CHS Icon Disappears from System Tray

[flowergardener]

The CHS icon does not appear in the System Tray for Windows XP. For a long time it always appeared right after booting but lately it stopped showing. The Customize Notifications menu shows it in the Past Items section.

I tried various options in the Startup and Tray options for CHS but nothing helps.

[mouser]

is it running but not showing in tray, or not running at all?

[IainB]

If it is a case of CHS still running, but the icon is not displaying, then it might be worth getting Restart Explorer by Lee Whittington - it's part of Ultimate Windows Customizer from Windows Club

I used RE in Win7-64 when stuff was not showing in the Systray - which was a recognised bug in Windows Explorer, it seems.

Anyway, just that one little executable fixes the Systray items non-display problem, and I still use it to good effect in Win10-64 PRO. This is a workaround to fix the recurring symptoms, not a fix for the bug per se.

There are various other ways to force Explorer to restart, but some of them don't necessarily get priority and so a wait/delay ensues once you start to execute them. However, I found that RE would consistently take priority, shut down Explorer and restart it quite expeditiously - and the Systray icons would all come back tickety-boo. So it's brutal and effective.

EDIT: I just had to use RE now (several Systray icons had disappeared again) and it worked a treat - they are all back again.

[flowergardener]

The description for RE says it works on Windows 7. Did you try it on Windows XP?

[tomos]

The description for RE says it works on Windows 7. Did you try it on Windows XP?

-flowergardener (February 14, 2017, 05:03 PM)

I kind of doubt it would also work on XP (if designed for Win 7 upwards)
Did you see mouser's post?

is it running but not showing in tray, or not running at all?

-mouser (February 14, 2017, 12:34 PM)

[IainB]

The description for RE says it works on Windows 7. Did you try it on Windows XP?
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-flowergardener (February 14, 2017, 05:03 PM)

No, I only used RE on Win7-64 and above.
All RE does is kill the explorer.exe process and then restarts it.
That is the same process in XP too, as I recall, so I would assume that RE could work.
I'd suggest you suck it and see (try it out). It will either work or it won't.   

[flowergardener]

I found that CHS is indeed running in the background and will respond to <CTRL><ALT><M> and opening the main menu. But having the icon showing allows more options for using CHS.

There is a script from Kelly's File which appears to do the same thing that RE does. It modifies the registry then restarts Explorer. The Kelly File has been taken down but there is a web site that has recorded everything that used to be there.

[IainB]

@flowergardener: What you write above is interesting, but did RE work for you in XP?

I'm not sure what "the script in Kelly's file" refers to, but. as i wrote above:

There are various other ways to force Explorer to restart, but some of them don't necessarily get priority and so a wait/delay ensues once you start to execute them. However, I found that RE would consistently take priority, shut down Explorer and restart it quite expeditiously - and the Systray icons would all come back tickety-boo. So it's brutal and effective.

-IainB (February 14, 2017, 01:09 PM)

[IainB]

I found that CHS is indeed running in the background and will respond to <CTRL><ALT><M> and opening the main menu. But having the icon showing allows more options for using CHS.
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-flowergardener (February 15, 2017, 01:53 PM)

There is a way to see all the processes that are running, by invoking the Windows Task Manager.
In XP, I think pressing Ctrl+Shift+Esc(ape) keys all together at the same time (that is the hotkey combination) will pop up the Task Manager window, which lists all the processes currently running. The processes can be sorted into different orders by clicking on the various column headings.

The user can control those processes from that window, so take care - the processes can be "killed" (terminated) from that window. That is also one way to manually kill explorer.exe and restart it, but it's a bit slow to do it manually, which is why I prefer to use RE instead. RE does the same thing but is very fast by comparison.

Right-clicking the CHS icon in the Systray is quite different - it activates the CHS application menu.

[mateek]

I'm having the same problem on a Windows 10, 64bit, Intel Xeon E3, lots of memory, Clipboard Help+Spell is up to date.  When I start CH+S I see a flash on the screen and the icon shows for half a second in the tray and then vanishes.  After, I see it in the Task Manager running as 32bit. I tried <CTRL><ALT><M> as flowergardener suggested and my KatMouse icon reappeared, but not CH+S. 

Is <CTRL><ALT><M> meant to bring back all missing icons in the tray or is that a specific key for CH+S?  I don't use hotkeys at all and usually disable them when I remember. 

I looked in KatMouse for the hotkey settings to disable, and potentially solve a conflict, but there are no hotkey settings.  I have already tried a restart, but went to try "Restart Explorer by Lee Whittington - it's part of Ultimate Windows Customizer" suggested by IainB but it says it won't run on Windows 10 Pro after I install.

SOLVED!!!: I opened up CH+S on my laptop, saw the hotkey for Show/Hide CHS Window is <CTRL><ALT><W>.  CH+S popped right up.  Hope this helps someone.

[tomos]

SOLVED!!!: I opened up CH+S on my laptop, saw the hotkey for Show/Hide CHS Window is <CTRL><ALT><W>.  CH+S popped right up.  Hope this helps someone.

-mateek (December 11, 2017, 11:02 AM)

did the taskbar icon then display correctly?

[mateek]

tomos, glad you asked.  When I saw your question I realized I hadn't tried closing it and reopening it. I closed the CH+S window, and it disappeared from the tray.  I went in to the Task Manager, but before trying  <CTRL><ALT><W> I did an End task, (maybe a lucky mistake) restarted CH+S, saw a message from Windows saying CH+S 'updating' something and then one saying it's 'ready and activated'.  Now it's back in the tray and looking good.

[tomos]

 

[IainB]

@mateek:

...but went to try "Restart Explorer by Lee Whittington - it's part of Ultimate Windows Customizer" suggested by IainB but it says it won't run on Windows 10 Pro after I install ...

-mateek (December 11, 2017, 11:02 AM)

No, it still works fine under Win10-64 Pro (with latest current version updates).
By the way, it doesn't need "installing". I just copied the stand-alone executable into the folder where I keep my "portable" proggies: the C:\UTIL\ directory. I set it to run as Administrator (see the file Properties --> Compatibility), and it works a treat.
I usually never deliberately put what I consider to be my "portable" proggies into Windows' "Program Files" folders, as I wish to avoid the dead hand of the Windows user access control system settings taking control - which is probably what you have experienced and why RE won't work for you right now.

[mateek]

IainB I must be doing something wrong but when I used your link the page had a link to screenshots of the installation  here.  When I downloaded I got a .zip with "UWC Setup.exe" inside and nothing that looks like it could stand-alone.  Maybe I missed another download link on the page?  Or are you thinking of a stand-alone of Restart Explorer by Lee Whittington by itself?

Also, I have an SSD with my Windows installation and a few programs, and a separate hard drive where I installed UWC.  Shouldn't that be separate enough from 'access control system settings?'

I had a strong feeling if I used the compatibility properties I would have had it running.  I don't mean to disparage Restart Explorer or Ultimate Windows Customizer.  UWC has been very good to me in the past.  I just don't need it now that I've got CH+S running properly.  I would recommend UWC to anyone from personal experience.

[IainB]

@mateek: I was talking there about the stand-alone proggy Restart Explorer (by Lee Whittington) by itself - (v1.0.0.0, 2016-10-01 13:25, 543Kb).

I only mentioned it (above) as you seemed to think that it didn't work in Win10, when my experience is that it most emphatically does work OK (in Win10-64 Pro), and is dead handy. I use it several times a day, most days, when restoring the systray icons, or decluttering the system of Explorer instances that seem to be either in suspended wait-states or crashing or suspected as being involved in other apps waiting/crashing - sometimes along with RuntimeBroker.
RE is very handy because it is so efficient and brutally effective. I suppose I could use an AHK script instead, but that would probably be forced by the System to wait for a graceful shutdown of Explorer, or something, whereas Lee Whittington's executable code is tried-and-tested and doesn't usually mess about or get blocked by the System.

Sometimes, I feel that Windows 10 is a bit like a ruddy state bureaucracy that perpetuates and protects itself if citizens try to justifiably interfere in or shut down a state department's operation that is failing - it won't easily permit User control under such circumstances. We know where that gets us. RE is like the Epsom Salts for Windows 10.

Having said that, I have searched thewindowsclub.com website, and found that Whittington's software contributions would seem to have been expunged from mention, though an old "contributor profile" of his remains.
I just now got the UWC v1.0.1.0 (2011-11-26) Setup.exe from my Archives and installed it under C:\UTIL\...
That installed without hitch.
UAC is turned OFF on my system, but on your system you might see a warning from Windows when you activate the installer. If that happens, then just click on the "more" button and you should then be given the option to run the installer anyway (I think).
The standalone RE was in the installed folder "Tools". That is the file I am talking about.
I recall that some time back I had not needed UWC as it had become obsolete (left behind by newer Windows versions and other newer/better Windows-tweaking software) - but RE remained uniquely workable and useful. So, I had kept RE on its own and deleted all the other UWC stuff. RE itself doesn't need "installing".

Hope that all makes sense.

[mateek]

IainB  I wish I wasn't writing two weeks worth of legal brief in the next few days...my first...Pro Se.  I'd go searching for the old UWC downloads I probably have somewhere.