Removing app shortcut arrows on the Windows 10 desktop – Complete Steps

If you are somebody who dislikes searching for a particular application on your system by going to the required drive because it is way too time-consuming, you would have probably created a shortcut for it on your desktop. Whenever you want to access that application again, you can do so by going to your desktop and clicking on it. This is how most people in the world access their applications because they find it much simpler to do it this way.

Once you have created your shortcut, you can do a number of things by right-clicking on it. You can open it, sign and encrypt it, extract its contents, pin it to your Start Menu for easier access, rename it, or delete it if you no longer want it on your desktop. You would have also noticed a small arrow on the bottom left hand corner of the shortcut.

How to Removing app shortcut arrows on the Windows 10 desktop
Removing app shortcut Windows 10 Desktop – Complete Steps

In case you have ever wanted to learn how to get rid of that arrow, you have come to the right place. The procedure to do so may be tricky but do not worry as we are here to walk you through it. Please read on to learn more about how this can be done.

Procedure to get rid of shortcut arrows on Windows 10 desktop

We will use the Registry Editor to get rid of the shortcut arrows that are present on your Windows 10 desktop. These are the steps that you have to follow:

  • Right-click on the Windows icon that is present at the bottom left-hand corner of your computer. Once you do so, search for the Registry Editor. Once you have found it, select regedit.
  • The system will ask if you want the application to make changes to your system. You should respond with a Yes to this question.
  • You will have to navigate to a particular location on the Registry Editor. Once the editor is in front of you, click on HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE. Then, click on SOFTWARE under it. Then, click-on the following in the order in which they appear: Microsoft, Windows, CurrentVersion, and Explorer.
  • You will now have to create a key. In order to do this, select Explorer and choose Key under New when the dialog menu is opened to you. You will have to name this as Shell Icons. Press the Enter key once this is done.
  • Go to the right pane of Shell Icons. Once you do this, right-click on any empty space. You will have to select String Value under New. When this is complete, you have to give a value of 29.
  • Once you have done this, select this file. When you do that, you will run into a field called Value data. You will have to search for what you have to enter here online, copy it, and paste it exactly. Select OK after doing this.
  • You can now close the Registry Editor. Once you have done this, you can restart your system or log on and off again. When you return to your desktop, you will see that the arrows on all of your shortcuts will be gone.

Procedure to restore shortcut arrows on Windows 10 desktop

If the user is interested in restoring their shortcut arrows, they can do so by following the steps that are given below:

  • The user will have to right-click on one of the shortcuts and select Properties. Once they do this, they will have to select the Customize option.
  • The user must then find Change Icon under the Customize option and select it.
  • The user will now have access to a bunch of different icons. This will be dependent on the kind of string value that was previously entered when the user wanted to remove the arrow icons.
  • If the user clicks on Large icons under View on an empty part of their desktop, they will be able to see the empty part of their shortcut due to the removal of the arrow.
  • If the user wants to restore the arrow, they will have to go back to the Registry Editor. Once they are there, they will have to right-click on Shell Icons and delete it. There is something that can also be done.
  • The user can double click on the string value(29). They will then have to change the value at the end of the Value data to 264 and press OK.
  • After the values have been changed, the user will have their arrows on the shortcut icons again like before.

Isn’t it interesting how so many steps have to be taken just to get rid of a small arrow and restore it back later? That is one of the most interesting things about getting to work on Windows 10. There are so many amazing things happening below the surface that we do not even know about. Something as simple as clicking on a shortcut and allowing you to change certain parts of it probably took a lot of work for the developers.

They would have worked incredibly hard in order to get everything to work together. In case you ever look at one of the shortcuts on your desk and see the arrow on it, you will be able to understand how to get rid of it and restore it. This is something really cool that you can share with your friends and family. Who knows? They may be surprised to see you do it and want to learn how to do so themselves.

In case you have any doubts about what you read or want to have a discussion with us about the procedures that you read about in the article, please feel free to leave a comment down below. We absolutely love discussions as we believe that it will challenge us all and help us grow. We would like to thank you for spending your time reading this article and hope that the experience of reading it was helpful to you in some way.

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