Has your Desktop folder disappeared in Windows? Here's how to recover it without losing anything.

Has your Desktop folder disappeared without a trace in Windows? This situation can be very worrying and, above all, frustrating. But don't be so quick to give up. This folder is most likely hidden or has been moved., so you can't see it. This time, we'll look at some solutions that might work for you.

What to do if your Desktop folder has disappeared in Windows?

If your Desktop folder has disappeared in Windows, You're probably desperate to find her.. Especially if you had important documents, photos, or files stored there. And there are quite a few users who place their files on their PC desktop, since it is easier and faster to get them there.

Now then, Why has your Desktop folder disappeared in Windows? The reasons can vary depending on the actions you've performed on your PC. For example, maybe the folder was deleted after a system update, the desktop icons were hidden, a temporary profile was created that doesn't contain your desktop, and so on.

The key here is to find the solution to your problem as quickly as possible. Next, We will try to help you by presenting you the most common and effective solutions. If your Desktop folder has disappeared in Windows, we hope you can recover your files without losing anything.

Check the visibility of desktop icons

If the problem is that nothing appears on the Windows Desktop, the problem may be easily resolved. In that case, there's a fairly simple but very effective solution: verify that the visibility of desktop icons is enabled.

To do this, right-click on an empty area of ​​the desktop, select View, and make sure that “Show desktop icons" is checked. If it isn't, you may have pressed it by mistake. Just enable this option and your desktop icons will reappear.

Check the recycle bin

What if you accidentally deleted the Desktop folder or the files inside it? If that happened, the best thing you can do is Open the Recycle Bin, find the lost folder or files, and restore them. to its original location. Problem solved.

What if you unpinned it by mistake?

Another possible reason why your Desktop folder has disappeared in Windows is that has been unpinned from Quick Access in File ExplorerIf it previously appeared in the main Windows folder list, but no longer does, you should do the following:

1. Right-click on an empty space next to the folders and choose Show All Folders.
2. If Desktop appears in that list, right-click on it and select “Pin to Quick Access.”
3. And that's it. The folder will now reappear where it was before.

Check that you are not in a temporary profile

As we said, maybe your Desktop folder has disappeared in Windows after the last update that you did. In fact, it is possible that you can't even log in to your user properlyThe problem may be that you're logged into a temporary profile, so you can't access your Desktop or anything else that was there. What can you do in that case?

In most cases, This problem is solved by restarting your PC. However, if despite all your efforts you are unable to log into your previous profile, you will have to create a new one as administrator. Next, you'll need to copy your desktop, documents, photos, and music, which will be in "C:/ThisPC/Users/PreviousUserName/..." and paste all of this into the new one.

Check the location of the Desktop folder in File Explorer

Another possible reason why your Desktop folder has disappeared in Windows is because your location was changed by mistake. Therefore, it's advisable to check its actual location. How do I do this? Follow these steps:

1. Open Windows File Explorer.
2. Click on This computer.
3. Navigate to C:\Users\[YourUser]\Desktop (change Your User to your Windows user profile name).
4. Check that the Desktop files and folders are there. If they are, simply copy and paste them back to the desktop or create shortcuts for them.

Restore the folder location

If what happened was that your Desktop folder changed location, then You can restore the location to how it was originallyTo do this, right-click the Desktop folder in File Explorer, select Properties, go to the Location tab, click Restore Defaults, and then click Apply.

Enables the display of hidden folders or files

Maybe your Desktop folder has disappeared in Windows because It became hidden due to some system change or configurationTo rule out this as the cause, go to File Explorer and click the View tab. Then, make sure "Hidden items" is checked. If it isn't, check it and click Apply, then OK.

Restart the Explorer.exe process

Now, it may be File Explorer has an error And that's why your Desktop folder has disappeared in Windows. What do you do in this situation? You can restart its process. To do this, press Ctrl + Shift + Esc to open Task Manager. In the Processes tab, find File Explorer (or explorer.exe). Right-click it and select Restart. That's it.

Use File History or System Restore Points to recover your files if the Desktop folder is missing in Windows

Finally, What you can do if none of the above solves your problem And you're really afraid of losing your files? If you had features like File History or System Restore Points enabled, it's best to restore to a previous version.

First, try File History: Search for “File History” in the Start menu. Locate the previous version you want to restore your system to and do so. Alternatively, you can enter “Create a restore point” in the start menu and open System Properties – System Protection – System Restore to try to restore Windows to an earlier point when the Desktop folder was.