Member Avatar for computer n00b

when im at the desktop after turning the computer, nothing is there. i thought it was just taking forever to load.

basically all i see is my wallpaper. i cannot right click nor press the windows key on my keyboard. there are no icons as well. i thought it was my explorer problem so i ctrl+alt+dlt and typed in explorer.exe in the run option. instead of reloading my desktop and start menu back to normal, it leads me to my document instead.

do u guys know any way to fix this mess without reformatting it? i even scanned with antivirus and anti spy-ware and detects nothing

  • 2 Contributors
  • 3 Replies
  • 141 Views
  • 1 Day Discussion Span
  • Latest Post Latest Post by gerbil

Dani AI

Generated

Short supplement to the thread: the wallpaper-without-icons symptom usually means the shell/desktop has been redirected or blocked, not that Explorer itself is missing. The later 60 GB “gone” after you reinstalled is often the leftover of the previous installation or a hidden large file/partition. already did important checks; was right to suspect a second/leftover install. The following checks will help narrow the cause without reformatting.

First, isolate the desktop problem. Boot into Safe Mode (F8 at boot) to see whether icons and Start return; if they do, a startup item or policy is to blame. Inspect these registry locations for nonstandard entries (back up the registry before editing): HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Winlogon\Shell, HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\User Shell Folders, and the policy key under HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\Explorer. Also use Process Explorer to confirm which program is being started as the shell and whether explorer.exe is running with an unexpected command line (Process Explorer).

For the missing disk space, run a visual disk-usage scan to find the big folders quickly. Tools such as WinDirStat show which directories are consuming the most space and will reveal duplicate Windows folders, huge user profiles, or large system files (WinDirStat). Also check Disk Management for extra or hidden partitions and look for large hidden files like pagefile.sys or hiberfil.sys (enable showing protected OS files to view them). If a previous Windows folder is present, confirm contents before deleting.

Final notes: always back up important data before changing the registry or deleting system folders. If unsure, post the plain text from the Startup/Recovery Edit Notepad (as requested) and the WinDirStat scan output — those will pinpoint whether an old installation or a misdirected Desktop is the culprit.

Recommended Answers

All 3 Replies

Member Avatar for gerbil

.....if you have the XP install cd then in that run window type
sfc /scannow
and load the cd. Be prepared to hit enter quite a few times. Come back with the result...

Member Avatar for computer n00b

.....if you have the XP install cd then in that run window type
sfc /scannow
and load the cd. Be prepared to hit enter quite a few times. Come back with the result...

ok i just reinstalled with an XP cd

everything seems to be working fine but... i have another problem now

it indicates i have 60gb of data unaccounted for

i cant seem to find where it is coming from, i was hoping to restore it completely new w/o using a recovery cd since i lost mines

Member Avatar for gerbil

hmmm. I'm a bit surprised that you reinstalled - that is a big gun. I think that you only had a bit of registry damage. If we could not have got you going again I would have recommended a Repair installation at most..we would have saved your files.
Anyway, i could guess that you installed a second copy of windows, that there is a prob with the volume sector of the first and that it is now invisible.
If you used a Microsoft install CD you would have selected new installation if it pointed to your old windows...did setup in fact point to your old installation? If you elected a new installation it should have prompted for a format. So if there is nothing in your files that you want to keep, reinstall properly.
You can use the recovery console in your install CD to format the HD...cmd is format c: /Q
Just for a joke, do this....
Start, run, type sysdm.cpl and press ok. Go Advanced tab, Startup n Recovery, Press settings, click Edit, cancel, cancel. Now post that notepad.

Be a part of the DaniWeb community

We're a friendly, industry-focused community of developers, IT pros, digital marketers, and technology enthusiasts meeting, networking, learning, and sharing knowledge.