How do I restore the Trash icon on the desktop?

Solution 1:

Using the graphical tool GConf Editor :

1. Alt+F2, type gconf-editor and click Run.

   

2. Navigate to apps ➜ nautilus ➜ desktop and check the trash_icon_visible checkbox.

   

From the Command Line :

gconftool --set --type=bool /apps/nautilus/desktop/trash_icon_visible True  

EDIT ~ UPDATE

In later systems GConf Editor/gconftool is outdated and the settings are not there.

Using Dconf Editor:

org > gnome > nautilus > desktop

Solution 2:

If it's a desktop icon:

1) Press ALT+F2 and type in the dialog: gconf-editor + enter

2) In the editor, navigate to apps/nautilus/desktop and on the rigt hand pane check the "trash_icon_visible" checkbox

If it's the panel icon:

Right click on the panel, select "Add to panel", select trash (or something similar to that... sorry, can't remember the exact name, I'm translating from a spanish install).

Solution 3:

Desktop icons, including the Trash icon, have been disabled in Ubuntu 19.04 and later. To add them back install the Desktop Icons GNOME shell extension from Ubuntu Software.