[Fix] Pin to Start Menu Option is Missing in Windows XP, Vista and 7

All of you are already aware of "Pin to Start Menu" option in Windows which allows us to pin a program to Start menu which is quite useful feature:

But sometimes this option becomes unavailable and the user doesn't get this option in context menu:

If you are also facing this problem, then this tutorial will help you in getting this option back:

METHOD A:

Open RUN dialog box and provide following command:

regsvr32 /i shell32.dll

Restart your system and it should fix your problem.

METHOD B:

If the above method doesn't fix your problem, then type regedit in RUN dialog box and press Enter. It'll open Registry Editor. Now go to following key:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\Explorer

In right-side pane, look for a DWORD value NoStartMenuPinnedList. If you find it, delete it. Restart or log off and your problem will be solved.

METHOD C:

If you can't find the above mentioned key, then download following ZIP file, extract it and run the extracted REG file. It'll ask for confirmation, accept it. Restart your system and your problem will be solved:

Enable Pin to Start Menu Option

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This article was posted in Troubleshooting, Windows 7, Windows Vista, Windows XP.

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11 Comments

Riza

Cool.
When Pin to Start menu item missing I use drag and drop to Start menu.
By the way I'm interesting about something else. Is there possibility to add in Start menu item's context menu "Sort by name"? 'Cause when I add item to Start menu every time I need to move new item to rightalphabetical place to find it easier.
You're tireless, VG.

P. S. The best antivirus is AVG (Awesome VG).
VG

^^ Thanks. I think you want to add "Sort by name" option in Pinned items context menu. Its not possible but if I come across any trick, I'll let you know.
Riza

Yeah, that's what I'm looking for.
Thanks. I'll be here.
Ramanathan

Yeah, that's what I'm looking for.
nikolaj

can i get icons in vista start menu instead of list
VG

^^ Can you please describe it a bit more?
Steve

Fix] Pin to Start Menu Option is Missing in Windows

I have OS Vista Home Premium

I followed Method B to rectify this problem.

However I could not find NoStartMenuPinnedList but I found Nostartmenumoreprograms.

How should proceed from her.
Many thanks for all your help

Stephen
VG

^^ You can safely delete that key.
Alleluia

Hi Vishal, Many thanks for your reply and your tweaks. The sound tweaks was excellent.
I run Vista Home Premium. Classic style.
My computer is running really fast at moment After running defrag it is down to
20 Fragmented Total files 95 2.9GB. So I'm very pleased.

As I say I use simple Classic style that cuts out a lot of cosmetic stuff that MS wants to you to load up. I don't use the left hand side on my Classic start menu where you pin things.

I keep the right side of the start menu to the minimum:
Programs, Documents(Documents, Pictures), Settings (Control Panel, Network Connections, Printers), Search, Help and Support, Run, Log Off, shut down.

What I want to do is network Connections from this list and add Videos. How can I do this?

Best wishes to you and your family

Alleluia
CM

After trying three different fixes (including these) with no luck whatsoever, the answer to the problem turned out to be absolutely simple: Just click through Start - Properties - Start Menu - Customize - Advanced and check the box for "Enable drag and drop".