Windows 10: Start Menu and File Explorer search broken

For some reason, when I click on the search icon on the start menu, or the search box in file explorer, nothing happens. Any ideas on how to fix this?

I'm on v2004.

submitted by /u/badass-techie
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:)

 

Start Menu Search

Hi,

About your issue regarding the Start menu or Search, in order for us to assist you better. Please answer the question:

• Were there any recent changes made to your system prior to the issue?

In the meantime, we suggest you to check this link:
Troubleshoot problems opening the Start menu or Cortana. It contains troubleshooting steps prior to the issue.

We'll look forward to your response.

 

Windows Explorer search and Start Menu not working*

About three days ago I noticed that my Search Button (and searching in general) wasn't working and the Start Menu was more or less broken. I tried almost every solution I could find - like running sfc /scannow or DISM /Online /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealth,
that sort of thing - and none worked, unfortunately (and yes, I'm running the latest patch). During my quest to solve this problem, however, I noticed some things that might help, so I'll list them below:

- Using the scroll wheel in the Start Menu causes the Windows Explorer to restart. Manually scrolling through the scrollbar, however, did nothing;

- When booting in Safe Mode, the Windows Explorer search function worked again, although the other two problems remained;

- The Windows Search service was up and running all the time;

- The Troubleshooting reported the "Incorrect permissions on Windows Search directories" error (I tried to solve that problem too, to no success).

I'm guessing that it is related with the separation of Cortana from the Search Button, since during my digging I found that Cortana, the Search Button and the Start Menu were related. Every bit of help would much appreciated.

Edit: interacting with the app list on the Start Menu also restarts Windows Explorer

 

Broken/Duplicate Item in Start Menu

Hi,

The duplicate icon that's appearing in the Start Menu may be due to broken system components or file corruptions. Let's try resolving this concern by running the
System File Checker tool. This will scan and restore any corrupted system files. To do this, here are the steps:

• Type Command Prompt in the Search box from the taskbar.
• Right-click on it, then select Run as administrator.
• Enter DISM.exe /Online /Cleanup-image /Restorehealth (note the spaces before each "/").
• Enter sfc /scannow (note the space between "sfc" and "/").

We’ll wait for your update after trying the steps provided.