Question:

How to fix error 0xc0000020 and restore taskbar on Windows 10?

I have a steelseries laptop with an Nvidia GeForce RTX card and an Intel Core i7 processor. I recently installed PowerPoint and Teams on it. After that, I started experiencing the following issues:

• The screen flickers rhythmically and shows a black background.
• The taskbar is missing and I cannot access the Start menu or other icons.
• I get an error message saying “SYSTEM32/WMICLNT.dll is either not designed to run on windows or it contains an error. Try installing the program again using the original installation media or contact your system administrator or the software vendor for support. Error code 0xc0000020”.
• I cannot use Windows shortcuts or access “About PC” to check the system specifications.
• The only thing that works is the task manager, which I can open with Ctrl+Alt+Delete.

I

have tried restarting the machine several times, but the problem persists. How can I fix this error and restore the taskbar functionality on Windows 10? Please advise. Thank you.

Answer:

If you have a steelseries laptop with an Nvidia GeForce RTX card and an Intel Core i7 processor, and you recently installed PowerPoint and Teams on it, you may encounter the following issues:

• The screen flickers rhythmically and shows a black background.
• The taskbar is missing and you cannot access the Start menu or other icons.
• You get an error message saying “SYSTEM32/WMICLNT.dll is either not designed to run on windows or it contains an error. Try installing the program again using the original installation media or contact your system administrator or the software vendor for support. Error code 0xc0000020”.
• You cannot use Windows shortcuts or access “About PC” to check the system specifications.
• The only thing that works is the task manager, which you can open with Ctrl+Alt+Delete.

These issues are likely caused by a corrupted or missing system file, which prevents Windows from loading properly. To fix this error and restore the taskbar functionality on Windows 10, you can try the following solutions:

Solution 1: Run System File Checker (SFC) and DISM commands

System File Checker (SFC) and Deployment Image Servicing and Management (DISM) are two built-in tools that can scan and repair system files. To run these commands, you need to open a command prompt with administrator privileges. Here are the steps:

• Press Ctrl+Alt+Delete and open the task manager.
• Click on File and select Run new task.
• Type cmd in the box and check the option Create this task with administrative privileges. Click OK.
• In the command prompt window, type sfc /scannow and press Enter. This will scan and repair any corrupted or missing system files. Wait for the process to complete.
• After the SFC scan is done, type DISM /Online /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealth and press Enter. This will download and install the latest Windows image and fix any issues. Wait for the process to complete.
• Restart your computer and check if the error is resolved.

Solution 2: Uninstall and reinstall PowerPoint and Teams

It is possible that the installation of PowerPoint and Teams may have interfered with some system files or settings, causing the error. To rule out this possibility, you can try to uninstall and reinstall these programs. Here are the steps:

• Press Ctrl+Alt+Delete and open the task manager.
• Click on File and select Run new task.
• Type appwiz.cpl in the box and click OK. This will open the Programs and Features window.
• Find Microsoft Office and Microsoft Teams in the list of installed programs and right-click on them. Select Uninstall and follow the instructions to remove them from your computer.
• Restart your computer and check if the error is resolved.
• If the error is gone, you can try to reinstall PowerPoint and Teams from the official website or the Microsoft Store.

Solution 3: Perform a system restore

If none of the above solutions work, you can try to perform a system restore to revert your computer to a previous state when it was working fine. This will undo any changes that may have caused the error. However, this will also delete any files or programs that you have created or installed after the restore point. To perform a system restore, you need to access the Advanced Startup Options menu. Here are the steps:

• Press Ctrl+Alt+Delete and open the task manager.
• Click on File and select Run new task.
• Type shutdown /r /o /f /t 00 in the box and click OK. This will restart your computer and open the Advanced Startup Options menu.
• Click on Troubleshoot and select Advanced options.
• Click on System Restore and follow the instructions to choose a restore point and restore your computer.
• Restart your computer and check if the error is resolved.

Conclusion

In

this article, we have discussed how to fix error 0xc0000020 and restore taskbar on Windows 10. We have suggested three possible solutions: running SFC and DISM commands, uninstalling and reinstalling PowerPoint and Teams, and performing a system restore. We hope that one of these solutions works for you and solves your problem. If you have any questions or feedback, please leave a comment below. Thank you for reading!