Windows Recycle Bin does not refresh after being emptied

After emptying the Recycle Bin, you would expect the desktop icon to refresh from a full Recycle Bin to an empty one. However, if your Recycle Bin was ever deleted from the desktop, this simple functionality may no longer work. To resolve this situation...

1. From the Desktop Icon Settings window, click the icon labeled Recycle Bin (full).
2. Click Change Icon.... The Change Icon window will display.
3. Click Browse, and navigate to C:\Windows\System32\imageres.dll.
4. Scroll through the icons and select the empty Recycle Bin then click OK.
5. Back at the Desktop Icon Settings window, you will repeat this same process for the icon labeled Recycle Bin (empty), only this time you will select the full Recycle Bin image. Click: OK once this is done.
6. Click Apply.
7. Now simply reverse the changes you just completed. Click Recycle Bin (full) and change the icon to the full Recycle Bin image. Click Recycle Bin (empty) and change the icon to the empty Recycle Bin image.
8. Click OK to close the Desktop Icon Settings window. The Recycle Bin should now function as you would expect: When full, it will display the full icon. When empty, it will display the empty icon.

Restore missing icons to the desktop

Certain icons (the Recycle Bin or Computer, for example) are always expected to be on the Windows desktop. However, since it is possible to remove these oft used shortcuts, it is important that you know how to restore them.

1. Right-click on an empty space of the desktop then select Personalize.
2. From the left-side menu, select Change desktop icons. The Desktop Icon Settings window will display.
3. Choose the icons you wish to display on the desktop then click OK.

You may notice that after restoring the Recycle Bin, that it no longer changes from the full icon to the empty when it's content are emptied. There is an easy fix for this as well.