How do I stop my desktop icons moving?

QIssue 509’s Secret Tips page focused on customising folder and shortcut icons. My Windows 10 PC has recently started to rearrange my desktop shortcut icons after a reboot, so they’re all lined up on the left-hand side. The ‘Auto arrange icons’ and ‘Align icons to grid’ on the desktop’s right-click View menu are definitely not ticked, and I’ve never ticked them. The problem occurred after I installed the Windows 10 Creators Update (CU). I am also running Windows 10 on a laptop with virtually the same software, except that I haven’t installed CU. I don’t have any similar problem on this laptop. David Overton

AIt’s possible that this is some yetto-be-fixed bug in the CU, so it’s a problem that might go away by itself. Certainly, that’s been the case with earlier Windows 10 updates, where this very problem has previously been reported and fixed by Microsoft.

However, we also wonder if you have enabled any Windows themes? By default, these can take control of Desktop icons, and that might include rearranging them on a reboot. You can stop this by disabling one well-hidden option. First, right-click a blank part of the desktop then click Personalize. Now, on the left, click Themes and then, in the right-hand pane, scroll down to find and then click ‘Desktop icon settings’ (see screenshot above left). Clear the tick from the ‘Allow themes to change desktop icons’ box and then click OK (see screenshot above right).