[SOLVED] Why Can't I Access These Start Menu Shortcuts?

[accesscpu_]

After upgrading to Windows 10, I found that Microsoft has locked access to some of its default shortcuts in the Start Menu. So apps like Skype, 3D Viewer, and more (ones that come default with the OS), block access to the root folder.

However, some other apps I have installed are now adopting this same behavior as well.

I need to edit the properties of both the NVIDIA Control Panel shortcut and Adobe's Notification Manager shortcut. But for some reason, they have adopted this same "locked" state of Microsoft's OS shortcuts. And I can't access/change them (they shouldn't be this way)

What is causing an inability to edit/move them as needed?

med edit: quotes removed

 

[JohnBonhamsGhost]

remove quotes from your post so it can be easily read here.


a lot of MS and 3rd party apps are located in system protected 'ProgramData' or 'Program Files/WindowsApps' folders.
to access these you need to have active permission and usually need to open their directories directly through Explorer or by right-clicking on their process in Task Manager and selecting "Open file location".

if you still cannot access them then there may be some sort of elevated User Account Control in place
or some other security feature blocking your access.

if you cannot gain administrator level control you could reinstall Windows with default parameters in place.
or use the Take Ownership command on all of the folders involved. but if you are genuinely locked out for a specific reason this will not work.

usually this type of issue is due to a non-administrator user without permission trying to access files.
most of the time is due to illegal attempts, but it can be a fault in the OS itself.

 

[Colif]

Why do you need access to root folder?

Be careful what user you take ownership away from. Probably not ideal if its trusted installer or system. Can lead to negative consequences.

You may be only human user on PC but windows has a few it uses to do all the actions you ask of it.

 

[accesscpu_]

Thanks for the info. I guess I should be a bit more clear with the issue and what I'm looking to do. I don't think I'll need to adjust any permissions for this.

I have two shortcuts where apps have installed into the Start Menu:

• Notifications Manager for Adobe Creative Suite
• NVIDIA Control Panel

99% of the time, when I right-click on any shortcut, it will give me the More > Open File Location option. Neither of these have that (which is the same behavior as the pre-installed Microsft apps that come stock with Windows 10). I have already looked in both the ProgramData and AppData folders. They are not there

I don't want either of these in the Start Menu. They are clutter and useless to me (and was not put there by choice). Where the heck are they hiding, and why are they inaccessible?

 

[Colif]

have you tried using Autoruns to stop them loading? it doesn't remove them completely, if they are needed by an application after startup, they will load.

https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/sysinternals/downloads/autoruns

when you said start menu, i thought you meant the one on taskbar, not the programs that run at startup. Blames Microsoft

 

[JohnBonhamsGhost]

Where the heck are they hiding, and why are they inaccessible?

if you are referring to the 'Start Screen' and it's 'All apps' list;
there is nothing you can do to remove what MS details as 'Universal Apps', such as Nvidia Control Panel, except totally uninstall them.
this 'All apps' list is not the same as the actual 'Start Menu'.


if you just don't want them in the actual Start Menu;
totally delete their folders and/or links there.
'C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs'
'C:\Users\Default\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs'
'C:\Users\username\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs'


if you are just trying to stop these from loading with Windows;

in Start Menu,
remove them from the 'Run' folder.

in the Registry,
under each menu heading there will be a 'SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run'
delete them there.

in Task Manager,
'Startup' tab: disable or delete them there.

in Task Scheduler,
remove any "at logon" or similar triggers.

in Windows Services,
look for related processes and set them to 'manual' or 'disabled'.

 

[accesscpu_]

Thanks again all. I think we're getting closer, but let me clarify this down just a bit more.

These are not programs that start at Windows boot. So nothing in Services or the StartUp folder would be relevant. I'm specifically just referring to the Start (or Start Menu in the bottom left-hand corner, which Windows has called it for years). I also do not want to uninstall/disable anything about their functionality. I simply want to find/move these shortcuts. There is 0.0% reason I should have to look at the Notification for Adobe Creative Suite shortcut under my "N" section. I excepted that Microsoft locked a few of its own things by default. Fine, they are doing what they do. But why third-party apps are behaving this way is beyond me. And I need/should have total control over my Start screen. It's been that way since Windows 95.

'C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs'
'C:\Users\Default\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs'
'C:\Users\username\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs

Also checked these sections before posting. The shortcuts do not exist here. But yet, there they are on my Start screen. They have to exist somewhere right?

 

[JohnBonhamsGhost]

But yet, there they are on my Start screen. They have to exist somewhere right?

NO.

if you are referring to the 'Start Screen' and it's 'All apps' list;
there is nothing you can do to remove what MS details as 'Universal Apps', such as Nvidia Control Panel, except totally uninstall them.

this 'All apps' list is not the same as the actual 'Start Menu'.

these are actually controlled by the built-in Windows 10 MS Store.
this 'Apps list' just also auto-incorporates our actual Start Menu items for "ease-of-access".

there may be some way to edit these Universal Apps in this list but it would be changing code for OS itself.

 

[accesscpu_]

NO.

these are actually controlled by the built-in Windows 10 MS Store.
this 'Apps list' just also auto-incorporates our actual Start Menu items for "ease-of-access".

there may be some way to edit these Universal Apps in this list but it would be changing code for OS itself.

You'll have to forgive me, as I've only just recently made the change over to Windows 10 in the last few months. And this new behavior seems absolutely strange and foreign to me to how things have been handled going back almost five OS versions previously.

So let me just see if I have my head wrapped around this.

The MS store has an app list. From this list, some shortcuts are populated in the Start screen in the bottom left. But not everything populated in the Start screen is handled by the MS store's app list. And when you install third-party software, some will become part of the MS store app list (where shortcuts are not accessible), and others do their own thing (where shortcuts are created in the AppData/ProgramData directories and are editable).

I have that right?

 

[JohnBonhamsGhost]

I have that right?

in a way.
not entirely Store issues as the MS Store is actually part of the OS and entirely incorporated.

this Apps List that is accessible from the Start Screen is something that has never been included in previous Windows variants.
it is not the Start Menu as you may have been accustomed to.
just a new application list that includes Start Menu links & Store links.
what MS decides are 'Universal Apps' is what determines their accessibility and what options you have when right-clicking these shortcuts/links.

the easiest way to control these settings/apps is to only use this 'Apps list' as a way to populate the Start Screen and only "Pin" apps there that you will be accessing regularly.
you can then separate these commonly used apps by different menus/categories and place them wherever you want on the Start Screen.

 

[kerberos_20]

there is a way how to get to that app folder, open app, then open task manager and there find your opened app, right click and open file location, works with UWP apps aswell, but most likely it will throw at you that you dont have read permissions to that folder (security feature)

 

[JohnBonhamsGhost]

there is a way how to get to that app folder

the OP is not trying to find where these 'Universal Apps' in the 'Apps list' are located.
but how to remove them from this 'Apps list', which is not possible without actually uninstalling the application.

 

[accesscpu_]

While I find this absolutely maddening that I can't completely customize how/what is displayed in my Start Menu (like I have for the last 20+ years), I guess I'll take the advice about just hiding the app list and pinning things from now on. But seems like MS has never really got the new Start Menu completely right since they tried to drop it in Windows 8 and had to bring it back due to user outrage.

Thanks for all the helpful info!

 

[JohnBonhamsGhost]

i actually like the Start Screen better than the previous Start Menus.
a sample of how i have it setup:

 

[kerberos_20]

win 11 has just 2 sections, pinned icons and recommended icons, no tiles