Windows 10 Icon Gone Missing

TL;DR: The Windows 10 upgrade icon went missing. How do I get it back in order to update my system? I am running Windows 7 SP1.

I woke up this morning... er, noon all excited about Windows 10. I had reserved my copy using the clever little icon in the taskbar a few weeks back, so I thought I would be set to go. I booted my computer and checked the icon to see if it would download the update. It still behaved the same as if Windows 10 wasn't launched yet. I supposed this was normal behaviour. After all, Microsoft can't roll out the update to everyone at once.

Windows Update did want me to install several updates though. I installed KB2952664, KB3064209 and KB3048761. Everything went fine, and I was prompted to restart my system.

After restarting, the icon wasn't there anymore. I tried a lot of solutions including the answers provided by our awesome community on this question, and the answer provided to this question posted on the Microsoft Windows support forums.

How do I get the icon back in order to update my system?

UPDATES:

Installing from the Media Creation Tool does not working with an error "Something Happened" with as description "Something Happened". Both are translated from Dutch.
I tried to install it from the Media Creation Tool using PowerISO to mount the created ISO. It will not accept my product key, even though I am able to verify my Windows installation is already registered and the product key is correct.
I looked into the Event Log, and GWX-Ins has a bunch of error messages saying: Error message: GWX Main: App failed to start hresult. After that it says what is roughly translated to English as "Cannot find the element".

Jeroen

Posted 2015-07-29T13:40:39.840

Reputation: 1 787

Most notably, the step of running "ReserveWin10.cmd" doesn't take 10-20 minutes to run, but more like 10-20 milliseconds. It appears to exit successfully. – Jeroen – 2015-07-29T13:51:30.423

Why don't you just use the .ISO? You don't need the icon to upgrade to Windows 10.

– Ramhound – 2015-07-29T13:55:24.607

@Ramhound Because I do not have a USB sized 4GB, nor do I have a disk sized 4GB. – Jeroen – 2015-07-29T13:56:02.853

The download tool will allow you to perform the upgrade itself. – Ramhound – 2015-07-29T13:56:33.817

@Ramhound I tried that, but that doesn't do anything. I thought I just misinterpreted the meaning of the button, but there you go. – Jeroen – 2015-07-29T13:57:33.293

1I just checked again, it simply exists after 2 seconds or so with the message "Something happened." (in Dutch). It says this twice actually. – Jeroen – 2015-07-29T13:58:39.703

Feel free to update your question. After you do that uninstall those 3 updates you just installed. Verify the Get Windows 10 executable still exists on your computer. – Ramhound – 2015-07-29T14:01:21.833

2Use some kind of virtual drive software to mount the ISO. :) – Tamara Wijsman – 2015-07-29T14:02:42.270

@TomWijsman Trying that now. – Jeroen – 2015-07-29T14:15:32.073

@TomWijsman I tried installing with the ISO, but Windows complains about the product key not being valid. I can confirm it is valid however by re-confirming my product key with the "SLUI" tool. Is it possibly I picked the wrong version of the Operating System? I chose the Home N version with the English language. I have a registered Windows 7 SP1 Home Premium installed atm. – Jeroen – 2015-07-29T14:51:17.603

1If you are being prompted for a product key, then you have selected the wrong option in the download tool, you must perform a in-place upgrade first in order to be able to activate the Window 10 installation. You could in theory just skip entering the product key, of course if you did that, your installation could not be activated. The Windows 10 installer will only accept Windows 10 license keys. – Ramhound – 2015-07-29T15:08:10.790

@Ramhound An in-place installation doesn't work. It gives the vague error as described before. Skipping the product key doesn't work. – Jeroen – 2015-07-29T17:47:19.447

What do you mean "doesn't work" with regards to skipping the product key? – Ramhound – 2015-07-29T18:25:10.060

@Ramhound There is no skip button. Only a greyed out "Next" button presumably waiting for me to successfully type in my product key. – Jeroen – 2015-07-29T18:34:32.203

Found an error in the Event Log. See latest update! ^ – Jeroen – 2015-07-29T19:06:10.643

Does the upgrade require the icon? Couldn't you use the tool/iso that has been released? See @JeroenBollen's answer. – MC10 – 2015-07-29T20:50:57.597

Did you reserve Windows 10 before July 29th. I asked because I did NOT reserve it and my icon is gone, but this is only on a machine, that was having updates installed on it. A virtual machine that hast not been turned on in a week had the icon. I do see the "Windows 10 is coming soon" within Windows Update @ Control Panel\All Control Panel Items\Windows Update though – Ramhound – 2015-07-30T03:20:57.860

@Ramhound I did reserve it before July 29th. – Jeroen – 2015-07-30T09:05:39.427

Answers

I managed to install Windows 10 by using this tool by Microsoft, and creating a bootable medium.

When you need to select your version of Windows 10, do not select the N version and make sure the language matches.

Jeroen

Posted 2015-07-29T13:40:39.840

Reputation: 1 787

Your notification will reappear eventually, but it may not be today, or tomorrow, or the next day...

I came across this announcement today when I viewed this old Windows 8 forum post, and I dare say it is showing in various other places:

Reg Edit

Posted 2015-07-29T13:40:39.840

Reputation: 1 930

I saw that announcement too. For other people the notification is still there though, just not updated. – Jeroen – 2015-07-29T21:01:56.813

The icon disapered for me too but i did find a solution. On the update windows in parameter you should see a link "more detail" or something like that. When you click on it you should see the windows 10 update in grey, then clicked on the "detail" link on the right and you will be able to launch the update by choosing executing from desktop.

P.S : this was possible on my 8.1 Pro N but not on my 8.1 Home N. Don't know why.

Sir_Glancelot_du_Lag

Posted 2015-07-29T13:40:39.840

Reputation: 11

Unsure where you want me to look. Inside Windows Update I have a "history" view, if that's what you mean? – Jeroen – 2015-07-29T18:05:10.173

This answer is a "me too" answer. It does t even attempt to answer your question – Ramhound – 2015-07-29T18:24:31.867

1@JeroenBollen On my seven Windows it was where you can select optional update. – Sir_Glancelot_du_Lag – 2015-07-29T18:28:32.180

@BinaryOverride No optional updates available. – Jeroen – 2015-07-29T18:33:27.483

1@Ramhound He said he had the error too, but managed to fix it. – Jeroen – 2015-07-29T18:48:42.937

The process of this upgrade program is GWX.exe. I suggest that you try fire it up. Open
C:\Windows\System32\GWX and run GWX.exe (try as administrator if that doesn't do the trick).

$C:\Windows\System32\GWX$

Nadav S.

Posted 2015-07-29T13:40:39.840

Reputation: 73

1This doesn't do anything. No windows open. Doesn't work from the command line either. – Jeroen – 2015-07-29T17:45:51.813

@JeroenBollen if you go to Windows Update, do you see the blue "Windows 10 is coming soon" notification? – Nadav S. – 2015-07-29T18:01:09.717

No, I don't see anything unusual. – Jeroen – 2015-07-29T18:02:58.290

@JeroenBollen then check installed updates (type "in up" in the start menu & hit Enter) for KB3035583, uninstall, and reinstall it. see KB3035583.

– Nadav S. – 2015-07-29T18:10:49.667

Successfully deleted and reinstalled the update. Nothing changed. I also ran the GWX trigger in the Windows Task Scheduler. – Jeroen – 2015-07-29T18:44:12.537

Well... I have no idea. But try to fully restart your computer right now before ruining the newly installed update – Nadav S. – 2015-07-29T18:48:15.633

I did this right after installing it. – Jeroen – 2015-07-29T18:55:15.667