New
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Corrupt IconCache.db does not Rebuild: A New Fix
For the last 5 days I have been searching for a solution to restore the icons and thumbnails that disappeared on Desktop and Explorer. The iconcache.db was corrupted. I deleted it and then tried to rebuild it, eventually using every suggestion I could find on the web, including two in these forums involving a .bat file and Command Prompt routine. No dice. I had no iconcache.db to delete anymore, which was another problem. I was at the point of doing a System Restore, which in my experience is asking for more trouble.
Then, yesterday, I took another laptop I own that is running Windows 10, and copied the iconcache.db file to a thumbdrive. I then implanted this file where it belongs (C:\Users\%username%\AppData\Local\), and bingo!--the icons popped back into life, as did the lost ability to view Properties on the right-click dropdown menus on icons and files.
n.b. I had already tried this gambit of implanting a db file from elsewhere, but it came from Windows 7 and didn't work. It has to be a Win 10 iconcache.db file. If you don't have another computer with this file, get one from a friend.