Searching from Start Menu not working

By pressing "Windows Key" and then simply typing in an app name like "Outlook" my Windows 10 would automatically bring up Outlook.

This week my ability to "search" the Start Menu disappeared.

Even if I manually click on the magnifying glass button next to the search menu (see below), I cannot seem to enter text into this field.

Is there a solution to this?

enter image description here

Solution 1:

Run the basic Windows 10 fixes (tag say windows 7, search bar says Windows 10).

(1) Open cmd.exe with Run as Administrator.

(2) DISM.exe /Online /Cleanup-image /StartComponentCleanup

(3) DISM.exe /Online /Cleanup-Image /Restorehealth

(4) SFC /SCANNOW

(5) Restart when all the above is complete and test.

This should repair the task bar functions.

If, for any reason, the initial repair steps do not work, then use the Windows 10 Repair Install.

Windows 10 Repair Install

This will launch the Repair and proceed through the questions. I always start with Keep Everything.