[9 Methods] How Do I Solve Windows 10 Start Menu Not Working?

Help! My Windows 10 Start menu not working

Why Windows 10 Start menu not working?

Windows 10 is a PC operating system launched by Microsoft in 2015. It has advantages in security and practicality. Windows 10 not only integrated new technologies, such as cloud services and smart mobile devices, but also optimized the SSD and biometrics.

However, some Windows 10 users claim that they’re stuck on Windows 10 Start menu not working issue. To deal with it effectively, it's necessary to know the causes. The following are possible reasons:

★ The Start menu crashes with the current Windows account.
★ The Windows system is outdated.
★ System files are damaged.
★ File Explorer is out of date or contains some corrupted files
★ The driver is damaged.
···

In the following part, we'll share some solutions to deal with this issue.

How to fix Windows 10 start menu not working issue

When the Start menu not working on Windows 10, apart from restarting the PC, re-logging into the account and removing viruses, you can try the following 9 methods to get rid of this problem. 

✦ Solution 1. Update the Windows OS

If the current version of Windows 10 is outdated or not compatible with the PC, you may encounter Start menu on Windows 10 not working. So you need to check and upgrade the Windows OS.

Step 1. Press "Windows" and select "Setting", then click "Windows Update" in the new window.

Step 2. Then click "Check for updates" to see whether there're new Windows version.

✦ Solution 2. Repair system files

If your Windows PC behaves strangely, you can try to check for corrupted system files via CMD.

Step 1. Press "Windows" and input "cmd", then click "Run as administrator" to open CMD.

Step 2. Then type "sfc /scannow" and press "Enter", then wait for it working.

Step 3. If the SFC command can not repair the bad files, you can ask the DISM tool for help. In the CMD window, input "Dism /Online /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealth" and hit "Enter".

✦ Solution 3. Restart File Explorer

Windows Explorer can effectively manage all programs on the PC. If there is a problem with the system, please restart Windows Explorer to solve it.

Step 1. Right-click the Start menu, then click "Task Manager".

Step 2. Right-click Windows Explorer and click "Restart". Then the File Explorer will automatically reopen, the taskbar and desktop will reload.

✦ Solution 4. Create a new Xaml start menu value

When using the Windows 10 start menu, the XAML process is also launched. When Windows 10 Start menu not working, please create new Xaml start menu value. You can try this solution as shown below.

Step 1. Press "Windows+ R" and type "regedit" to run the Registry Editor.

Step 2. You should turn to  "Computer/HKEY_CURRENT_USER/Software/Microsoft/Windows/CurrentVersion/Explorer/Advanced". Then right-click the empty space and choose "New > DWORD (32-bit) value".

Step 3. Type "EnableXamlStartMenu" as the name of the new DWORD. Then restart Windows Explorer, the Start menu may work again.

✦ Solution 5. Run the Microsoft Start Menu Troubleshooter

In order to solve the problem of Windows 10 Start menu and taskbar not working, Microsoft also provides a dedicated Start menu Troubleshooter. Details are as follows.

Step 1. Run the Microsoft Start Menu Troubleshooter, then click "Next".

Step 2. This tool will detect the problems with the Start menu. If some problems are found, they will be displayed. If it doesn't find a problem, you will receive a message "Troubleshooting couldn't identify the problem".

✦ Solution 6. Update the drivers

Sometimes, Start menu not working in Windows 10 may caused by outdated drivers. So you need to update the drivers.

Step 1. Click "Start", then type "device manager" and press "Enter". In the new window, find out and click "Disk drives".

Step 2. In the new interface, right-click the target drive and select "Update driver".

Step 3. Then, click "Search automatically for updated driver software".

✦ Solution 7. Rebuild the Index

Rebuilding the index can also be useful for fixing Windows 10 Start menu not working issue. Follow the steps outlined below:

Step 1. Press "Windows+ R", then type "control/name Microsoft.IndexingOptions" and press "Enter".

Step 2. In the new window, click "Modify".

Step 3. Then click the "Show all locations" button.

Step 4. Uncheck all the options and click "OK".

Step 5. Click "Advanced" in the following interface.

Step 6. Finally, click on the "Rebuild" option in the new window.

✦ Solution 8. Reset the PC

Resetting PC can return the system to the default settings, you can also try this method.

Step 1. Press "Windows +I" to open Windows Settings, then click "Update & Security".

Step 2. In the new window, Click "Recovery" and then "Get started" under "Reset this PC".

Step 3. Click "Keep my files" in the new window.

Step 4. Then click "Local reinstall" in the new interface.

Step 5. In the "Reset this PC" window, click "Next".

Step 6. Click on "Reset" to reset your PC.

✦ Solution 9. Improve system drive performance

It is worth noting that "Not enough space on C drive" will also make Windows 10 Start menu not working. If there is little free space, you need to extend the C drive in time. Since the system-related data is stored in the C drive, you may need a trustworthy hard disk manager. Fortunately, AOMEI Partition Assistant Professional can satisfy you.

It works on Windows 11/10/8.1/8/7/Vista/XP. In a bright interface, it can safely extend C drive without losing any data. The "Allocate Free Space" function can directly allocate free space on other drives to the C drive.

In addition, with functions like App Mover, Migrate OS to SSD, Disk Clone Wizard, Delete Large Files, etc., you can further optimize your hard disk.

Step 1. Download and open this powerful tool, then right-click the drive with free space and click "Allocate Free Space".

Step 2. Set the space and the target disk, here we choose the C drive and click "OK".

Step 3. Click "Apply" to extend the C drive with free space.

Note: If you want to extend C drive on Windows Server, you can turn to the Server Edition.

Last word

How to fix Windows 10 Start menu not working? In this post, we have analyzed the reasons and shared 9 methods for you. Please select the most suitable way to make the Start menu reworking.