Fix: Wireless Icon Missing From Taskbar In Windows 10

Last Updated on April 7, 2021 by admin 43 Comments

Is the network, wireless or Wi-Fi icon missing from the system notification area of the taskbar in Windows 10? Is the network or wireless icon not refreshing automatically? In this guide, we will see how to restore the missing or corrupted network or wireless icon in Windows 10.

With default settings, the network or wireless icon always appears in the system tray area of the Windows 10 taskbar irrespective of the status of the internet connection. The network or wireless icon automatically refreshes when your PC is connected to a network or disconnected from a network to reflect the status of the internet connection.

If the network or wireless icon is missing from the taskbar, please try out the following solutions to restore the icon.

Fix Wi-Fi icon not showing issue in Windows 10

Solution 1 of 5

Check if the network or wireless icon is hidden

Step 1: Click the small up arrow icon on the taskbar to view hidden icons.

Step 2: If the network or wireless icon is appearing there, simply drag and drop it to the taskbar area.

Solution 2 of 5

Turn on the Network or wireless icon in Settings

Step 1: Open the Start menu, click the Settings icon to open the Settings app. The Windows logo + I keyboard shortcut can also be used to open Settings.

Step 2: Go to Personalization > Taskbar page.

Step 3: Here, in the Notification area section, click Select which icons appear on the taskbar link.

Step 4: On the resulting page, check the status of the Network icon, and turn it on if it’s turned off.

NOTE: If the Network icon is missing from the page, Go to Settings > Personalization > Taskbar page, click Turn system icons on or off link, and then turn on the Network icon.

Solution 3 of 5

Restart Windows File Explorer

This solution is ideal if the network or wireless icon is not automatically updating to show the status of the internet connection. For instance, many times, the icon shows the status as not connected even when you are able to browse the web.

Step 1: Open the Task Manager by right-clicking on the empty area of the taskbar and then clicking the Task Manager option.

Step 2: If you see the Task Manager with a restricted view, click More details.

Step 3: Under the Processes tab, right-click on the Windows Explorer entry, and then click the Restart button.

And if there is no Windows Explorer entry, it’s because the Windows Explorer process is not running. Open up This PC or any folder to see Windows Explorer entry in Task Manager.

The network or wireless icon should now appear properly.

Solution 4 of 5

Enable Network icon in Group Policy

This method is applicable only to Windows 10 Pro and Enterprise editions. This method doesn’t work in the Home edition.

Step 1: In the Start menu or taskbar search box, type Gpedit.msc, and then press Enter key to open Local Group Policy Editor.

Step 2: Navigate to User Configuration > Administrative Templates > Start Menu and Taskbar.

Step 3: On the right side, look for the entry named Remove the networking icon. Double-click on the same to open its properties.

Step 4: Select Disabled, and then click Apply button to see the network or wireless icon in the system notification area of the taskbar.

Sign out and sign in again to see the change. You can also restart Windows Explorer to apply the new setting.

Solution 5 of 5

Reinstall the Wi-Fi driver

As a last resort, you can try reinstalling the Wi-Fi adapter driver. Reinstalling the Wi-Fi driver will restore the Wi-Fi icon on the taskbar. But before reinstalling, it’s important to download the latest version of the Wi-Fi driver as your PC might not connect to the Internet once the Wi-Fi driver is removed.

NO WIFI ICON ON WINDOWS 10 . HEEELLPPP .

Hey there. Here’s my issue.

I recently purchased an Amazon Echo Dot. While attempting to download the app one of the steps says to check under my WI-FI icon for Amazon-xxx.

Okay. Problem is. I CAN’T FIND A WI-FI ICON ANYWHERE ON MY COMPUTER . It’s just simply bot there. Not under settings. Not on my desktop.

The only internet setting I have is NETWORK 2 INTERNET ACCESS. I tried a file search and nothing comes up. Settings search. nothing.

Can someone help me with this please !!

Replies (11) 

* Please try a lower page number.

* Please enter only numbers.

* Please try a lower page number.

* Please enter only numbers.

The WiFi icon should be found at the system notification area of taskbar in the Desktop.

Let’s see if the icon is hidden by clicking the small arrow up icon at the right-part of the taskbar, to view the hidden icons.

If it’s not hidden, let’s turn it on from the Settings:

1. Press the Windows + I keys from the keyboard to launch Settings.
2. Click System, then Notifications & actions from the left pane.
3. Click the Turn system iconson or off under Quick actions.
4. Locate the Network option, and make sure that it is enabled or turned ON.
5. Click the Back arrow to get back to the Notifications & actions window.
6. Click Select which icons appear on the taskbar.
7. Locate the Network option again, and make sure that it is enabled or turned ON.

If the icon still didn’t show up, let’s restart the File Explorer:

1. Right-click an empty space in the taskbar, then click Task Manager.
2. Click the More details option at the bottom of the window.
3. Right-click the Windows Explorer under the Processes tab, then select Restart. If you don’t see Windows Explorer, it’s because it’s not running, so launch your File Explorer.

Let me know what happens after following these steps.

Turn system icons on or off network greyed out! windows 10

Heres a picture:

I have internet but cant see network on my task bar at the bottom of my screen

Replies (34) 

* Please try a lower page number.

* Please enter only numbers.

* Please try a lower page number.

* Please enter only numbers.

You may follow these steps and see if it resolves the issue:

1. Press the Windows button + X, then click on Task Manager.
2. Locate Windows Explorer and right-click on it, then select End task. If there are multiple instances of Windows Explorer, click on End task on each of them.
3. Click File, then click Run new task.
4. Type explorer.exe, and check Create this task with administrative privileges.
5. Click OK.

Update us on the results.

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Change network icon click action in Windows 10

Windows 10 features several major interface changes from Windows 8 and earlier Windows versions. One of the changes is the new network pane, called now as the Network Flyout. It is shown when you click the network icon in the taskbar in Windows 10. Windows 10 allows you to customize this behaviour and change the Network Flyout to the Network pane from Windows 8 or to even open the Settings app. In this article, we will see what options you have got. You will be able to change the network icon’s click action.

Tip: You can access any desired Registry key with one click.

Change permissions on the Network subkey as described HERE. Alternatively, use my freeware RegOwnershipEx app and obtain full access to that key with one click.

Now change the ReplaceVan DWORD value.

You can set one of the following numbers as a new value for this parameter:
0 — to open the default Network flyout.
1 — to open Network settings in the Settings app.
2 — to open a Windows 8-like Network pane.

That’s it. The tweak will be applied instantly, no reboot or logoff is required.

Here are a few screenshots. When ReplaceVan is set to 0, every time you click the Network tray icon you will see the default Network flyout:

When ReplaceVan is set to 1, the appropriate network settings are supposed to open in the Settings app. However, in my Windows 10 build 10130, it just opens the Settings app. This behavior might be fixed in a future build of Windows 10:

And finally, here is how the network flyout will look when you set ReplaceVan to 2:

Tip: the updated Winaero Tweaker can save your time and will allow you to change the appropriate option just with on click. You can download Winaero Tweaker here:
Download Winaero Tweaker | The list of Winaero Tweaker features | Winaero Tweaker FAQ

I think this is a good change but since it has no user interface to tweak the behavior, don’t be surprised if Microsoft takes it away in the finalized version of Windows 10.

Winaero greatly relies on your support. You can help the site keep bringing you interesting and useful content and software by using these options:

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About Sergey Tkachenko

Sergey Tkachenko is a software developer from Russia who started Winaero back in 2011. On this blog, Sergey is writing about everything connected to Microsoft, Windows and popular software. Follow him on Telegram, Twitter, and YouTube.

7 thoughts on “ Change network icon click action in Windows 10 ”

So it isn‘t possible to change what network icon does after clicked on Windows 8? I‘d prefer it opening Network Connections.

I would like to have such option too, but there is no way to set what exactly to open. No option to set the command.

It is possible to run network adapters instead of that 3 options? Would be like windows 7

no, it is not possible

i like me other way for obtain network flyout as windowsvista. this classic 8 networkflyout is stupid It covers the entire right edge screen. Windowsteam is always responsible for making angry to the fans of the system .

In windows 10, It’s possible connect to a Wireless router with the Windows 8-like Network pane??
When I enter the Wireless Password it does nothing and can’t connect, if I return to the default Network flyout it connect fine. Is this a know problem or it’s only in my end??

I’m on Windows 10 Version 1803 compilation 17134.165.

Fix: Wireless Icon Missing From Taskbar In Windows 10

Last Updated on April 7, 2021 by admin 43 Comments

Is the network, wireless or Wi-Fi icon missing from the system notification area of the taskbar in Windows 10? Is the network or wireless icon not refreshing automatically? In this guide, we will see how to restore the missing or corrupted network or wireless icon in Windows 10.

With default settings, the network or wireless icon always appears in the system tray area of the Windows 10 taskbar irrespective of the status of the internet connection. The network or wireless icon automatically refreshes when your PC is connected to a network or disconnected from a network to reflect the status of the internet connection.

If the network or wireless icon is missing from the taskbar, please try out the following solutions to restore the icon.

Fix Wi-Fi icon not showing issue in Windows 10

Solution 1 of 5

Check if the network or wireless icon is hidden

Step 1: Click the small up arrow icon on the taskbar to view hidden icons.

Step 2: If the network or wireless icon is appearing there, simply drag and drop it to the taskbar area.

Solution 2 of 5

Turn on the Network or wireless icon in Settings

Step 1: Open the Start menu, click the Settings icon to open the Settings app. The Windows logo + I keyboard shortcut can also be used to open Settings.

Step 2: Go to Personalization > Taskbar page.

Step 3: Here, in the Notification area section, click Select which icons appear on the taskbar link.

Step 4: On the resulting page, check the status of the Network icon, and turn it on if it’s turned off.

NOTE: If the Network icon is missing from the page, Go to Settings > Personalization > Taskbar page, click Turn system icons on or off link, and then turn on the Network icon.

Solution 3 of 5

Restart Windows File Explorer

This solution is ideal if the network or wireless icon is not automatically updating to show the status of the internet connection. For instance, many times, the icon shows the status as not connected even when you are able to browse the web.

Step 1: Open the Task Manager by right-clicking on the empty area of the taskbar and then clicking the Task Manager option.

Step 2: If you see the Task Manager with a restricted view, click More details.

Step 3: Under the Processes tab, right-click on the Windows Explorer entry, and then click the Restart button.

And if there is no Windows Explorer entry, it’s because the Windows Explorer process is not running. Open up This PC or any folder to see Windows Explorer entry in Task Manager.

The network or wireless icon should now appear properly.

Solution 4 of 5

Enable Network icon in Group Policy

This method is applicable only to Windows 10 Pro and Enterprise editions. This method doesn’t work in the Home edition.

Step 1: In the Start menu or taskbar search box, type Gpedit.msc, and then press Enter key to open Local Group Policy Editor.

Step 2: Navigate to User Configuration > Administrative Templates > Start Menu and Taskbar.

Step 3: On the right side, look for the entry named Remove the networking icon. Double-click on the same to open its properties.

Step 4: Select Disabled, and then click Apply button to see the network or wireless icon in the system notification area of the taskbar.

Sign out and sign in again to see the change. You can also restart Windows Explorer to apply the new setting.

Solution 5 of 5

Reinstall the Wi-Fi driver

As a last resort, you can try reinstalling the Wi-Fi adapter driver. Reinstalling the Wi-Fi driver will restore the Wi-Fi icon on the taskbar. But before reinstalling, it’s important to download the latest version of the Wi-Fi driver as your PC might not connect to the Internet once the Wi-Fi driver is removed.