If you have recently updated your Windows 11/10 computer and then found that all the Desktop icons had moved from the Primary Monitor to the Secondary Monitor, here is a simple suggestion that will help you bring back all the icons where they were.
It could happen because of the wrong cable setup. Generally, Graphics cards give HDMI cable/port the first preference, DVI-D cable/port the second preference and VGA cable/port the third preference. If you have used the wrong cable to power the wrongly placed monitor, you may face the same problem after each major Windows upgrade. You can then either replace your monitors or make this change in Windows Settings to get things done.
Desktop icons moved from Primary Monitor to Secondary Monitor
If the Desktop icons are not on the Primary monitor (Monitor 1), but instead are moving to the Secondary monitor (Monitor 2) on a Dual-monitor setup, here is what you need to do to make the desktop icons display correctly on your Windows computer.
You need to set Monitor 1 as a primary display if you want to get all the icons on monitor 1.
Windows 11
- Open Windows 11 Settings
- Select System settings > Display.
- Select the monitor where you want to get the icons and scroll down until you get Multiple displays option.
- You will see a checkbox labeled Make this my main display.
- Select the checkbox.
Related: Desktop icons move randomly when connected to an External Monitor
Windows 10
- Open Windows Settings and go to System > Display.
- Select the monitor where you want to get the icons and scroll down until you get Multiple displays option.
- Here, you should find a checkbox labeled Make this my main display.
- Select the checkbox.
That’s all! Now you will find all the icons on your primary display.
Related: How to duplicate Desktop Icons on Multiple Monitors in Windows
NOTE: Please read the comments below for some additional tips. This helped some – Go to Display settings, Themes, under related settings, click on Desktop Icon Settings (or just search for it in the display settings). Click on Computer then Apply. If it doesn’t work uncheck it click Apply. And then this helped some – Uncheck the Show taskbar on all display option.
Read next: How to set up Dual Monitors on Windows.
