Forum Discussion

Steve Gillott's avatar
Steve Gillott
Copper Contributor
May 04, 2017

Windows 10 Start Menu

Windows 10 works really well in the BYOD space, but the predominant model of usage in U.K. Schools is still shared desktops and will be for some time. We'd love to have a start menu that could be applied consistently, and be reliable in those deployment scenarios. We see a lot of either start menu being blank, or nothing happening when shortcuts in the menu are clicked on, or just crashing needing a restart to correct. Are there any plans for the start menu?
windows
Windows 10
  • Nathan Mercer's avatar
    Nathan Mercer
    Steel Contributor
    May 04, 2017
    we have a great TechNet Virtual Lab that lets you play for configuring the Windows 10 start menu. https://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/mt796467

    There is a Start Menu troubleshooter you can run. You should also check you have the latest Quality Updates installed. and look into issues with 3rd party software causing Start Menu problems.
    • Michael Andrews's avatar
      Michael Andrews
      Copper Contributor
      Jun 22, 2017

      Hi. I see references to a downloadable Windows 10 Start Menu Troubleshooter, but I have had no joy trying to find this file. If it is still available, I would be grateful for a URL; if it is not available, I would be grateful to see the references to it deleted or marked "No Longer Available".

       

      Thanks.

  • Michael Niehaus's avatar
    Michael Niehaus
    Icon for Microsoft rankMicrosoft
    May 04, 2017

    We would recommend using the Start screen control group policy for specifying the layout that should be used on machines.  This can be completely locked (no users can make changes) or partially locked (a few fixed groups, but users can create new groups and pin their own items into those).

     

    Some of the earlier releases had Start menu reliability issues (in some cases tied into overly-aggressive security software), but the behavior has been pretty stable with the most recent ones.  If you are still seeing issues like this, please open a support case.

     

    • Sean Hasling's avatar
      Sean Hasling
      Brass Contributor
      Jun 10, 2017

      I wasn't here during this discussion, but I am surprised that provisioning packages weren't mentioned. These certainly have the ability to provide your users a consistent Start Menu experience.