Windows 10 1903 Start Menu Problems Persist Despite KB4522355 'Fix'
Microsoft has attempted several times to fix a Start menu problem in Windows 10 build 1903 (May 2019 Update), the latest effort coming as part of the most recent cumulative update, KB4522355. Unfortunately, affected users report the issue persists even after applying the fix. As with before the update, they are seeing an error message when accessing the Start menu.
"Critical Error. Your Start menu isn't working. We'll try to fix it the next time you sign in," the error message states. Affected users are instructed to "Sign out now" when this happens.
I have not seen this myself, nor have I experienced the other issues Microsoft addressed with KB4522355, those being stall outs in the Cortana Search bar, Tray icons, and Edge browser in certain situations. But for those affected, being the exception to the rule hardly matters—these are annoying issues, made more frustrating by sticking around through multiple supposed fixes.
"For me, update did not fix anything. Still non-functional: Start Menu. Search. Settings. Right click on task bar icons. Sound drivers. Network. Action center. I even had tried to roll back the previous update to find a stable build, and everything stayed broken. Pretty much at a complete loss here," one user complained, according to BleepingComputer.
Others have chimed in with similar complaints.
"Nope, didn't fix it...some previous update gave me back the ability to click Start menu again, but can't search within it still," another user wrote.
Fortunately, this does not appear to be a widespread problem. For those affected, however, even rolling back an update might not fix the issue(s). Hopefully this is something Microsoft will resolve once and for all, and soon.
On the topic of updates, the next major feature release for Windows 10 is right around the corner. Called the November 2019 Update (previously dubbed 19H2), it is the second major upgrade to Windows 10 this year. It is not going to be as feature-packed as some of the previous major upgrades, but maybe it will finally kick the Start menu issue to the curb. Fingers crossed.
