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Fix your broken SHOW DESKTOP toolbar icon

Problem: My Show Desktop icon stopped working - How can I fix it?

Note: I had this problem with one of my clients PCs. After some searching, I found it to be a somewhat comon problem, so I created this webpage to give guidence for those that need some help with theirs. I found bits and pieces of these instructions on various sites and put them together to make them work as they should.

As with all my computer tips, these instructions have been tried and work for my specific problems. Caution is advised when trying to fix your own problems on your specific Windows Configuration. These instructions were for Windows XP, so if you attempt to use them on a different OS, additional caution is advised.

OK... Lets fix that SHOW DESKTOP icon!

Step 1. Open NOTEPAD.
If you've never used the notepad before, cllick on START > ALL PROGRAMS > ACCESSORIES . NOTEPAD.

Step 2. Type (or cut/copy and paste) the following into Notepad EXACTLY as shown (line for line):

[Shell]
Command=2
IconFile=Explorer.exe,3
[Taskbar]
Command=ToggleDesktop

Step 3. SAVE the Notepad file to your Desktop using the following File name and Extension:
"Save Desktop.scf " (w/o quotes - ok to have the space between Save and Desktop)

NOTE... You will know if you typed out / saved the file correctly, if after saving, the new file has the correct "Show Desktop" icon. If it shows a generic icon, it's not right and you did something incorrectly. You either didn't type the above text correctly, or didn't use the proper file extension (the ".scf "). You'll need to go back and correct, or delete the file and start over. Trust me, it does work! See the two icons below:

Step 4. Delete the original Save Desktop icon in the toolbar. Then drag the new file from the desktop into the toolbar where the original one was located (either right after the START if you don't have the red Fast Shutdown icon, or if you have the Fast Shutdown icon, place the Save Desktop icon right after, or to the right.

Step 5. OPTIONAL. This step may or may not be necessary. I had problems with the toolbar icon after I first recreated it. After a short while, it stopped working again. So I took the additional steps outlined below, and afterwards the toolbar icon stayed working.

The additional steps are as follows:
a) Open MY COMPUTER.
b) Click through the following folders to get to the QUICK LAUNCH folder. The Quick Launch folder is located deep inside your "C" drive. So you need to open about 6 folders to get into the Quick Launch folder. Click through the following folders shown below:

1. C:\ (Drive)
2. Documents and Settings
3. USER NAME folder*
4. Application Data\Microsoft
5. Microsoft
6. Internet Explorer
7. Quick Launch

The total Address should look like this:
C:\Documents and Settings\USER NAME\Application Data\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Quick Launch

*NOTE: USER NAME could be either the name you log into your computer with or your default computer login name if you don't need to log in.

AFTER you move the file to the Quick Launch Folder, highlight it, then right-click on the file and from the drop-down list, click RUN. When you click RUN, it will perform the action it was created to do (minimize all the open windows and SHOW the DESKTOP). This additional step also seemed to fix the broken link with the toolbar icon, in that it won't stop working again as it did without performing this additional 5th Step.

If you have problems with these instructions, or need further help, don't hesitate to contact me at:
support@jebswebsite.com

HAPPY COMPUTING...JEB