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4 January 2021  John Weaver  Senior Program Developer
 

Summary
Many users said that start menu, taskbar or Cortana fail to work suddenly in Windows 10. This article will provide 5 solutions to the problem that fix start menu, taskbar and Cortana does not work.



Why Are Start Menu, Taskbar and Cortana Not Working in Windows 10?

Generally, if start menu, taskbar and Cortana do not work suddenly in Windows 10, it may be just frozen. In this case, we could restart Windows Explorer and the PC to fix them. If these ways don’t work, there should be confliction between applications and the operating system. Or the dead taskbar was caused by the operating system failure after upgrade. It’s suggested to follow the ways below to troubleshoot the problem.
taskbar and start menu not working

Solutions of Fixing Dead Start Menu, Taskbar and Cortana in Windows 10

Solution 1: Restart the Windows Explorer

If the taskbar is frozen, you could try restarting the PC or Windows Explorer to fix it. The process explorer.exe takes control of the file explorer, taskbar and start menu, so restarting it can fix the frozen taskbar.

Step 1: Press “Ctrl + Alt + Delete” to enable “Task Manager”. Then click “File” and select “Run new task”.
open task manager
Step 2: Click the “Processes” tab, look for the “Windows Explorer” and then click “Restart”.

The taskbar will disappear for a while. When it appears again, the problem should be fixed.

Restart explorer
If the taskbar is still not working after restarting the Resouce Explorer, it’s suggested to reboot the PC. Generally, it can get the taskbar work again.

Solution 2: Restart Windows Applications

If Windows 10 start menu or task bar is still not working after trying the methods above, the applications may conflict with the operating system. In this case, we should try restarting the configurations of applications.

Please note that this solution may require network connection. And please make sure the network is properly connected.

Step 1: Press “Ctrl + Alt + Delete” to enable “Task Manager”. Then click “File” and select “Run new task”.
Run new task
Step 2: In the “Create new task” window, type in: Powershell. Then check the box “Create this task with administrative privileges”.
enable Poweshell
Step 3: Copy the following command and paste it in the “Windows Powershell”. Press Enter.

Get-AppXPackage -AllUsers | Foreach {Add-AppxPackage -DisableDevelopmentMode -Register “$($_.InstallLocation)\AppXManifest.xml”}

restart Windows applications

Solution 3: Check and Repair Windows Files

If the dead taskbar can’t be repaired by above methods, there may be something wrong with the system files. It’s necessary to check and repair them using System File Checker.
Step 1: Press “Ctrl + Alt + Delete” to enable “Task Manager”. Then click “File” and select “Run new task”.
Run new task
Step 2: In the “Create new task” window, type in: Powershell. Then check the box “Create this task with administrative privileges”.
enable Poweshell
Step 3: Type in: sfc /scannow. Press Enter.

If the result is “Windows Resource Protection did not find any integrity violation”, it means that the Windows files are not damaged. If there is no damaged files, please move on to Step 4.

Run sfc /scannow in Powershell
Step 4: In the “Windows PowerShell”, type in: DISM /Online /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealth. Press Enter.

It may take some time to repair the Windows files. Please wait patiently.

DISM Restorehealth in Powershell

Solution 4: Create A Local Administrator Account

If the taskbar is still not working after fixing Windows files, you could create a new local administrator account to login Windows 10.
Please note that this way requires administrative privileges. If you don’t have it, it’s suggested to use the third-party software to create an administrator account.
Step 1: Press “Ctrl + Alt + Delete” to enable “Task Manager”. Then click “File” and select “Run new task”.
Run new task
Step 2: In the “Create new task” window, type in: Powershell. Then check the box “Create this task with administrative privileges”.
enable Poweshell
Step 3: In the “Windows Powershell”, type in the following commands. Please press Enter after you type in a command each time.
  • Create a local account-net user Your username Your password /add
  • Elevate the created local account as an administrator account-net localgroup administrators Your username /add
add administrator account
If you don’t have administrative priviledges, you could use Renee PassNow to create an administrator account.

More about Renee Passnow

Reset Windows login password with only 4 simple steps but not damage data inside! Do not require any professional knowledge or possible password combinations.

For local account and administrator, Renee Passsnow will remove the password directly.

For Microsoft account, Renee Passnow will turn the Microsoft account into local one and reserve all data inside the account.

Renee Passnow can help to recover data or transfer data inside the disk without running Windows.

Compatible with: Windows 10, 8.1, 8, 7, Vista, XP.

Download Now
people has downloaded and reset the password successfully!

Step 1: Download and install Renee PassNow in any workable Windows computer.

press to the download button

Step 2: Choose creation method, USB or CD/DVD.

Select one option from [Crate a Live USB] and [Create a Live CD]. Then, select [x64] or [x86] according to your computer. Next, click on [Download Now] to download the licensed ISO. Remember to activate the software beforehand. After that, click on [Create USB] to create the boot media.
use renee passnow to create usb to reset passnword

Step 3: Boot the target PC from the created password reset USB/CD/DVD.

You will boot the target computer via a new created reset disk. Firstly, please hold a hot key to enter the BIOS menu and put CD-ROM or Removable Devices as the first choice. Please click here to know about how to change the boot order of your computer. After changing it successfully, please remember to save your setting and then restart your PC.

steps to change the boot order in BIOS

Step 4: Select “PassNow!“.

Reset password

Step 5: Create a new administrator. Please click “Create new account”.

The created administrator account named “Reneelab” with administrator rights, and its default password is “123456789”. You are able to change the password of target account with this new created administrator.

Create new account

Solution 5: Reset the PC

If the above ways don’t work, you could try resetting the PC. To prevent data lost, it’s suggested to transfer important files before you reset the PC.
Step 1: Restart or power on your PC. When you go into the login screen, click the Power icon. Then press “Shift” key and click “Restart”.
Ctrl + Alt + Delete
Step 2: Navigate to “Troubleshoot” > “Reset the PC” > “Keep my files”. Then follow the on-screen instructions.
reset PC to remove everything
Step 3: Finally, click “Reset”.