Windows 10: Taskbar Network Icon Missing

Today January 18th 2022 I started my PC and discovered the network icon has gone missing from the taskbar leaving only the sound icon. Can anybody help? I've attached what it looks like to help.I can connect via ethernet and Wi-Fi but things internet speed and general PC performance feels somewhat slower than normal.

:)

 

Network and Volume Icons missing from Taskbar

On my son's computer, he recently told me that his volume icon disappeared and that he tried "everything" he could find on Google and couldn't get it back.

So, tonight when i couldn't sleep, I came in to check out his Windows 10 machine and found that it wasn't just the volume icon, but the network icon is missing too.

I went to the normal place to check them, TaskBar Settings > Turn System Icons on or off, and found that they are listed, but grayed out:
​



I tried all of the typical solutions that I found online
1). Try another user...problem persists with my account
2). Try "restarted" explorer with task manager. Problem persists
3). Try the following tutorial (System Icons - Enable or Disable | Tutorials) importing in these registry keys and restarting. Problem persists
4). Tried deleting the registry values per this post, How do I turn the system icon for sound on (currently off; greyed out). Problem persists
5). Ran an sfc /scannow
6). I followed this thread, which basically linked to the tutorial in step 3. Network missing from taskbar - grayed out in settings
7). Tried all of the options from this post, both registry edits as well as gpedit.msc. Fix: Volume Icon is Missing in Windows 10 Taskbar


His system is running Windows 10, 20H2




His network works just fine and his audio is working as well.

Device Manager is clean




The missing icons are NOT in the overflow tray area




I haven't reinstalled drivers, because I find it hard to believe that the audio driver and the network driver both got messed up. If it was just one of them missing, then I would have more faith that the problem lies.

Also, he's up to date on his windows updates




anybody else run into this pesky issue where the typical solutions just aren't working at all?

 

Network icon missing from taskbar

Hi Wailana,

Thank you for writing to Microsoft Community Forums.

Did you recently make any changes on the computer?

Which edition(Home or Pro) of Windows 10 is installed on the computer?

This can be caused by several reasons. The network icon could be missing from the task bar, the network services might not be running or the issue could be with Windows explorer.

Let’s see if we can get the network icon back on taskbar by following the methods given below.

Method 1: Enable Network icon from settings.

• Right click on the taskbar and select Taskbar settings.
  
• Under Notification area click on
  Select which icons appear on taskbar.
  
• Toggle the switch to on for Network icon to make it appear on taskbar.
  
• Go back and click on Turn system icons on or off. Toggle the switch for Network icon to turn it on if it is off.
  

Method 2: Restart Windows Explorer

• Right click on taskbar and select Task Manager.
  
• Under Process tab, look for Explorer process.
  
• Right click on Explorer process and select
  Restart option to restart the process.
  
• Exit Task Manager and see if the network icon appears in the taskbar.
  

Hope it helps.

Please feel free to contact back in case you need any further assistance and let us know if you got the help you needed by clicking ‘Yes’ or ‘No’.

Peer Samie

Microsoft Community-Moderator

 

System Icons on taskbar

Hi,

Thank you for posting on Microsoft Communities.

Are you referring to the clock system icon on the taskbar?

If so, I suggest you to follow the steps mentioned below:

• 
  Click on the search bar on the taskbar.
  
• 
  Type system icons.
  
• 
  Under Turn System Icons ON or OFF, turn On the Clock and check with the issue.
  

Hope it helps.