Unable to unpin/pin any Start menu tiles,can't uninstall user UWP apps

FedoraMaster420 · 03 Jan 2020

Hello,
I am running Windows 10 Pro build 18363 (version 1909) on my laptop. As the title says, I am unable to unpin or pin any Start menu tiles, and there is also no option to uninstall any user UWP apps (like the ones installed from the Microsoft Store), but I can uninstall them by going to Settings > Apps. How can I fix this issue? Re-installing Windows is out of the question for me as I have lots of data on this laptop that I am unable to backup (internet speed is too slow to back files up to the cloud and download again). Look at attached screenshots to get a better idea of what I mean. Is there a registry script or something I can run to re-enable this functionality? And yes, I have tried sfc /scannow and the DISM RestoreHealth tools to no avail. All help is greatly appreciated, thanks.

Edit: I have also tried restoring the Start menu to default layout which did not fix it.

dalchina · 03 Jan 2020

Hi, thanks for the info. First diagnostic step before anything else is to determine if this is a general Windows problem or particular to your account.

Create a new user for test purposes, log in as that user, and report as to whether you see the same symptoms or not.

All else follows.

Re-installing Windows is out of the question for me as I have lots of data on this laptop that I am unable to backup

This is truly worrying. Do you not back up to e.g. a large external USB disk? They are not so expensive.

One way to often avoid reinstalling Windows and give you a second chance that is tirelessly recommended by tenforums members is to routinely and periodically use disk imaging.

E.g. Macrium Reflect - free or paid. You need a large enough external storage medium; that is also then a full backup from which you can restore your PC or extract files.

FedoraMaster420 · 03 Jan 2020

Hello there, I created a new test account and the Start menu works completely fine as it should, tiles are able to be pinned and unpinned and there is the Uninstall option as expected. As for backing up my data, I am a student that has access to a OneDrive provided by my school which I use to back up all of my school work, however I do not have a large storage medium to store data somewhere else physically (my largest storage medium is a 64GB USB drive). I might look into getting a portable hard drive or something of the like one day.

dalchina · 03 Jan 2020

There are several helpful tutorials in the tenforums tutorial section to try. Searchable list to bookmark:
Windows 10 Tutorial Index

Run Windows Store Apps Troubleshooter in Windows 10
Clear Live Tile Cache on Start in Windows 10

Reset Start Layout in Windows 10
Re-register Start Menu in Windows 10
Reset Start Layout in Windows 10

Clear and Reset Store Cache in Windows 10
Re-register Microsoft Store app in Windows 10

I might look into getting a portable hard drive or something of the like one day.

I can tell you are an optimist and are not concerned about your PC becoming usable, unbootable, infected by some difficult virus or ransomware, or your disk or PC failing.

A wise person prepares for this, and avoids the stress of having a 75% complete assignment due next day being impossible to complete because of PC problems. The last thing you want is to have your PC die on you at a critical time. And you will never know when that will be.

Disk imaging offers that security- and evn if your PC was stolen, if your disk with image files on it is separate and secure, you still have your data and could most likely even recover your normal configuration to a new PC.

FedoraMaster420 · 03 Jan 2020

I tried all of your links to no avail. However the reset Start layout registry file has now changed how my Start menu looks (in terms of tiles that are pinned) but I still can't unpin or pin tiles and the Uninstall option is also not there.

dalchina · 03 Jan 2020

Do you have a system restore point you can use created before this problem occurred?

FedoraMaster420 · 03 Jan 2020

Unfortunately not as this issue happened a while ago however I've just been living with it up till now - now it's a bit irritating and I would like to get it fixed.

dalchina · 03 Jan 2020

I'm sure you would- however by not using system restore appropriately, and not using disk imaging you have put yourself at a disadvantage.

I note you have Pro: please try this:
[Fix] Pin to Start Option Missing in Windows 10 >> Winhelponline

This helped in this case (post#1)
Start menu problem "pin and unpin to start"

Another person found this helped:
2) I set my user account to Administrator ( Win + R -> netplwiz -> [Your User] -> Properties -> Group Membership -> Other: Administrators -> Apply )
3) Save and Close all dialogs, it will prompt you to logout (Click yes)
4) After you get logged out and login back - it worked.
from
Cannot re-arrange/resize/pin/unpin start menu tiles after malware.

FedoraMaster420 · 05 Jan 2020

Hello there, unfortunately I tried all of those solutions and none of those worked for me. Note that apps can still pin their tiles to Start (such as Facebook) however when those apps are uninstalled instead of the tile being removed it retains a "ghost tile" (a tile that is the accent colour with the name "P~Facebook.Facebook" (Facebook ghost tile).

- - - Updated - - -

Also, I just logged back into my testing account and found that the Start menu is locked on that account too (can't move tiles, can't unpin or pin, no uninstall option for user UWP apps in the all apps list). So it appears that it is some kind of system wide issue. I'm not sure what could be causing this.

dalchina · 05 Jan 2020

Hi, have you checked there's no relevant group policy applied? (Open the group policy editor, apply a filter to show only configured policies).

Example:

Unable to unpin/pin any Start menu tiles,can't uninstall user UWP apps-1.png

How to stop users from uninstalling apps from Windows 10's Start menu | Windows Central

Otherwise, if the same is true after a clean boot (Google if unsure) then I suggest you try an in-place upgrade repair install which as the tutorial now states keeps all progs and data.

You will need an iso of the same build and 'bitness' as you have installed.

(Hint- I - and many others here- use Open Shell start menu (free). Whilst problems - which I've not experienced- are frequently reported regarding the Win 10 start menu, hardly any with Open Shell which is far more configurable and user friendly).