Show desktop shortcut in windows 10: Show desktop icons in Windows

20 декабря, 2022

How to Create Show Desktop Shortcut in Windows 10? – WebNots

If you are a fan of Windows 7, you will miss the large “Show Desktop” shortcut in Windows 10. Though you can click on the small vertical bar on the right corner of the taskbar to show desktop, this is highly inaccessible. Many users do not know there is a button hiding at the corner and difficult to precisely hover or click on that small area. The solution is to create a custom show desktop shortcut and keep it on the desktop or taskbar or start menu as per your convenient. This will help you to toggle the desktop and open applications freely.

Show Desktop Button

Enable Peek Preview Desktop

By default, you can hover over the button to peek preview desktop without clicking on it. If this does not work, you can enable from the settings.

  • Press “Win Logo + I” shortcut keys to open Windows Settings app.
  • Go to “Personalization” section and then to “Taskbar” tab.
  • Enable the option “Use Peek to preview the desktop when you move your mouse to the Show desktop button at the end of the taskbar” under “Taskbar” section.

Peek to Preview the Desktop

How to Create Show Desktop Shortcut in Windows 10?

There are two methods, you can create “Show Desktop” shortcut for quick access.

  • Add default Show Desktop shortcut
  • Create a custom Show Desktop shortcut

Add Default Show Desktop Shortcut

Windows 10 keeps the Show Desktop shortcut in the following location.

C:\Users\Username\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Quick Launch

Open the location in File Explorer, by changing the username to your username.

Show Desktop Shortcut in Windows 10

Copy the “Show desktop” shortcut and paste it on your desktop.

Add Show Desktop Shortcut in Desktop

Now, you can double click on the “Show desktop” to toggle between desktop and open applications.

Note, AppData folder is a hidden folder in Windows 10. If you do not see the shortcut, enable viewing hidden files by selecting “Hidden items” option under “View” menu in File Explorer.

Assign Keyboard Shortcut to Show Desktop

Though the above method is useful, you cannot pin the “Show desktop” shortcut to taskbar or start menu. When you right click on the icon, you will not see any options to pin it to taskbar. This make adding the shortcut icon on the desktop useless as you have to first view the desktop to double click on the icon. However, you can assign keyboard shortcut so that you can toggle desktop with shortcut keys.

Right click on the “Show desktop” icon on the desktop and go to “Properties”. Click on the “Shortcut key” text box and press alt, shift or control keys. You will see the modifier keys appearing in the text box and press any shortcut key like 1 or / to complete the combination. For example, we have setup the shortcut keys as “Control + Alt + 1” as shown in the below screenshot.

Set Keyboard Shortcut

Click “Apply” and “OK” buttons to save your changes. Now, press the shortcut keys to toggle desktop whenever you need.

Related: 3 ways to show desktop in Mac.

Create Custom Show Desktop Shortcut

If you love to use taskbar or start menu shortcut then follow the below instructions. First, delete the “Show desktop” shortcut created using the above method.

  • Right click on the desktop and select “New > Shortcut” option.

Create New Desktop Shortcut

  • Enter the below code in the location text box and click “Next” button.

%windir%\explorer.exe shell:::{3080F90D-D7AD-11D9-BD98-0000947B0257}

Add Show Desktop Shortcut

  • Provide a name for your shortcut like “Show Desktop” or “Desktop”.

Name Your Shortcut

  • Click “Finish” button to add a new shortcut to your desktop. Now, you can see a “Show Desktop” shortcut on your desktop. Right click on it and select “Pin to taskbar” option.

Pin Shortcut to Taskbar

  • This will pin the shortcut icon to your taskbar.

Taskbar Shortcut

Change Icon for Show Desktop Shortcut

As you see the default icon looks like the Folder icon in Windows 10, it may create confusion when pinning to the taskbar. In order to change the icon for your shortcut, right click on it and select “Properties”. On the “Properties” window, click on “Change Icon…” button.

Change Icon for Shortcut

Select an icon that you can remember to show desktop.

Select Shortcut Icon

Click “OK” buttons on the dialog boxes to apply the change. You can see the show desktop shortcut has a different icon as you have selected.

New Show Desktop Icon

You can unpin the previous Folder icon from taskbar and pin the new shortcut. Henceforth, click on the taskbar shortcut to toggle the desktop and open applications with single click.

Consideration for Additional Monitors

When you have dual monitors, you can allow the taskbar on both monitors so that it is easy to show desktop from any of the monitor.

  • Go to Windows Settings app and then to “Personalization > Taskbar” settings.
  • Turn on “Show taskbar on all displays” option under “Multiple displays” section.
  • Also, select “All taskbars” option for “Show taskbar buttons on”.

This will enable the taskbar and pinned shortcuts on all monitors connected to your computer.

Enable Taskbar on Multiple Monitors

[FIXED] Windows 10 Show Desktop Button Not Working or Missing!

  • MiniTool
  • MiniTool News Center
  • [FIXED] Windows 10 Show Desktop Button Not Working or Missing!

By Stella | Follow |
Last Updated

Windows 10 show desktop is a very useful and convenient feature on your computer. You can click the show desktop button on the taskbar to minimize all running windows. If Windows 10 show desktop button is not working or missing, you can read this MiniTool post to get some useful methods to solve this issue.

The Windows 10 show desktop button is located at the rightmost side of the taskbar. It is a long strip button. When you open many windows and you want to go back to the desktop, you can just click this button to make Windows 10 show desktop immediately.

At times, this button may encounter issues like Windows 10 show desktop button not working or missing. We have collected some methods that are proved to be effective to solve the issues. We will introduce them in this post.

How to Fix Show Desktop Not Working or Missing?

  1. Restart your computer
  2. Turn on use Peek to preview the desktop
  3. Turn off tablet mode
  4. Restart Windows File Explorer
  5. Create a shortcut for show desktop and pin it to the taskbar
  6. Perform a system restore
  7. Reset Windows 10

Fix 1: Restart Your Computer

When running your computer, there will be some temporary and cached files. Some of these files may get corrupted or damaged, causing Windows 10 show desktop button missing or not working. You can just restart your computer to remove these temporary errors.

Fix 2: Turn on Use Peek to Preview the Desktop

If the option of use Peek to preview the desktop is turned off, it can be the cause of show desktop not working or missing. You can go to Settings to have a check.

  1. Click Start.
  2. Go to Settings > Personalisation > Taskbar.
  3. Check whether the button for Use Peek to preview the desktop when you move your mouse to the Show desktop button at the end of the taskbar is ON. If not, you need to switch it to ON.

Now, you can go to check whether the show desktop button goes back to normal. If not, you can restart your device and make a confirmation again.

Fix 3: Turn off Tablet Mode

If you are using tablet mode, the show desktop button will disappear from the taskbar. If you want to get it back, you need to turn off the tablet mode.

You can go to Start > Settings > System > Tablet > Change additional tablet settings to turn off the button for Tablet mode.

Fix 4: Restart Windows File Explorer

The issue can come with other problems like Start menu not working, the taskbar has no response, or other programs is unresponsive. If so, you can restart Windows File Explorer to solve the issue.

  1. Right-click the taskbar and select Task Manager.
  2. Find Windows Explorer and right-click it.
  3. Select Restart.

Fix 5: Create a Shortcut for Show Desktop and Pin it to the Taskbar

You can also create a show desktop shortcut and then pin it to the taskbar. If the show desktop button is missing or not working, you can use this shortcut to do the same job.

1. Close all windows on your computer one by one using the conventional method to show the desktop.

2. Right-click any empty space on your desktop and then go to New > Shortcut.

3. Copy and paste exe shell:::{3080F90D-D7AD-11D9-BD98-0000947B0257} to the box on the pop-up interface.

4. Click Next.

5. On the next interface, you need to type a name for the shortcut. In this case, the name should be show desktop.

6. Click Finish.

7. You can see the shortcut on the desktop. Then, you need to drag the shortcut to the taskbar.

If your Windows 10 show desktop button is not working or missing, you can use this shortcut to do the same job.

Fix 6: Perform a System Restore

If the issue happens after you update your Windows, you can restore your Windows to a previous state when the show desktop button works normally. But the premise is that there are available system restore points.

Fix 7: Reset Windows 10

You can also reset Windows 10 to fix the show desktop button issue. During the process, you can choose to keep all your files.

  1. Go to Start > Settings > Update & Security > Recovery.
  2. Click the Get started button under Reset this PC.
  3. Click Keep my files and follow the instruction to reset your computer.

Windows 10 show desktop button not working or missing? Why not try these solutions to help you out. If you are facing some other related issues, you can let us know in the comments.

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User Comments :

Displaying icons on the desktop in Windows

Windows 11 Windows 10 More…Less

Desktop icons can be hidden. To view them, right-click the desktop, select View , and then click Show desktop icons . To add icons such as This PC, Recycle Bin, etc. to the desktop:

  1. Select Start , open Settings and then under Personalization select Themes
    .

  2. Select the icons you want displayed on the desktop, and then click the buttons Apply and OK .

Open personalization options

Desktop icons can be hidden. To view them, right-click the desktop, select View , and then click Show desktop icons . To add icons such as This PC, Recycle Bin, etc. to the desktop:

  1. Click Start and select Settings > Personalization > Themes .

  2. Select the icons to be displayed on the desktop, and then press the 9 buttons0005 Apply and OK .

  3. Note. If you are in tablet mode, desktop icons may not display correctly. In such cases, you can find the programs you need by name in the explorer. To disable tablet mode, select action center on the taskbar (next to date and time) and then select Tablet mode to enable or disable this mode.

Open personalization options

Create a desktop shortcut for the Microsoft Office

application

Excel for Microsoft 365 Word for Microsoft 365 Outlook for Microsoft 365 PowerPoint for Microsoft 365 Access for Microsoft 365 Publisher for Microsoft 365 Excel 2021 Word 2021 Outlook 2021 PowerPoint 2021 Access 2021 Microsoft Project Standard 2021 Publisher 2021 Microsoft Visio Standard 2021 OneNote 2021 Excel 2019Word 2019 Outlook 2019 PowerPoint 2019 Access 2019 Project Standard 2019 Publisher 2019 Visio Standard 2019 Excel 2016 Word 2016 Outlook 2016 PowerPoint 2016 Access 2016 OneNote 2016 Project Standard 2016 Publisher 2016 Visio Standard 2016 Excel 2013 Word 2013 Outlook 2013 Access Standard 2013 Publisher 2013 Visio 2013 SharePoint Designer 2010 Excel 2010 Word 2010 Outlook 2010 PowerPoint 2010 Access 2010 OneNote 2010 Project 2010 Project Standard 2010 Publisher 2010 Visio 2010 Visio Standard 2010 SharePoint Designer 2013 More. ..Less

When you install Microsoft Office programs, you can create desktop shortcuts for them. However, if you don’t create a shortcut when you install Office, you can easily do so later.

Note: This article explains how to create a desktop shortcut. In addition, you can add the program to the taskbar. If you are using Windows 10, right-click the program name or tile and select Advanced > Pin to taskbar . If you’re using Windows 8 or earlier, right-click the program name or tile and select Pin to taskbar .

Create a desktop shortcut for an Office application

On Windows 10

  1. Press the Windows key and find the Office program for which you want to create a desktop shortcut.

  2. Click the name of the program with the left mouse button and drag it to the desktop.

    A shortcut for the program will appear on the desktop.

In Windows 8

  1. Press the Windows key and find the Office program for which you want to create a desktop shortcut.

  2. Right-click the program name or tile and select Open file location .

  3. Right-click the program name and select Send to > Desktop (Create Shortcut) .