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Desktop Turns Black in Windows 10/11, 8.1 [Fix]
3 min. read
Updated onOctober 4, 2023
updated onOctober 4, 2023
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Have you ever tried working on your Windows 10, 8.1 PC and suddenly the desktop background turned black? Well after doing some troubleshooting on this issue I have discovered that there is a specific feature in Windows 10, 8.1 that is causing this malfunction to the system. Fortunately for us we can fix it very quickly.The issue in Windows 8.1 that makes your PC’s desktop turn black is directly related to the “Show Desktop icons” feature, after playing a bit with this feature it seems that my desktop on Windows 10, 8.1 had turned black but don’t worry, there is a very easy way to fix the desktop and bring back your normal picture by following the guidelines posted below.
Tutorial on how to fix your desktop if it turns black on Windows PC
First of all, I am going to tell you how you got this problem in the first place.
How you got the black desktop:
You have to check if the desktop is showing then click (right click) in an empty space on the desktop and select from the menu “View”. After you selected “View” then uncheck the “Show Desktop icons” to make your icons disappear from your desktop.
Now you will need to click (right click) again on the desktop and select from there “Personalize”. Now you will need to select from there a theme with more than one wallpapers. After this select again a single wallpaper theme like “Windows”.
After doing this you can close the “Personalize” window and the desktop will turn black.
How to fix the desktop if it turns black:
In order to fix the desktop we need to:
Other ‘desktop turns black’ issues and their fixes
This may not be the only issue that you might have and, in other cases, this fix may not work. Here are some fix-guides for other black desktop issues:
Above you can see how we can easily fix in just a few minutes our Windows 10, 8.1 desktop if it turns black. Although this is not a very troublesome error and it doesn’t affect your PC in any way other then the black screen it is still annoying if you want to customize the desktop and suddenly it turns black. For any thoughts on the matter write us below.
Ivan Jenic
Windows Hardware Expert
Passionate about all elements related to Windows and combined with his innate curiosity, Ivan has delved deep into understanding this operating system, with a specialization in drivers and driver troubleshooting.
When he’s not tackling diverse driver-related problems, Ivan enjoys watching good movies and spending time hiking with his family and friends.
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Ivan Jenic
Windows Hardware Expert
Ivan has delved deep into understanding the Windows OS, with a specialization in drivers and driver troubleshooting.
