Chrome & Edge Both Inaccessible

Using this old Toshiba Satellite L755 laptop that was upgraded to 10 years ago and was kept current.

Tonight, while in Chrome I decided to restart the machine. The reboot gave me one of those Microsoft screens that indicated it had probably gone to a newer version of 10. Now I really don't know what version I had been running, but what shows up now when running winver is 2004 OS Build 19041, 508.

Unfortunately, my icon for Chrome has disappeared from the taskbar. I have a few Chrome Browser icons on the desktop. None of them function. They supply no error message, but they just don't do anything. Right-clicking and left-clicking open on any of those icons likewise does nothing. Clicking in the search box brings up Recent applications, among them Google Chrome. Clicking that does nothing.

I still see Chrome.exe listed in the Application folder in the C: drive /Program Files/Google/Chrome, but of course it doesn't work. Curiously, even though I don't use or like Edge, that browser misbehaves the same as Chrome. I'm typing this post on that laptop using Internet Explorer 11.

My cellphone uses Chrome and it seems to work just fine, and even though I've never bothered to sync the cell phone with the laptop my email is current.

I'm worried that if I download / install Chrome again I'll lose the hundreds of bookmarks I regularly use.

There is a Bookmarks file in the path C:\Users\(user name)\AppData\Local\Google\Chrome\User Data\Profile1 but I don't know how to read it.

boweasel said:

...There is a Bookmarks file in the path C:\Users\(user name)\AppData\Local\Google\Chrome\User Data\Profile1 but I don't know how to read it.

Open with Notepad, it will look congested but the URL's will be there.

Considering that Laptop is around 8 years old. The HDD needs checking and probably replacing.

Chrome will need to be re-installed.

Maybe you can just remake Desktop shortcuts and Taskbar icons by going to the All programs list for Chrome and Edge Right click > More > Pin to Taskbar,
and More > Open file location > select Right click > Send to Desktop(create shortcut).

All those non working shortcuts can be deleted, or unpinned from Taskbar.

Also you need to do backups before these inevitable failures, just so you are covered. My exported Bookmarks reside in the Documents folder which is backed up using File History and also in an Image file. In all around 50 copies going back 2 years.

You can export manually fron Chrome or Edge or IE 11 to a Bookmarks HTML file. I just do that occasionally.
The location you mention in my Chrome Browser has nothing.

boweasel said:

...There is a Bookmarks file in the path C:\Users\(user name)\AppData\Local\Google\Chrome\User Data\Profile1 but I don't know how to read it.

Copy the Bookmarks file(s) to your Desktop, re-install Chrome, then paste the files into the new Profile folder, probably 'Default'

From now on, sign into the browser with your Google account and sync everything, then you'll never be stuck again!

After 3 System Restores that did nothing to bring back Chrome or my bookmarks, I opened the Bookmarks file, as Edwin suggested, with Notepad and noticed that everything was there. I saved it to my Documents and was ready to re-download Chrome when I noticed that Chrome was on the taskbar, but with the little purple circle containing the first letter of my last name.

So now it's working again. No idea why opening and saving that Bookmarks file should have 're-enabled' Chrome. But it did.
Thanks to all.