Are you wondering to fix the Windows taskbar not hiding issue? If yes, then you are in the right place. Auto-hiding the taskbar can be an efficient way to add an extra space to your desktop. But it means it can refuse to hide when it’s supposed to. Here are some tips or tricks that help you to get that Taskbar hidden again.
NOTE: We are using Windows 10, but these same methods can work for Windows 8, 7, or even Vista. We’ll highlight where things are markedly different.
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Reasons: Taskbar Not Auto-Hide
After using the auto-hide feature for the Windows taskbar. Then it’ll stay hidden until an app wants your attention. For regular apps, it means the app’s taskbar button begins flashing at you. For instance, the Skype app can flash its taskbar button after you receive a new call. In this situation, you can just tap that taskbar button to enable the app to know you’ve seen what it wants you to view and the taskbar will hide again.
For background apps having an icon in the system tray. There are two separate actions that cause your taskbar to stick around. Initially, when you view a badge on the icon—or an actual icon change—highlighting the app wants your attention. For instance, the Slack app shows a small red dot on its regular icon to enables you to know after you get a new message.
Another case happens mostly in Windows 8 and earlier models when a notification balloon appears. Also, it causes the taskbar to stay visible until you dismiss the message. These are quite easy to close as well. Also, you customize the notifications to not display. This case can’t happen in Windows 10 when the alerts move away on their own and you can view them later in Action Center.
What’s More?
For the most part, these problems are by design and are easy to fix—either provide the app the attention it wants or else configure it to stop asking for your observation.
In some situations, though, an app just can’t be written quite right. Also, it triggers a notification in Windows to keep the taskbar open. But it can’t display anything visible for you to close. This issue is also worse after you combine with Windows’ ability to hide system tray icons.
You can also resolve the issue after restarting the problem application or tapping on the icon to trigger whatever the hidden notification was. But you have some other choices as well.
Fix Windows Taskbar Not Hiding Issue
Here are the methods to fix Windows Taskbar not hiding issue:
Check Your Taskbar Settings (and Restart Explorer)
Remember we’re on the same page, right-tap your Taskbar, and select the “Settings” from the context menu. In Windows 10, it brings the “Taskbar” page of the Settings app. Also, remember that the “Automatically hide the taskbar in desktop mode” option is turned on. After using a tablet—or tablet mode on a touchscreen monitor—you can just plan if you want the corresponding tablet mode choice turned on as well.
After using Windows 8, 7, or Vista, you’ll then view the “Taskbar and Start Menu Properties” window instead. Remember that the “Auto-hide the taskbar” option is turned on.
Certainly, if you’re encountering issues with your taskbar auto-hiding, just disable the feature and enable it again will resolve the issue.
Here’s another thing to try. Certainly, when your taskbar refuses to auto-hide and you can’t find the cause, then restart Windows Explorer can make the issue go away—at least temporarily. However, after restarting Explorer is quite faster than restarting your computer.
If it can’t fix the problem completely, it’s time to find the reason behind this.
Open The Hidden Icons and Right-Tap Them
In some situations, the issue of the taskbar not auto-hiding is due to system tray icons that do highlight when you want their attention but are hidden from view.
Here, for instance, the Slack app wants attention, but their icons are hidden on the page of additional apps you can only view if you tap the little up arrow from the left side of the system tray. Just pop open that page and view if any apps want your attention. Tap or right-tap them and the taskbar should hide again. Also, you help to reduce this issue by dragging the icons for apps that call for attention down to the main screen of the system tray where you can view them.
Certainly, you have a system tray icons holding the taskbar open even though it can’t visually call for your attention. If you don’t view obvious alerts from one of the apps. Simply try right-tapping each in turn and view if it fixes your issue. If you find one that acts this way, you might be able to disable notifications for the app or drag it down to the main system tray area where it’s easier to find.
Windows Taskbar Not Hiding -> Notification Settings Customization
Well, you have check out which app is causing the issue. Now you have to make a decision: you can allow it to keep alerting you, bring the taskbar every time, or you can disable that app’s notifications. It applies whether the app alerts you after flashing a regular taskbar button or a PC tray icon. Also, it applies whether the alerts is a badge on the icon or balloon alerts. If you can live without alerts from that app, you might be able to disable them. The trick is checking out where to do that.
For apps that alert you after flashing a taskbar button, there might be nothing you can do. Most of the apps flash their button at you whenever you try to close an unsaved document or if they want to install an add-on or update themselves. But some apps, like the Skype app we mentioned earlier, you can then explore the app’s settings and view if there’s an option for disabling notifications.
For apps that alert you after showing a badge or sign on a system tray icon. You’ll then want to explore the app settings to view whether you can disable those notifications. Unfortunately, there’s not a central area for those types of settings. You can also access the settings for those individual background apps by right-tapping the system tray icon and selecting “Settings,” “Preferences,” or the like.
What’s More?
Those apps who create balloon or toast alerts, you might be able to disable alerts in the app’s settings. However, Windows has a built-in way to control some types of alerts. It’s quite different depending on which model of Windows you use. Also, we suggested checking out our guides to tweaking or customizing system tray icons and using or configuring the Windows 10 Action Center. Well, notifications in Windows 10 can’t cause issues with taskbar auto-hiding. Also, it can happen with notifications in the earlier model.
Also, beginning with the Windows 10 Anniversary Update. However, Windows 10 also added a feature for allowing apps to display badges on taskbar buttons. However, these are for apps like Calendar or Mail where the badge can show a count of unread items. These badges can’t cause the taskbar to visible after you’ve got it set to auto-hide. But if you check that this is causing you trouble it’s easy to hide those taskbar button badges.
Conclusion:
I hope these methods help you to fix the problems. If you have any queries and questions the let us know in the comments section below!
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