Windows Insiders have been flighting Windows 11 for quite a while now, with the official release date for gen-pop on the 5th of October; Microsoft seems to be pretty much ready with its new operating system.

However, many Windows Insiders flighting the Dev and Beta builds of the unreleased operating system are encountering a bug that is rendering their taskbar, Start Menu, and/or Settings non-responsive or not load at all. In some extreme cases, the desktop is completely empty without any desktop icons and the Taskbar.

Fortunately, there is a quick solution to it and if your machine has been impacted by it, below is a sure-shot solution to it.

Fix Taskbar and Start Menu Issues Using Command Prompt

This method requires you to open Command Prompt on your Windows 11 PC and delete a registry item on your computer. Deleting the item is completely safe and will not cause any unintended results.

First, press the Ctrl+Alt+Del shortcut on your keyboard. This will bring up the security screen on your Windows machine. Next, click on the ‘Task Manager’ option present in the list.

After that, on the Task Manager window, click on the ‘More details’ option present in the bottom left corner to expand the Task Manager.

Next, click on the ‘File’ tab present on the top right corner of the Task Manager window. Then, select the ‘Run new task’ option from the overlay menu. This will open an overlay window on your screen.

Now, type cmd in the text box adjacent to the ‘Open:’ field and then click on the ‘OK’ button to launch the Command Prompt.

After that, paste the follwoing command in the Command Prompt and hit Enter on your keyboard.

reg delete HKCU\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\IrisService /f && shutdown -r -t 0

Your Windows PC will restart and the issues should be resolved after your computer boots up back.

Fix Taskbar and Start Menu Issues by Desyncing the Clock

The above fix will definitely work for you. However, in an exceptional case, if it is not working or deleting a registry is too bold a move for you; You can try and desync the clock of your Windows 11 machine.

To do so, press the Ctrl+Alt+Del shortcut on your keyboard to bring up the security screen. Then, click on the ‘Task Manager’ option present in the list.

Then, on the Task Manager window, click on the ‘More details’ option present in the bottom right corner of the window to expand it.

After that, click on the ‘File’ tab present in the upper right section of the Command Prompt window. Next, click on the ‘Run new task’ option from the overlay menu. This will bring up an overlay pane on your screen.

Next, type Control in the text box adjacent to the ‘Open:’ field and click on the ‘OK’ button. This will open the ‘Control Panel’ window on your screen.

Now, click on the ‘Date and Time’ option from the grid of options present on the Control Panel window. This will open an overlay window on your screen.

Then, click on the ‘Internet Time’ tab present in the window. Next, click on the ‘Change settings’ button. This will open an overlay window on your screen.

After that, click to uncheck the checkbox preceding the ‘Synchronize with an Internet time server’ option and click on the ‘OK’ button to apply and close the window.

Next, click on the ‘Date and Time’ tab present on the window and then click on the ‘Change date and time’ button.

Now select a date ahead of the current date by 3-4 days using the calendar and click the ‘OK’ button to apply and close the window.

Finally, click on the Start Menu present on the taskbar of your machine. then, click on the ‘power’ icon and click to select the ‘Restart’ option from the overlay menu to restart your PC.

Alternatively, if your taskbar is non-responsive or not present at all, press the Alt+F4 shortcut on your keyboard to bring up the ‘Shutdown’ window on your computer. Then, press the Down Arrow on your keyboard to navigate to the ‘Restart’ option and click on the ‘OK’ button to restart your computer.

Your issue should be fixed after restarting your computer. However, you would have to manually go back to Date and Time settings to enable the time synchronization with an internet server to have the correct date and time display on your Windows 11 PC.