Windows 10 Start Menu And Cortana Not Working- Easy Troubleshooting Steps

Windows 10 is an Operating System, that is the latest one developed by Microsoft. This OS has some significant changes to the user interface and also has many new features and applications. Some of the new features introduced in this OS are the improved ‘Start’ menu and ‘Cortana’ and one of the latest applications is the ‘Microsoft Edge’. Despite the fact that this Operating System has so many new features and applications, even then you can get many errors. One such error is that you may encounter Windows 10 Start Menu and Cortana not working. In the next section, you will get reasons behind this issue along with some easy fixes.

Why Is Windows 10 Start Menu And Cortana Not Working?

This section will provide you with the various reasons behind the malfunctioning of Windows 10 Start Menu and Cortana.

  • If the system files of the Operating System somehow get corrupted, then you can get this issue.
  • When there is a conflict between some Windows applications and the antivirus software, then also you can encounter this problem.

 

How To Solve Windows 10 Start Menu And Cortana Not Working?

This section provides various solutions to resolve the issue with the Windows 10 Start Menu and Cortana.



Restart Your Windows 10 Machine


When you encounter this problem, then the easiest solution to resolve it is to simply switch off your machine completely. Then, after some time, turn it back on and check if the problem is there or not. Most of the time, if you do this, then the given error can be solved. But, if this issue cannot be solved by this method, try the next one.



Remove Antivirus Software


Since the antivirus software that is installed in the machine creates some clashes between the other applications within the Windows 10 OS, therefore, it will be a better solution to uninstall the antivirus software. In order to remove this software, follow the points mentioned below.

 

  • First, hit the ‘Windows’ key on the keyboard, then in the search area, type the command ‘control panel.’ After that, from the result of the search, choose the ‘Control Panel’ option.
  • Now, locate and select the ‘Programs’ option. Next, choose ‘Program and Features’. Within the new window, find the antivirus software that is on the computer and select it.
  • Right-click on it and then select ‘Uninstall’ from the popup menu. Then, follow the on-screen information to start the uninstallation process.
  • After the removal process of the antivirus software is over, restart your machine and examine if the ‘Start Menu’ and ‘Cortana’ both are working or not.

Using PowerShell

  • Press the combination of the following keys simultaneously: ‘Ctrl + Alt + Delete’. Then, from the options list, choose ‘Task Manager’.
  • Now, in the Task Manager’ window, choose ‘File’ from the menu bar and then, from the options list, select ‘Run new task’.
  • In the ‘Create new task’ dialog box, enter the command ‘powershell’ and then tap on ‘OK’.
  • In the ‘Windows PowerShell’, enter the following command – ‘Get-AppXPackage -AllUsers | Foreach {Add-AppxPackage -DisableDevelopmentMode -Register “$($_.InstallLocation)\AppXManifest.xml”}’. After that, to execute this command hit Enter.
  • Restart the system, and see if the ‘Start Menu’ and ‘Cortana’ are working properly or not.

Fix The Issue Via Command Prompt

  • First, go to the ‘Start Menu’ and right-click on it, then tap on the ‘Run’ option to open it.
  • In the Run dialog box, type ‘cmd’ and then hit the ‘OK’ button to execute ‘Command Prompt’.
  • Now, within the ‘Command Prompt’ window, enter the following command – ‘ren %windir%\System32\AppLocker\Plugin*.* *.bak’ and then tap the Enter key to run it.
  • After the command is executed, reboot your machine.

Execute System File Checker To Scan The Machine

The System File Checker will scan and correct any system files that got corrupted or damaged. Follow the steps that are given below:

 

  • First, from the previous method, follow the first and second step.
  • In the ‘Command Prompt’ window, enter the command ‘sfc /scannow’ and then press ‘Enter’.
  • Now, wait for the scanning process to complete and then reboot the computer.

Make A New User Profile

  • First, create two new user profiles with the administrator privileges.
  • Next, sign-in to one of the user profiles you have made. After that, look at the ‘Start Menu’ and ‘Cortana’ and see if these features are working or not. Also, check if all these features are working in the other user accounts. If it is not working, reinstall the Windows 10 OS.
  • In order to see all the system files, and hidden files, go to ‘Control Panel’, then click ‘Appearance and Personalization’, after that ‘File Explorer Options’, at last, ‘View’. Now, tap on the ‘Show hidden files, folders, and drives’ option and then press the ‘Apply’ button.
  • Repeat the previous process by logging in to a different user profile.
  • Go to the following path -‘C:\Users\OtherNewProfileYouAreNotUsing\AppData\Local\TileDataLayer’. Then, copy this database folder. After that, go to this path – ‘C:\Users\UserProfileWithProblems\AppData\Local\TileDataLayer’. Alter the name of the database folder in this account to the old-database.
  • After that, paste the already copied Database folder from the account that is working correctly.
  • At last, log into the user profile that is having a problem. See if the issue is resolved or not.


If you follow the steps that are given above in the specified order, then you can be able to resolve the Windows 10 Start Menu and Cortana not working issue very easily. In case you are unable to resolve this issue on your own, then post your comments in the comments section to reach us.

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Nathaniel Villa
Nathaniel Villa
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