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mcafeecurious
Contributor
Message 1 of 30

OLD PROBLEM BACK? (START MENU ENTRY CAN'T BE DELETED)

With version 12.8.934 being rolled out about a week ago I now have an OLD problem that I'm sure Brit and other McAfee folks probably thought had long died.

Like many, I don't want a link to McAfee Security Center either on my desktop or in my start menu.  But an entry in my "Programs" start menu (folder "McAfee" with link file inside it "McAfee SecurityCenter") CAN NOT be deleted permanently.  It keeps coming back.

There is nothing in the McAfee program, per se, (settings) to give you any control over if you have a start menu entry or not.

Deleting the folder and file in Windows Explorer is fruitless -- a new folder and file is regenerated (if not right away then at a new startup of your pc or with a new McAfee update installation).

What USED to work (turning off access protection within McAfee and deleting the "Shortcuts" key (with all it's values) in the registry while running Registry Editor as an administrator, then turning access control back on) now doesn't.  The folder and file are still regenerated -- EVEN THOUGH A CHECK OF THE REGISTRY SHOWS THAT THE SHORTCUTS KEY IS STILL DELETED!

(I read somewhere on the McAfee site that a new Shortcuts key needed to be imported back into the registry as a possible solution to the problem.  I downloaded the registry file to do that.  It imports only the basic key with no values.  But the values are generated shortly thereafter.  Now with that new key and values I went through the drill again of eliminating them.  Again, the start menu entries are still regenerated but the registry key and values are still gone!)

I will post more about all this as I keep experimenting and possibly learn more.  Bur right now I'm wondering -- has anyone else discovered this old problem again with this most recent update?

I have downloaded the McAfee ICON Display Tool and will likely try that, although I read much online that it probably won't work.  I also may resort to the old trick of naming a text file "McAfee", removing the file extension ".txt", giving the file the attribute "hidden", and placing it in my Programs folder (will hopefully prevent McAfee from generating it's own file -- worked once but will it again?).

(My actual problem is sort of a variation of the basic problem -- I don't mind the entry in my start menu, but the problem for me is that the positioning of the entry is not logically where it should be.  The new entry appears not with the other folders but at the bottom of the individual files.  And when I drag the folder up to put it in it's alphabetically correct positioning with the other folders it MOVES BACK DOWN eventually, probably, again, with pc restarts and new update installations.  So if THAT is gong to happen I need to find a way to stop McAfee from controlling it all by just eliminating the whole entry.)

This problem generated much angst on it's last go round, frustrating many.  Has it hit others again?  Or is it just me? 

29 Replies
exbrit
MVP
MVP
Message 2 of 30

Re: OLD PROBLEM BACK? (START MENU ENTRY CAN'T BE DELETED)

I believe but am not sure that this was not regarded as a high priority issue as software appearing in the Start Menu is what a programme in Windows is supposed to do by design.    The desktop icons moving position or reappearing was another much talked about issue that was dealt with.

However, I would straight away open a case with Technical Support on this as the forums are hardly a place to get a fix., unless someone else has a brainwave of course.

It's free of charge by phone or online chat and linked under Useful Links at the top of this page.

BTW the McAfee ICON Display Tool is an old support tool and may not even be valid any more.   The software has changed a lot since 2010.

Message was edited by: Ex_Brit on 27/02/14 7:59:00 EST AM
selvan
McAfee Retired
McAfee Retired
Message 3 of 30

Re: OLD PROBLEM BACK? (START MENU ENTRY CAN'T BE DELETED)

Hi mcafeecurious,

Let me try to reproduce this with the latest version of McAfee installed and post back the findings. BTW may I have the name of Operating System installed on your PC.

Peacekeeper
Message 4 of 30

Re: OLD PROBLEM BACK? (START MENU ENTRY CAN'T BE DELETED)

Have you tried creating a folder on the desktop and dropping the icon in it. I know in the beta 13.0 this stops the recreation of the icon.

If it is the position well you can as Peter suggests report it though I have done so in the beta bug reporting and they have not changed it. I feel Mcafee thinks this a small issue and will address it when they can. The more complaints reported the better.

thecreator
Contributor II
Message 5 of 30

Re: OLD PROBLEM BACK? (START MENU ENTRY CAN'T BE DELETED)

Hi All,

This problem does not show up in Windows XP Home Edition Service Pack 3.

The problem seems to exist on Windows 7 Ultimate 64-Bit Service Pack 1 operating system.

The Icon is stationary in Windows 7 Home Premium 64-Bit Service Pack 1 that is on a Laptop.

Peacekeeper
Message 6 of 30

Re: OLD PROBLEM BACK? (START MENU ENTRY CAN'T BE DELETED)

Moves on 13.0 and windows 8.1. I bug reported this 3 mths ago but no sign of a fix.

mcafeecurious
Contributor
Message 7 of 30

Re: OLD PROBLEM BACK? (START MENU ENTRY CAN'T BE DELETED)

Thank you for your replies.  I'll first address them, and then update what I've done and concluded since my original post.

My apology for calling you "Brit", Ex_Brit -- I see you're really the latter!

My impression of one thing you said was that programs SHOULD appear in the start menu in Windows.  No -- otherwise we might have every executable file on your pc in the start menu.  What actually appears in the start menu is controllable (or SHOULD be controllable).  Either via program settings, registry entries, or simple user creation of shortcut files to programs and placement of those files in the appropriate folder (in Windows 7 in C://Program Data/Microsoft/Windows/Start Menu/Programs).

I was and am aware of the free technical support option but feel that my issue was more appropriate for bypassing them.  I feel the vast majority of computing problems can be resolved by either simple Google searches or posting to online forums.  And I did not feel that my issue was something that anyone would really sink their teeth in to.  The only time I ever feel inclined to call tech support is if I'm absolutely desperate or/and I sense that the technical knowledge to solve a problem is beyond my education.  With what I've presented here, we're talking about an annoyance rather than something critical.  I can also say that I'm reticent to call someone who might well have an accent presenting a communication problem (so much outsourcing of tech support anymore), as well as likely prone to suggesting reinstallation of a program (overkill), and also likely prone to wishing to remotely access my computer (intrinsic aversion to that by me).

Your comment about the Desktop IconTool validated my own impression and, as it turned out, it DID prove useless.

For "Chinthanai Selvan P" -- my OS is Windows 7 Home Premium with Service Pack 1 installed (as well as any and all updates to date).

For "Peacekeeper" -- your suggestion about dropping the icon on a folder on the desktop seems intuitively off in left field to me, sorry!  But perhaps I don't understand what you're saying.  What SPECIFICALLY are you advocating?  What should the name of the folder be?  What do you mean by "icon" -- are you talking about a specific file?  Is that file created?  Moved or copied from somewhere else?  Once this is put on the desktop, how long must it stay there?  I just don't get your point here . . .

Also, what is your "Beta 13" referring to?  What program?

For "thecreator" -- your comment seems to suggest that it may well not just be me with the issue.  And "Peacekeeper", your second post also suggest this.

Now -- here's what I've learned and done since my original post.

First -- I probably made a mistake by trying to simplify things a little for readers in my first post.  But I can see now It's appropriate to be a little more detailed.  When I talked about the shortcut entry reappearing and being out of position in my start menu what I neglected to mention was that this was not in what you would at first think of as the start menu -- the menu brought up by clicking the Windows logo on the left side of the task bar and then clicking on "All Programs".   The problem I have reported may or may not be seen there (I haven't really checked that).

No, with me the problem has been in a clone of that start menu.  To avoid clicking on folders and sub-folders in the regular start menu I have created a toolbar targeting the Programs folder (located as per the chain mentioned above, with that folder containing the information you see in "All Programs").  Creation of that toolbar (which has been dragged to the far left of the toolbar, immediately to the right of the Windows logo) lets me avoid all that clicking because the menus and sub-menus then cascade by simply hovering your cursor over folders.  THIS is where I've seen that deleted "McAfee" folder and "McAfee SecurityCenter" file within it keep reappearing after deletion AND being out of position AND being put back out of position even when I drag it to it's proper position. 

(Perhaps one of you has seen that that problem is also occurring in the regular start menu -- again, I haven't really checked that out, I've only been concerned with my toolbar menu replicating that regular start menu.)

With that clarification out of the way, here's what I've done . . .

As I said above, that ancient ICON Display Tool was useless.

Not mentioned in my original post, but renaming of the shortcut (like, for example, just "Security Center") was also no good -- any renaming of the shortcut would just have it eventually be deleted, apparently by the McAfee program sensing an intruder!

So I went to that procedure mentioned in my first post of creating a text file and naming it "McAfee", deleting the file extension ".txt", and checking "Hidden" on the "General" tab of "Properties" of the file . . . and placing that file in the "Programs" folder to replace the "McAfee" folder.  This prevents the regeneration of the deleted "McAfee" folder and it's file "McAfee Security Center".  And also -- by being hidden -- prevents anything named "McAfee" from showing up in your start menu.  THAT takes care of the normal McAfee folder from being constantly regenerated and being positioned wrongly.

But now I still needed a link to McAfee Security Center in my start menu.  (It was just the erroneous positioning of it that was an annoyance.  Although the usual opening of the program is via the icon on the right side of the task bar my concept (your mileage may vary (YMMV)!) is that I want a separate shortcut in my start menu to any program on the right side of the task bar OR programs pinned to my start menu.  (Sometimes not all programs over on the right side of that task bar load properly . . . I'm just comfortable with a "master" list of shortcuts to all my programs in one place independent of any of them that might be "premium" placed on the right side of the task bar or otherwise pinned.) )

At first I just put a shortcut to "McAfee Security Center" back in my "Programs" folder.  Maybe it would "stick" since it would now be directly under "Programs" and not in the now deleted "McAfee" folder.  That didn't work (McAfee deleted it), so I renamed it simply "Security Center".  And THAT didn't work either.  So I then placed the direct shortcut to the program in "My Documents" and created a shortcut to that shortcut in "Programs" . . . but NONE of these games worked.  In all cases, the McAfee program apparently sensed an intruder and what I'd created in the start menu was deleted.

At this point I gave up on the idea of my making any shortcut file to Security Center that would work while placed in the "Programs" folder/start menu.  My "work around" was based on the concept that I simply wanted an alternate way to get to the program without having to try and remember where it was in Windows Explorer and spend time there trying to find it.  So I placed the conventional shortcut file in "My Documents" (which -- knock on wood -- appears to be free from McAfee deleting it).  And created a text file called "McAfee Security Center" with text inside telling me where to navigate to that shortcut file, placing that text file in the "Programs" folder with all the other conventional shortcut files.  (One can't open McAfee Security Center by clicking on the actual .exe file -- the "Target" information on the "Shortcut" tab of "Properties" for the shortcut file specifies "C:\Program Files\mcafee.com\agent\mcagent.exe" /desktopicon /platui" . . . the "/desktipicon /platui" is beyond the simple location information.)

The text file appears in the start menu, stays put alphabetically where it shoud.

Wow, did this get nerdy quick, huh?  But all of us who are pc fans know that annoyances can get us this way, right?

What could cause a deleted shortcut folder and file to keep reappearing?  Or a similar folder and/or file (renamed) to be deleted?  And with or without apparently appropriate registry entries?  Got to be software code SOMEwhere, right?  (Ostensibly in one of McAfee's many .exe files?)  My feel is that McAfee intentionally has done this.  And the intentions are probably good -- they don't want some rogue malware to masquerade as McAfee, so they've programmed their software so that any shortcut(s) not EXACTLY worded ONE way and in ONLY one place gets deleted.  But in apparently doing this, they've taken away the control that we users should have. 

That's my story and I'm sticking to it, absent any other information.  Very annoying . . . 

Message was edited by: mcafeecurious on 3/2/14 2:22:02 AM CST
Peacekeeper
Message 8 of 30

Re: OLD PROBLEM BACK? (START MENU ENTRY CAN'T BE DELETED)

For "Peacekeeper" -- your suggestion about dropping the icon on a folder on the desktop seems intuitively off in left field to me, sorry!  But perhaps I don't understand what you're saying.  What SPECIFICALLY are you advocating?  What should the name of the folder be?  What do you mean by "icon" -- are you talking about a specific file?  Is that file created?  Moved or copied from somewhere else?  Once this is put on the desktop, how long must it stay there?  I just don't get your point here . . .

Also, what is your "Beta 13" referring to?  What program?

What I am saying is move the icon for Mcafee all access or Mcafee security center to a folder called say Security Programs and the icon will never as far as I see be seen on rthe desktop and can be accessed by opening the folder.

This stops it moving around

beta 13 is the new 2014 program we beta testers are running

Nothing to do with what you are explaining it seems and never seen any1 doing what you are doing better see what the others say . I have created a toolbar and will play with it a while

OK can you explain this as I cannot see such files are you removing Mcafee name or the security centre link? If so why?

THIS is where I've seen that deleted "McAfee" folder and "McAfee SecurityCenter" file within it keep reappearing after deletion AND being out of position AND being put back out of position even when I drag it to it's proper position. 

I know the cause maybe but cannot give the fix as I feel it is mcafee protecting the core programs from being altered and the fix will negate that.

Message was edited by: a confused Peacekeeper on 2/03/14 7:12:30 PM
thecreator
Contributor II
Message 9 of 30

Re: OLD PROBLEM BACK? (START MENU ENTRY CAN'T BE DELETED)

mcafeecurious wrote:

For "thecreator" -- your comment seems to suggest that it may well not just be me with the issue.  And "Peacekeeper", your second post also suggest this.

Now -- here's what I've learned and done since my original post.

No, with me the problem has been in a clone of that start menu.  To avoid clicking on folders and sub-folders in the regular start menu I have created a toolbar targeting the Programs folder (located as per the chain mentioned above, with that folder containing the information you see in "All Programs").  Creation of that toolbar (which has been dragged to the far left of the toolbar, immediately to the right of the Windows logo) lets me avoid all that clicking because the menus and sub-menus then cascade by simply hovering your cursor over folders.  THIS is where I've seen that deleted "McAfee" folder and "McAfee SecurityCenter" file within it keep reappearing after deletion AND being out of position AND being put back out of position even when I drag it to it's proper position. 

(Perhaps one of you has seen that that problem is also occurring in the regular start menu -- again, I haven't really checked that out, I've only been concerned with my toolbar menu replicating that regular start menu.)

Not mentioned in my original post, but renaming of the shortcut (like, for example, just "Security Center") was also no good -- any renaming of the shortcut would just have it eventually be deleted, apparently by the McAfee program sensing an intruder!

So I went to that procedure mentioned in my first post of creating a text file and naming it "McAfee", deleting the file extension ".txt", and checking "Hidden" on the "General" tab of "Properties" of the file . . . and placing that file in the "Programs" folder to replace the "McAfee" folder.  This prevents the regeneration of the deleted "McAfee" folder and it's file "McAfee Security Center".  And also -- by being hidden -- prevents anything named "McAfee" from showing up in your start menu.  THAT takes care of the normal McAfee folder from being constantly regenerated and being positioned wrongly.

But now I still needed a link to McAfee Security Center in my start menu.  (It was just the erroneous positioning of it that was an annoyance.  Although the usual opening of the program is via the icon on the right side of the task bar my concept (your mileage may vary (YMMV)!) is that I want a separate shortcut in my start menu to any program on the right side of the task bar OR programs pinned to my start menu.  (Sometimes not all programs over on the right side of that task bar load properly . . . I'm just comfortable with a "master" list of shortcuts to all my programs in one place independent of any of them that might be "premium" placed on the right side of the task bar or otherwise pinned.) )

At first I just put a shortcut to "McAfee Security Center" back in my "Programs" folder.  Maybe it would "stick" since it would now be directly under "Programs" and not in the now deleted "McAfee" folder.  That didn't work (McAfee deleted it), so I renamed it simply "Security Center".  And THAT didn't work either.  So I then placed the direct shortcut to the program in "My Documents" and created a shortcut to that shortcut in "Programs" . . . but NONE of these games worked.  In all cases, the McAfee program apparently sensed an intruder and what I'd created in the start menu was deleted.

At this point I gave up on the idea of my making any shortcut file to Security Center that would work while placed in the "Programs" folder/start menu.  My "work around" was based on the concept that I simply wanted an alternate way to get to the program without having to try and remember where it was in Windows Explorer and spend time there trying to find it.  So I placed the conventional shortcut file in "My Documents" (which -- knock on wood -- appears to be free from McAfee deleting it).  And created a text file called "McAfee Security Center" with text inside telling me where to navigate to that shortcut file, placing that text file in the "Programs" folder with all the other conventional shortcut files.  (One can't open McAfee Security Center by clicking on the actual .exe file -- the "Target" information on the "Shortcut" tab of "Properties" for the shortcut file specifies "C:\Program Files\mcafee.com\agent\mcagent.exe" /desktopicon /platui" . . . the "/desktipicon /platui" is beyond the simple location information.)

The text file appears in the start menu, stays put alphabetically where it shoud.

Wow, did this get nerdy quick, huh?  But all of us who are pc fans know that annoyances can get us this way, right?

What could cause a deleted shortcut folder and file to keep reappearing?  Or a similar folder and/or file (renamed) to be deleted?  And with or without apparently appropriate registry entries?  Got to be software code SOMEwhere, right?  (Ostensibly in one of McAfee's many .exe files?)  My feel is that McAfee intentionally has done this.  And the intentions are probably good -- they don't want some rogue malware to masquerade as McAfee, so they've programmed their software so that any shortcut(s) not EXACTLY worded ONE way and in ONLY one place gets deleted.  But in apparently doing this, they've taken away the control that we users should have. 

That's my story and I'm sticking to it, absent any other information.  Very annoying . . . 

Message was edited by: mcafeecurious on 3/2/14 2:22:02 AM CST


Hi mcafeecurious,

You have mentioned that McAfee Security Center is moving on the Start Menu.

That's fine and that is the way it was designed to, but not my McAfee. The Start Menu, is not a list of programs running, but a list of programs that you have accessed. The more you access the program, the higher up, the program icon moves, by designed by Microsoft.

You can pin program icons to the Start Menu. That does not mean that the program will run as soon as the computer starts up. For Example, I pinned Hearts to the Start Menu. Its a game I like. All I need to do, it just go Start and click on Hearts to run it.

You can remove programs from the list, by right-clicking and left-click Remove from the list, but the next time, you click on the Desktop Icon, it will come back on the Start Menu, because you clicked on the Desktop Icon.

Desktop Icons are on the Desktop, because it makes it faster to access the program fast without the need to click on Start then find the program to run it.

However, McAfee Icon's Routine has a programming bug, where it keeps moving on the Desktop, from the location you assigned it to. I turned off Auto Arrange Icons and it still moves on me.

The Icon does not move in Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit Service Pack 1.

The icon does move in Windows 7 Ultimate 64-Bit Service Pack 1.

In your posts, you mentioned everything about McAfee, but nothing about the operating system you are running!

What is your operating system and Service Pack Level. Find it by clicking Start to Control Panel and finally clicking System and post the information back.

on 02/03/14 12:30:54 EST PM
mcafeecurious
Contributor
Message 10 of 30

Re: OLD PROBLEM BACK? (START MENU ENTRY CAN'T BE DELETED)

Replying regarding the above two posts . . .

Peacekeeper, I think I understand what you're saying about moving the "icon" (shortcut file?) to a new folder.  However (if I understand you) that eliminates the start menu entry, which is where I want to keep the shortcut.

"Beta 13 is the new 2014 program" . . . WHAT program?  (McAfee Security Center?  Or what?)

"OK can you explain this" . . . explain WHAT?  

Thecreator, it's not the start menu that you are describing (the pinned items or/and the items immediately below those that are created when opening a program) where I had the problem.  It is UNDER the pinned items under "All Programs" -- and not necessarily exactly there, but with the toolbar I created replicating that same information (all under C://Program Data/Microsoft/Windows/Start Menu/Programs).  (As I stated above, the problem I had may or may not have been visible under "All Programs".  I never checked (although I suspect the problem DIDN'T occur there.))

Interesting about your observations concerning the DESKTOP SHORTCUT (not an entry in the start menu) moving around.

You asked about my OS, but I gave that information above in my second post:  "my OS is Windows 7 Home Premium with Service Pack 1 installed (as well as any and all updates to date)."

As I've reported, my own small problem has been addressed via a "work around".  I found that it was impossible for the McAfee folder with it's McAfee Security Center shortcut file to stay in my toolbar (replicating "All Programs") in it's proper alphabetical order.  I then found it was impossible to delete it -- it kept being regenerated.  Ergo, my preventing that via the hidden text file (named McAfee) with the dropped .txt extension placed in the Programs folder in lieu of the deleted McAfee folder.  But then I found that the actual shortcut file -- placed under the Programs folder in lieu of the former McAfee folder --  kept getting deleted by McAfee.  Even with it's renaming.  So, ultimately, I just placed a text file under the Programs folder (in lieu of a shortcut file) that tells me where to navigate within Windows Explorer to open McAfee Security Center.   (To the shortcut file placed in "My Documents")

That new file showed up in my toobar menu exactly as it should have -- McAfee Security Center.txt.  And it was not subject to McAfee's deletion of it.  (And i noted after the fact that I'd spelled the title as you just saw it, rather than with "SecurityCenter" (no space) -- I wonder if THAT is why it wasn't deleted.  I don't think so, I think it's simply because of the file being a .txt file rather than a shortcut file.)

The only thing to add is that instead of reading "McAfee Security Center.txt" in my toolbar menu, wouldn't it be cooler to just show "McAfee Security Center" (like all the other entries in the menu with no file extensions)?  (Ahh, computing, where we can REALLY get anal!)  So right now I've place a SHORTCUT file to the TEXT FILE, the text file having been moved to "My Documents" from "Programs" and the shortcut file back in "Programs.  (And I corrected the spelling to "SecurityCenter" (deleted the space).)

Two things with that -- will McAfee now delete it because it's a shortcut file or/and because of the actual name "McAfee SecurityCenter"?  I don't think it will, because I'm guessing McAfee will distinguish between it's being a shortcut to a text file rather than an executable.  But if it does, I'll first rename the shortcut by putting in that space between "Security" and "Center".  And if that gets deleted, I'll rename the shortcut (maybe "Antivirus Program").  And if that still gets deleted I'll just go back to putting the text file back under "Programs".

If there's anything of generic interest to everyone here it's the issue of why deleted start menu entries (the entries under "All Programs") get regenerated by McAfee.  Or why differently spelled entries get their "correct" spellings back.  (I think the moving issue was only in my toolbar, not under "All Programs.)   And this was even with the relevant registry key deleted (HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\McAfee\MSC\Shortcuts . . . with 4 or 5 values under that key).  Reiterating my speculation from above, it appears that software code within one of the McAfee .exe files has got to be regenerating the shortcut folder and file under it.  Although the intent may be admirable, it is taking control away from users that users should have.  It would seem to be fundamental that pc users should have the right to create, delete, or modify their start menu entries and desktop shortcuts as they see fit.   

In line with all that, here is what I would suggest for you moderators or anyone else who want's to "play around" or try and replicate this apparent problem.  My McAfee SecurityCenter and Windows versions are given above.  Just go ahead on a similar configuration and delete the "All Programs" entries and see if they get regenerated.  And then delete the registry key (exporting a backup of the key first, of course) and go through deleting the entries again to see if they still get regenerated.  (And double check the registry to see if it's only the entries and not the key that gets regenerated, as has happened with me.)  And you can do all this with renaming the "All Programs" entries too, to see if they get reverted to their original spellings.

Are we having enough fun yet?  

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