Windows 11 - Missing Taskbar and File Explorer

Owned by Dan Jakubiak
Last updated: Oct 03, 2024
2 min read

If you log into a Windows 11 desktop and find that the Taskbar at the bottom of the screen is missing and you are unable to open the File Explorer, follow the steps below.

There are two current solutions to this issue:

  • Logging out of the computer, or restarting it, and logging back in clears the issue.

  • Using Task Manager to start/restart Explorer.exe

Fix without Logging off or Restarting Computer

  1. On the keyboard, press CTRL + SHIFT + ESCAPE together to open up the Task Manager.

  2. Make sure you are on the Processes tab. If you do not see tabs along the top, click on More details at the bottom of the window.

    be on the processes tab

  3. Scroll down the list until you find Windows Explorer or File Explorer, it will likely be near the very bottom of the list. Click on this process.

  4. Click on Restart. If you do not see the “Windows Explorer” or “Explorer” task, continue below.

    click the restart button at the bottom of the screen

  5. If you do not see the task, you can manually start it.

    1. Click on Run new task. This button sits above the table.

    2. Type in “explorer.exe” and click Ok.

Fix by Logging Out

Logging out of the computer and then logging back in should fix the issue.

  1. Press CTRL + ALT + DELETE

  2. Choose Sign Out

Fix by Restarting Computer

If the steps above do not fix the issue, simply restart the computer.

  1. Press CTRL + ALT + DELETE

  2. Press the power button in the lower righthand corner.

  3. Choose Restart