Missing icons in taskbar

  • Thread starter Thread starter Andre De Clercq
  • Start date Start date
A

Andre De Clercq

After booting my PC, I miss the speaker icon and the "safely remove
hardware" icon. Only when I log-off and on again they show up. Can I fix
this problem?
 
It is a well-known subject about XP. Some icons are sometimes missing (although their associated programs are actually running). The 'problem' is related to the start of some services (UPnP and SSDP), here there are some workarounds:

- Configure XP so as to use the Welcome Screen and wait 20-30 seconds before logging in.

- Disable the SSDP service (your system will not be able to 'discover' new UPnP devices such as routers and other networking devices at each logon):

1. Open Start, Run, type (without quotes) "services.msc" and press OK.
2. Search for the 'SSDP Discovery Service' service and double-click it.
3. Select 'Disabled' in the Startup type box.
4. Click OK and restart Windows.

More information:

Your pointer changes to an hourglass when you hold it over the taskbar for a few minutes after starting your Windows XP-based computer
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;841571
 
Andre,

Your pointer changes to an hourglass when you hold it over the taskbar for a
few minutes after starting your Windows XP-based computer:
http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=841571

The above KB addresses the following symptoms:

When starting a Microsoft Windows XP-based computer, you may notice any one
of the following symptoms: •The pointer changes to an hour glass when you
move it over the taskbar.
•Some icons do not appear in the notification area.
•When you click Start, nothing happens.
•The Start button does not work for several minutes, and then it starts to
work.
•When you restart the computer, the icons in the notification area are
missing. If you log off and log on with the same user account, the icons
appear.
•When you click any icon in the Quick Launch bar immediately after starting
the computer, the pointer changes to an hourglass.

See also:

How To: Fix Missing System Tray Icons at Windows XP startup:
http://www.tech-pro.net/howto_013.html

--
Ramesh, Microsoft MVP
Windows XP Shell/User

Windows XP Troubleshooting
http://www.winhelponline.com
 
Thanks Daniel. Disabling SSDP Service solves the problem. Is there a way to
understand (for normal humans), why this service is related to the missing
icons?

It is a well-known subject about XP. Some icons are sometimes missing
(although their associated programs are actually running). The 'problem' is
related to the start of some services (UPnP and SSDP), here there are some
workarounds:

- Configure XP so as to use the Welcome Screen and wait 20-30 seconds before
logging in.

- Disable the SSDP service (your system will not be able to 'discover' new
UPnP devices such as routers and other networking devices at each logon):

1. Open Start, Run, type (without quotes) "services.msc" and press OK.
2. Search for the 'SSDP Discovery Service' service and double-click it.
3. Select 'Disabled' in the Startup type box.
4. Click OK and restart Windows.

More information:

Your pointer changes to an hourglass when you hold it over the taskbar for a
few minutes after starting your Windows XP-based computer
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;841571
 
Thanks Daniel! Excellent! I thought I was going nuts. I have 2 PCs and a few
weeks ago, I noticed that several icons seemed to have disappeared from the
tray icon, including the "Safely Remove Hardware"

I don't know what caused it but perhaps a system update, spyware, or virus
protection update did it, since it happened on two separate pc's running XP
home edition at around the same time.

At any rate this simple solution did the trick.

Shan
 
How To: Fix Missing System Tray Icons at Windows XP startup:
http://www.tech-pro.net/howto_013.html

-and-

http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=841571

--
Ramesh, Microsoft MVP
Windows XP Shell/User

Windows XP Troubleshooting
http://www.winhelponline.com



Thanks Daniel! Excellent! I thought I was going nuts. I have 2 PCs and a few
weeks ago, I noticed that several icons seemed to have disappeared from the
tray icon, including the "Safely Remove Hardware"

I don't know what caused it but perhaps a system update, spyware, or virus
protection update did it, since it happened on two separate pc's running XP
home edition at around the same time.

At any rate this simple solution did the trick.

Shan
 
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