After Windows update all icons disappeared

Icons will not restore from snapshot

from Stardock Forums

Last night I ran Windows Update. It included an update to the NVIDIA GeForce 9500 GT video driver. I have three display monitors. This is my personal workstation and has only two logons, only one of which I use on a daily basis.

All but 84 of my 660-plus desktop icons disappeared, including those in fences. About 100 were on the desktop outside of the fences, the rest were located inside individual fences.

  • The installation of the GeForce drivers failed during the update, and hung the computer.
  • After hard restart,only one monitor was recognized but only as "generic". 
  • My Fences windows were all collapsed into the one monitor screen, with all but the 70 remaining icons gone. 
  • I downloaded and installed the latest driver pack from the NVIDIA website. That restored all monitors to use.
  • After rebooting, my Fences windows came up spread across the three monitors in the correct locations.
  • All Fences windows were empty of icons, except the Programs and Quicklinks fences.
  • Programs and Quicklinks fences both have about half of the icons that were in them.
  • In Windows Exporer, I navigated to the Desktop folder, and it contained only 84 item, including Computer, Network, Control Panel and Recycle Bin.
  • I tried restoring from a previous snapshot (tried several different snapshots) -- but nothing changed on the desktop.
  • I had application shortcuts, folder shortcuts, and a few PDF files in two Fences windows.
  • I have 24 fences with icons for specific clients and projects. There were over 600 icons across all of the Fences windows.

It possible that Windows may have "lost" the icons. If that is the case, is that why Fences cannot restore them from a snapshot?

I made a screen shot of the Fences snapshot, which I saved as a PNG file. So I have an image of the icons names and locations.

I just don't want to have to recreate all the links by hand.

Also, what folder are the Fences snapshot images in?

I'd like to be able to back up the snapshot images independent of how Fences manages them, because I use the daily snapshot feature and older snapshots go away (I don't know how many are stored by Fences). I realized while thinking about this problem that I'd like to have snapshots of the fences from old projects, as that would give me the names of key files and folders that have since been archived onto a backup server.

 

 

 

fences
6,445 views 5 replies
Reply #1 from WinCustomize Forums Top

Never, I repeat NEVER let WU handle GFX driver updates. If you do, expect major issues.

Reply #2 from WinCustomize Forums Top

By the way, with a setup like that with as many programs as you obviously have installed, you should be making frequent restore points AND, better yet,  full image backups. That way, when, not if, disaster strikes, just blow the image back onto your drive and keep on truckin;.

Sins of a Solar Empire: Rebellion
Reply #3 from WinCustomize Forums Top


It possible that Windows may have "lost" the icons. If that is the case, is that why Fences cannot restore them from a snapshot?
End of quote

That. If explorer can't see them neither can Fences.

Reply #4 from Stardock Forums Top

Quoting Wizard1956, reply 1

Never, I repeat NEVER let WU handle GFX driver updates. If you do, expect major issues.
End of Wizard1956's quote

I hate having to learn something the hard way!

Reply #5 from Stardock Forums Top

Quoting Wizard1956, reply 2

By the way, with a setup like that with as many programs as you obviously have installed, you should be making frequent restore points AND, better yet,  full image backups. That way, when, not if, disaster strikes, just blow the image back onto your drive and keep on truckin;.
End of Wizard1956's quote

The icons are mostly for documents, links to folders and web pages. I have a few dozen applications installed. All of it is backed up, including image backups.  but I only create restore points when I install or uninstall an application, or before a Windows update. I've had to back updates out before.

The thing that bothers me is if my icons went away, what else may have gone away that I don't know about?

I could fall back to an earlier restore point, and then run Windows update again without the GFX driver update. I sure hate to lost the half-day of workstation use that would involve.

I haven't experienced any other problems or losses (knock on wood) and so I think I'll just recreate the links a few each day. Tedious, but it will work.