

Answer 1

Ralph Longobardi 0

I am using a tool stardock which by the way does not work automatically--the stardock tool allows shortcuts to open saved applications or files. The Task Manager WindowsExplorer right-click restart does bring the Start key for a moment, then it disappears. I tried the commands you suggest, no issues were found for SFC /SCANNOW.

I tried the DISM commands you provided (they took some time but it finished 100%) but the start key does not return after a reboot.

I have tried to Contact Microsoft Help but they have not responded yet (help.microsoft.com)

Ralph ******@gmail.com

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Answer 2

Virginia M 41,990 Independent Advisor

Hello, I’m Virginia a fellow Windows user.

Have you ever used any Windows modification program which may have caused the problem?

When did you last see the icon in the taskbar?

Please try these cmds:

Right click on start & choose powershell/terminal with admin & type/copy & paste these cmds one at a time then click Enter:

SFC /SCANNOW

DISM /Online /Cleanup-Image /StartComponentCleanup

DISM /Online /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealth

SFC /SCANNOW

Yes the Sfc cmd is run twice.

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