Desktop Icon Backup Manager — Save, Restore & Manage Windows Desktop Icon Positions

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Quick Overview

Desktop Icon Backup Manager is the most feature-complete, free, open-source tool for saving and restoring desktop icon positions on Windows 7, 8, 10, and 11. It's the only solution offering a live visual diff preview before restoration, automatic adaptive scaling for resolution changes, comprehensive multi-monitor support, and full command-line automation — packaged in a single portable .exe requiring no installation.

TL;DR: Windows keeps rearranging your desktop icons without warning. This tool saves your exact layout and restores it instantly—with a color-coded preview showing exactly what will change. Free. Open Source. Portable. No installation needed.

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Does Your Desktop Icon Layout Keep Changing? You're Not Alone

Windows has had a well-documented bug since Windows 7 that persists through Windows 11 (including the latest 25H2 version): desktop icons spontaneously rearrange themselves without user action. This frustrating issue affects millions of Windows users daily.

Common Triggers for Desktop Icon Rearrangement:

• 🔄 After Windows Updates — Icons reset to the left side, auto-sort alphabetically, or redistribute randomly
• 🖥️ After Connecting/Disconnecting External Monitors — Entire layout collapses onto the primary display when external monitors are disconnected
• 🎮 After Playing Full-Screen Games — Games change resolution on launch/exit, causing Windows to scramble all icon positions
• 💤 After Sleep, Hibernation, or Lock Screen — Icons shift position, especially along the right edge of the desktop
• 🔌 After Changing Screen Resolution or DPI — Icons pile up in the top-left corner or become inaccessible
• 📺 After Switching Between Displays — Moving from laptop screen to external TV or projector completely disrupts the layout
• 🔁 After System Reboot — Windows ignores carefully arranged positions and auto-arranges instead

Desktop Icon Backup Manager is the definitive solution. Save your perfect desktop layout in one click. Restore it in seconds whenever Windows moves icons around—and see a color-coded preview of every change before you commit.

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📖 Complete Documentation

Complete documentation, tutorial videos, and advanced guides are available in the Desktop Icon Backup Manager User Manual (PDF)

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Why Desktop Icon Backup Manager Stands Apart

While other icon layout tools simply save coordinates and restore them, Desktop Icon Backup Manager goes far beyond basic functionality with advanced features you won't find in competing tools.

🔍 Live Diff Preview — A Unique Feature

Before restoring any backup, you see a real-time, color-coded visual overlay showing exactly which icons will move, which are already in the correct position, and which exist in the backup but are missing from your current desktop.

No other free Windows desktop icon tool offers this feature. You always know precisely what will happen before clicking Restore—eliminating surprises and accidental icon movement.

Color Legend:

Indicator	Meaning
🔵 Blue (soft halo)	Already in correct position — will not move
🟠 Orange → 🔴 Red	Will move — orange shows current position, red shows saved destination
🟢 Green	Exists in backup but not currently on desktop — will be skipped

🔄 Adaptive Scaling for Resolution Changes

Restoring a backup from a 1920×1080 monitor onto a 2560×1440 display? Icon positions are automatically recalculated proportionally, so they land in the correct area of your new screen. Icons no longer pile up in corners when resolution changes—this includes DPI scaling differences.

Works seamlessly across:

• Different resolution changes (1080p ↔ 1440p ↔ 4K)
• DPI scaling differences (100% ↔ 125% ↔ 150%)
• Multiple monitor configurations

⚖️ Compare Any Two Backups

Go beyond "current vs. latest backup." Compare any two saved layouts side-by-side to see exactly which icons were added, removed, or repositioned between snapshots. Track how your desktop evolved over time, or choose the best snapshot from multiple old backups.

🖥️ Multi-Monitor Awareness & Configuration Detection

Every backup records complete monitor configuration: count, resolution, and physical arrangement. When restoring on a different setup, the app warns you automatically before proceeding.

Create named backups for each configuration:

• Laptop Only — for standalone laptop use
• Office Dock — for docked configuration with external monitors
• Home Dual Monitor — for home office setup
• Switch between configurations instantly with a single click

⚡ Full Command-Line Automation

Run backup and restore operations silently from the command line, Windows Task Scheduler, login scripts, or batch files with no GUI. Schedule automatic desktop icon backups at Windows login—your layout is always safe without manual intervention.

# Silent backup to background
desktop-icon-backup-manager.exe --backup --silent

# Silent restore of latest layout
desktop-icon-backup-manager.exe --restore latest --silent

🔓 Completely Open Source (MIT Licensed)

Every line of code is publicly available on GitHub under the MIT license—auditable, transparent, and forkable. No telemetry, no ads, no accounts, no cloud services. Your backup files are plain JSON text—human-readable and portable between machines.

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Complete Feature List

Core Features — Save & Restore Desktop Icon Layouts

• 💾 One-Click Quick Backup — Save entire desktop icon layout instantly with optional descriptive tag (Before Windows Update, Dual Monitor Setup, etc.)
• ↺ One-Click Restore — Restore icon positions from the latest backup or pick any snapshot from your backup history
• 🏷️ Custom Tags & Descriptions — Label each backup with meaningful names for easy identification and organization
• 📋 Quick-Access Profiles Dropdown — 14 pre-made profile names for instant tagging:
  • Work, Gaming, Presentation, Dev/Coding, Meeting, Home, Office, Laptop, Docked/External Monitor, Clean Desktop, Pre-Update, Pre-Reboot, Favourite, Test
  • One-click selection pre-fills the tag field; edit further if needed
• 📊 Complete Metadata Tracking — Every backup records screen resolution, DPI scaling, monitor count, and arrangement

Advanced Features — What Sets This Tool Apart

• 🔍 Live Diff Preview — Real-time color-coded overlay showing exactly what will move before restore (unique feature)
• 🖼️ Visual Dot-Map Layout Preview — Mini-map visualization of all icon positions with hover tooltips
• 🔄 Adaptive Scaling — Proportional position recalculation when restoring to different resolution or DPI (unique feature)
• 🖥️ Multi-Monitor Full Support — Save/restore across any monitor configuration with automatic mismatch warnings
• 👁️ Show/Hide Desktop Icons — Quickly toggle visibility of all desktop icons (Ctrl+H shortcut) without affecting backup data — useful for clean desktop screenshots, presentations, or focus mode
• ⏱️ Auto-Hide Desktop Icons — Automatically hide desktop icons after a configurable delay (30 seconds to 30 minutes preset, or custom minutes + seconds up to 60 min 59 sec). Optional automatic backup before hiding. Timer resets when icons are shown again. Live countdown visible in system tray tooltip
• ⚖️ Backup Comparison Tool — Diff any two saved layouts side-by-side (unique feature)
• ✏️ Inline Tag Editing — Double-click backup tags in the table to rename instantly—no dialog boxes
• 📤 Export Backups — Export selected or all backups to ZIP archive or folder for backup, sharing, or off-site storage
• 📥 Import Backups — Import .json backup files or ZIP archives from other machines—duplicates safely skipped
• 🗑️ Smart Auto-Cleanup — Automatically manage backup count (keep 5, 10, 25, 50, or unlimited most recent)
• 📊 Statistics Dashboard — Visual overview of your backup history: total backups, restores, saves, disk usage, backups per month chart, top resolutions, most moved icons ranking, and activity summary
• ⚡ System Tray Integration — Save or restore silently from taskbar tray icon without opening main window

Automation & Command-Line (CLI) Features

• Auto-Save on Exit — Automatically backup desktop icon positions every time the application closes
• Auto-Restore on Startup — Automatically restore latest layout every time Windows starts
• 🔔 Automatic Update Checker — Check GitHub for new versions at startup with one-click download; also available manually via Help menu
• Command Line Interface (CLI) — Full --backup, --restore, --silent support for scripting, Task Scheduler, and batch automation
• Non-Blocking Threads — Save/restore operations never freeze the UI; live progress indicator always visible

Usability & User Experience

• 📋 Sortable & Filterable Backup Table — Sort backups by tag, resolution, icon count, or timestamp; real-time search filtering
• 🎨 Color-Coded Tag Bar — Each unique tag gets a distinct color indicator on the left edge of backup rows—consistent tags always show same color for instant visual recognition
• ↔️ Fully Resizable Windows — All windows adapt to any screen size, resolution, or DPI scaling
• 🌍 26 Language Support — Auto-detected from Windows locale, manually selectable:
  • Arabic, Chinese (Simplified), Chinese (Traditional), Czech, Danish, Dutch, English, Finnish, French, German, Greek, Hindi, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Norwegian Bokmål, Polish, Portuguese (Brazil), Portuguese (Portugal), Romanian, Russian, Slovenian, Spanish, Swedish, Turkish, Ukrainian
• ⌨️ Full Keyboard Navigation — All features accessible via keyboard shortcuts (see shortcuts table below)
• 📋 Timestamped Activity Log — Complete operation history with timestamps; copy with Ctrl+A/Ctrl+C
• 🗒️ Persistent Log File — Every operation silently logged to history.log (max 500 entries, auto-trimmed)
• ✅ Confirmation Dialogs — Always confirms before overwrite or delete—no accidents

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Comparison: Desktop Icon Backup Manager vs Competitors

Desktop Icon Backup Manager is the most comprehensive solution. Here's how it compares to other available tools:

Feature	Desktop Icon Backup Manager	ReIcon (Sordum)	DesktopOK	Windows Built-in
Save icon positions	✅	✅	✅	❌
Restore icon positions	✅	✅	✅	❌
Live visual diff preview	✅	❌	❌	❌
Visual dot-map preview	✅	❌	❌	❌
Compare any two backups	✅	❌	❌	❌
Inline tag editing	✅	❌	❌	❌
Color-coded tag indicators	✅	❌	❌	❌
Export/Import backups (ZIP & folder)	✅	❌	❌	❌
Adaptive scaling (resolution changes)	✅	✅	❌	❌
Multi-monitor support	✅	✅	✅	❌
CLI/Task Scheduler automation	✅	✅	❌	❌
Backup search & filtering	✅	❌	❌	❌
Auto-save on exit	✅	⚠️ partial	✅	❌
Auto-restore on startup	✅	⚠️ via shortcut	✅	❌
Automatic update checker	✅	❌	❌	❌
System tray integration	✅	✅	✅	❌
Auto-hide desktop icons with timer	✅	❌	❌	❌
Statistics dashboard	✅	❌	❌	❌
Open source (MIT license)	✅	❌	❌	—
Portable executable	✅	✅	✅	—
Windows 11 25H2 support	✅	✅	⚠️	—
Multi-language UI	✅	❌	✅	—
Free forever	✅	✅	✅	—

Why the Differences Matter:

• ReIcon is lightweight with CLI support but lacks visual previews, backup comparison, and search functionality
• DesktopOK is the oldest tool in this space but is closed-source, lacks CLI, offers no diff preview, and receives infrequent Windows 11 updates
• Desktop Icon Backup Manager is the only solution with live visual diff previews, cross-backup comparison, and an auditable open-source codebase

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System Requirements

• Windows Versions: Windows 7, 8, 10, or 11 (32-bit and 64-bit, including latest 25H2)
• Python: 3.8+ only required if running from source code; the .exe has zero external dependencies
• Desktop Icons: Must be visible (Right-click desktop → View → enable Show desktop icons)
• Permissions: No administrator rights required—runs as standard user

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Getting Started — Installation & Setup

Option 1: Download Pre-Built Executable (Recommended)

No installation. No Python. No dependencies. Download, extract, and run.

1. Visit the Releases page
2. Download the latest release (desktop-icon-backup-manager_v*.zip)
   • The ZIP contains the Windows executable and the PDF user manual
3. Extract to any folder (e.g., C:\Tools\Desktop Icon Backup Manager\)
4. Run Desktop Icon Backup Manager.exe
5. The icon_backups folder and settings.ini are created automatically on first run

Syncing Across Multiple PCs with OneDrive (Advanced):

• Create a folder in OneDrive: C:\Users\YourName\OneDrive\DIBM\
• Extract the ZIP into that OneDrive folder
• The icon_backups and settings.ini files automatically sync across all your Windows PCs
• Run the .exe from that OneDrive folder on each machine
• ⚠️ Avoid running simultaneously on multiple PCs to prevent file conflicts

Option 2: Run from Source Code (Python)

git clone https://github.com/mapi68/desktop-icon-backup-manager.git
cd desktop-icon-backup-manager
pip install -r requirements.txt
python main.py

Required Python Libraries:

• PyQt6 — GUI framework
• pywin32 — Windows API access

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How to Use — Step-by-Step Guide

Saving Your Desktop Icon Layout

1. (Optional) Type a descriptive tag in the text field—examples:

   • Before Windows Update
   • Work Setup — Dual Monitors
   • Gaming Configuration
   • Leave blank for default Quick Backup label

2. Alternative: Click the 📋 Profiles dropdown to the right of the tag field

   • Choose one of 14 pre-made names (Work, Gaming, Presentation, Dev/Coding, Meeting, Home, Office, Laptop, Docked/External Monitor, Clean Desktop, Pre-Update, Pre-Reboot, Favourite, Test)
   • The selected name is instantly copied into the tag field
   • Edit further if needed, then save

3. Click 💾 SAVE QUICK BACKUP button or press Ctrl+S

Result: A compact JSON snapshot (2–10 KB) containing all icon positions and screen metadata is saved to the icon_backups folder.

Note: Pressing Ctrl+S always tags the backup as "Quick Backup (Shortcut)". Use the button instead to save with custom tags.

Restoring Your Desktop Icons

Quick Restore (Latest Backup):

• Click ↺ RESTORE LATEST button
• Confirm the action in the dialog
• Icon positions are instantly restored to the saved layout

Full Control (Choose Specific Backup):

1. Click ↺ BACKUP MANAGER button (or press Ctrl+M)
2. Browse your backup history, search by tag, or filter by resolution
3. Preview the Live Diff — see exactly which icons will move (orange → red), stay (blue), or be skipped (green)
4. Click ↺ Restore to apply the selected layout

Editing Backup Tags

In the Backup Manager window:

1. Double-click any tag in the first column of the backup table
2. Edit the text inline — type your new description
3. Press Enter to save or Escape to cancel
4. Changes are immediately written to the backup file

Note: Double-clicking other columns (Resolution, Icon Count, Timestamp) opens the restore dialog as usual.

Exporting Backups (Backup, Share, or Archive)

1. Open ↺ BACKUP MANAGER (press Ctrl+M)
2. Select backups to export (or select all)
3. Click 📤 Export Backups... button (or use File → 📤 Export Backups...)
4. Choose export format:
   • ZIP Archive — Single .zip file containing all selected backups
   • Folder — Copy .json files to a destination folder of your choice
5. Confirm location and export
6. Success message shows how many backups were exported

Importing Backups (Restore from Another PC)

1. Open ↺ BACKUP MANAGER (press Ctrl+M)
2. Click 📥 Import Backups... button (or use File → 📥 Import Backups...)
3. Select files: Choose one or more .json backup files and/or .zip archives
4. The importer validates each file before importing
5. Duplicate handling: Files that already exist in icon_backups are automatically skipped (never overwritten)
6. Summary dialog shows: ✓ imported, ⏭️ skipped (already exist), and any errors

Command-Line Automation (Advanced)

Silent backup and restore for scripts, Task Scheduler, and batch files:

# Silent backup — no window, exits immediately
desktop-icon-backup-manager.exe --backup --silent

# Restore the most recent layout silently
desktop-icon-backup-manager.exe --restore latest --silent

# Restore a specific saved layout by filename
desktop-icon-backup-manager.exe --restore "1920x1080_20241211_143015.json" --silent

Exit Codes: 0 = success, 1 = error

Automatic Backup at Windows Login (Using Task Scheduler):

1. Open Windows Task Scheduler (search from Start menu)
2. Create → Create Basic Task
3. Name: Desktop Icon Auto-Backup
4. Trigger: Select "When I log on"
5. Action: Start a program
   • Program: C:\Path\To\desktop-icon-backup-manager.exe
   • Arguments: --backup --silent
6. Click Finish
7. From now on: Your desktop icon layout is automatically backed up every time you log in

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Settings Reference & Configuration

Available Settings

Setting	Description	Default
Start Minimized to Tray	Launch application hidden with zero visual footprint; access via tray icon	false
Auto-Save on Exit	Automatically back up desktop icons every time the application closes	false
Auto-Restore on Startup	Automatically restore the latest icon layout every time Windows starts	false
Enable Adaptive Scaling	Recalculate icon positions proportionally when restoring to different resolution	false
Minimize to Tray on Close	Clicking the close (X) button hides to tray instead of quitting	false
Check for Updates on Startup	Automatically check GitHub for new version 10 seconds after launch	true
Auto-Cleanup Limit	Auto-delete oldest backups—keep 5, 10, 25, 50, or unlimited	0 (unlimited)
Auto-Hide Desktop Icons	Automatically hide icons after a configurable delay	false
Auto-Hide Interval	Timer duration before hiding (preset or custom minutes + seconds)	300 (5 minutes)
Backup Before Auto-Hide	Create an automatic backup before the auto-hide timer hides icons	true

Configuration File (settings.ini)

Settings are stored in settings.ini alongside the executable. Automatically created on first run. Edit with any text editor:

[General]
start_minimized=false
auto_save_on_exit=false
auto_restore_on_startup=false
check_updates_on_startup=true
adaptive_scaling_enabled=false
close_to_tray=false
cleanup_limit=0
autohide_enabled=false
autohide_seconds=300
autohide_backup_before_hide=true
geometry=@Rect(100 100 800 650)

[Statistics]
total_restores_performed=0
total_saves_performed=0
total_scrambles=0

Invalid values automatically reset to defaults on next launch.

⚠️ Warning: Enabling both Auto-Save on Exit and Auto-Restore on Startup creates a cycle where any layout—even a broken one—gets saved and restored. If icons are already misaligned, use the Backup Manager to restore a known-good snapshot first.

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Keyboard Shortcuts

Quick reference for all keyboard commands:

Shortcut	Action
Ctrl+S	Save quick backup
Ctrl+M	Open Backup Manager
Ctrl+H	Show/Hide Desktop Icons
Ctrl+,	Open Settings
Ctrl+Q	Exit application
F1	Open Online User Manual

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Backup File Format & Structure

Backups are stored as human-readable JSON text files in the icon_backups subfolder:

Filename Format: {width}x{height}_{YYYYMMDD}_{HHMMSS}.json

Example: 1920x1080_20241211_143015.json

File Structure Example:

{
    "timestamp": "2024-12-11T14:30:15.123456",
    "icon_count": 12,
    "description": "Work Setup — Dual Monitors",
    "display_metadata": {
        "monitor_count": 2,
        "primary_resolution": "1920x1080",
        "screens": [...]
    },
    "icons": {
        "This PC": [100, 200],
        "Recycle Bin": [100, 350],
        "Documents": [200, 200],
        "Downloads": [200, 350]
    }
}

Why JSON Format?

• Plain text — human-readable and auditable
• Portable — copy between machines easily
• Compact — 50 backups take less than 500 KB of storage
• Compatible — open with any text editor

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Frequently Asked Questions

General Questions

Can I rename a backup tag after saving? Yes — in the Backup Manager, double-click the tag cell in the first column to edit it directly in the table. Changes are saved to the .json file immediately.

What are Profiles and how do I use them? Profiles is a dropdown menu next to the tag field containing 14 pre-made names (Work, Gaming, Presentation, Dev/Coding, Meeting, Home, Office, Laptop, Docked/External Monitor, Clean Desktop, Pre-Update, Pre-Reboot, Favourite, Test) to help you tag backups consistently. Select one and the name is instantly copied into the tag field—edit further if needed before saving. All profile names are fully translated to 26 supported languages.

Can I transfer backups to another PC? Yes — use 📤 Export Backups... in the Backup Manager to package backups as a ZIP archive or copy to a folder. On the target machine, use 📥 Import Backups... to bring them in. Existing files are automatically skipped to prevent overwriting.

Windows Issues & Troubleshooting

Why do my desktop icons keep moving in Windows 11? This is a long-standing Windows bug that Microsoft has never fixed—it affects Windows 7, 10, and 11 (including 25H2). Windows silently changes screen resolution when you connect a monitor, start a game, wake from sleep, or install updates, causing icons to rearrange. Desktop Icon Backup Manager solves this by saving your layout and restoring it with one click whenever Windows moves icons.

How do I prevent Windows from rearranging desktop icons? There is no built-in Windows setting that permanently prevents icon rearrangement. The most reliable solution is Desktop Icon Backup Manager: save your layout, restore it with one click after Windows moves things. Enable Auto-Restore on Startup to restore your layout automatically every Windows boot—no manual rearrangement ever needed again.

My desktop icons moved after a Windows Update—how do I recover them?

1. Open Desktop Icon Backup Manager
2. Click Backup Manager (or press Ctrl+M)
3. Look for the backup created before the update (check timestamps)
4. Click ↺ Restore
5. If Auto-Save on Exit was enabled, a backup was automatically created when you last closed the app

I want to preview what will change before restoring—how? This is a standout feature. Select any backup in the Backup Manager and the live diff preview shows instantly:

• Blue icons — Already in correct position, won't move
• Orange → Red arrows — Will move (orange = current, red = destination)
• Green icons — In backup but not on desktop, will be skipped

Multi-Monitor & Resolution Questions

Can I restore my icons after connecting an external monitor? Yes — the app fully supports multi-monitor setups and saves positions across all displays. It warns you if monitor count differs from the backup. Enable Adaptive Scaling if resolution differs.

Does Adaptive Scaling work between very different resolutions (1080p to 4K)? Yes — the algorithm proportionally recalculates every icon position to fit new dimensions, so icons land in the correct area rather than piling up in corners.

How do I manage multiple monitor configurations? Create separate named backups for each:

• Laptop Only — standalone laptop
• Office Docked — with external monitors
• Home TV Setup — with TV as secondary display Then switch between them instantly with one click.

Feature & Technical Questions

Is Desktop Icon Backup Manager truly free? Completely free, forever, MIT licensed. No ads, no telemetry, no required accounts, no nag screens. Source code is on GitHub for inspection and contribution.

Will antivirus software flag the .exe? Some antivirus tools flag programs that interact with Windows Explorer's memory, even when using only standard Win32 API calls—the same ones Windows uses internally. If flagged, add the .exe to your whitelist. Full source code is available on GitHub for independent verification.

How does Desktop Icon Backup Manager compare to ReIcon and DesktopOK? All three tools save and restore desktop icon positions. Desktop Icon Backup Manager uniquely offers:

• Live diff preview — see exactly which icons will move
• Cross-backup comparison — diff any two saved layouts
• Visual layout preview — mini-map of all icon positions
• Open-source MIT-licensed code — fully auditable

See the detailed comparison table above for complete details.

Does the program check for updates automatically? Yes — by default, the program checks GitHub for new versions 10 seconds after startup. If found, a tray notification appears and a log entry is added. You can manually check anytime via Help → Check for Updates. Clicking "Download Update" opens the releases page. Disable via Settings → Check for Updates on Startup.

Can I automate desktop icon backups with Windows Task Scheduler? Yes — use desktop-icon-backup-manager.exe --backup --silent. The process runs in the background, saves your layout, and exits immediately. Set as a login trigger in Task Scheduler for fully automatic, zero-effort backups. See the Command-Line Automation section for detailed instructions.

Where are backup files stored? Can I move them? In the icon_backups subfolder next to the .exe. Files are plain JSON—you can copy them to another machine or store in a cloud-synced folder. Filenames include resolution and timestamp for easy identification.

Does it work on older Windows versions? Yes — Desktop Icon Backup Manager is fully compatible with Windows 7, 8, 10, and 11 (including 25H2), both 32-bit and 64-bit.

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Troubleshooting Guide

Desktop Icons Not Visible or Inaccessible

Error Message: "Unable to find desktop ListView control"

Cause: Desktop icons are hidden or the ListView control is inaccessible.

Solutions:

1. Right-click desktop → View → enable Show desktop icons
2. Restart Windows Explorer:
   • Press Ctrl+Shift+Esc to open Task Manager
   • Right-click Windows Explorer → Restart
3. Check for third-party desktop replacements (e.g., Stardock Fences) that might be interfering
4. Try running Desktop Icon Backup Manager as Administrator

Icons Restore to Wrong Positions or Pile Up

Cause: Resolution or monitor configuration differs from when backup was saved.

Solutions:

1. Enable Adaptive Scaling:
   • Open Settings (Ctrl+,)
   • Check Enable Adaptive Scaling on Restore
   • This proportionally recalculates positions for new resolution
2. Confirm monitor configuration:
   • Verify the same monitors are connected
   • Check they're in the same physical arrangement as when backup was created
3. Create configuration-specific backups:
   • Save separate backups for each setup: Laptop Only, Office Dock, Home TV
   • Switch between them based on your current configuration

Program Flagged by Antivirus

Cause: The app uses standard Win32 API calls to read/write icon positions—the same method Windows Explorer uses. Some antivirus heuristics flag this activity.

Solution:

1. Add the .exe to your antivirus whitelist/exclusions
2. Visit the GitHub repository for full source code inspection
3. Build from source if you prefer to verify the code yourself

Settings Not Saved After Restart

Cause: Application was force-closed instead of properly exiting.

Solutions:

1. Always close via File → Exit or press Ctrl+Q
2. Avoid force-killing via Task Manager—this skips the settings save routine
3. Verify settings.ini is writable:
   • The folder must not be read-only
   • The folder must not be inside Program Files (requires admin to write)
   • Try moving to C:\Tools\ or your user folder

Application Won't Start

Causes & Solutions:

1. Another instance is running:
   • Check system tray for existing icon
   • Close existing instance before launching again
2. Corrupt settings file:
   • Delete settings.ini to reset to defaults
   • Application will recreate it on next launch
3. Corrupt backup causes startup crash:
   • Manually edit settings.ini
   • Set auto_restore_on_startup=false
   • Restart application
   • Fix or delete the corrupt backup
   • Re-enable auto-restore if desired

Multi-Monitor Layout Incorrect After Restore

Cause: Different number of monitors or arrangement than when backup was saved.

Solutions:

1. Enable Adaptive Scaling:
   • This automatically adjusts positions for different configurations
2. Maintain separate backups per setup:
   • Create named backups for each configuration
   • Example: 1Monitor, 2Monitors_DualDock, 3Monitors_Home
3. Check warning dialogs:
   • App shows warnings if monitor count differs
   • Review the diff preview before confirming restore

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Acknowledgments & Credits

Desktop Icon Backup Manager is built on the shoulders of excellent open-source projects:

• PyQt6 — Modern cross-platform GUI framework
• pywin32 — Windows API bindings for Python

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Screenshots Gallery

Main Window — Save & Restore Desktop Icons

Main window interface — quickly save or restore your desktop icon layout with one click

Backup Manager — Browse, Search & Preview Layouts

Backup Manager — browse your entire backup history, search by tag, and preview changes with live diff visualization

Splash Screen on Launch

Clean splash screen appears on application launch

Dark Mode with Multi-Language Support

Dark mode with full multi-language support (shown in Italian) — supports 26 languages

Backup Comparison Results

Comparison Results — see exactly which icons were added (green), removed (red), or moved (yellow) between any two saved layouts

Restore Confirmation Dialog

Confirmation dialog — always confirms before applying changes to prevent accidental icon movement

Statistics Dashboard

Statistics Dashboard — visual overview of total backups, restores, saves, disk usage, backups per month, top resolutions, and most moved icons

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Related Resources & Further Reading

• Windows Desktop Icon Troubleshooting Guide — Official Microsoft support documentation
• How to Fix Desktop Icons Rearranging — Comprehensive troubleshooting guides
• PyQt6 Documentation — GUI framework documentation
• Windows API Reference — Complete Windows API documentation

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License & Legal Information

Desktop Icon Backup Manager is released under the MIT License, one of the most permissive open-source licenses available.

You are free to:

• Use the software for any purpose, commercial or personal
• Modify the source code
• Distribute the software
• Use the software privately

You must:

• Include a copy of the license
• Include a copyright notice

See the full license: MIT License