When launching InDesign, the process appears in Task Manager with CPU and memory usage, but no window appears on screenOS: Windows 11 23H2 InDesign Version: 2026 v21.4.1 Tried: Reinstallation, deleting AppData folder, compatibility mode, running as administrator — none worked

lee00

Participant

Answered

When launching InDesign, no window appears on screen

Forum|Forum|24 days ago
June 19, 2026
5 replies
61 views

When launching InDesign, the process appears in Task Manager with CPU and memory usage, but no window appears on screen

OS: Windows 11 23H2
InDesign Version: 2026 v21.4.1
Tried: Reinstallation, deleting AppData folder, compatibility mode, running as administrator — none worked

Correct answer lee00

Hi! Sorry for the late reply.

I had to use a different PC since it was important for me to use the program for work, so I was on another computer.

Anyway, following the method everyone here kindly suggested, I created a new Windows account on the problematic computer and ran InDesign, and it worked without any issues! I also tried entering safe mode, Windows updates, etc., but they all failed in the end... so as a last resort I even tried PC recovery, but that failed too. (I had Windows updates set to automatic and wasn't paying attention to it, but through this I found out it had actually been failing every time for almost 2 years 🤣)

Then... I noticed an icon I don't even remember installing, and when I tried PC recovery through that, it actually worked! (It's a program called 'Maestro Recovery' — I wonder if that's used in other countries too?) Anyway, it seems like this program had been blocking the updates. So now, after going through recovery and updates, I'm using InDesign without any problems.

Anyway, since the situation was so frustrating, I ended up solving it with the primitive method of reinstalling Windows... but since Illustrator and Photoshop worked fine without any issues, I didn't think it was a Windows version problem... is there something you suspect could be the reason InDesign wasn't working, based on the method I used to fix it? Could it be that something among the apps on my account was conflicting with InDesign?

And thank you for taking your valuable time to help with my problem and for caring about it.

Have a great day!

nik.m

Community Manager

Hi @lee00, just checking in to see if you’re still experiencing the issue of if the suggestions by our Experts helped?

Let us know if you need further assistance.

Thanks,

Nikunj

lee00AuthorCorrect answer

Participant

Hi! Sorry for the late reply.

I had to use a different PC since it was important for me to use the program for work, so I was on another computer.

Anyway, following the method everyone here kindly suggested, I created a new Windows account on the problematic computer and ran InDesign, and it worked without any issues! I also tried entering safe mode, Windows updates, etc., but they all failed in the end... so as a last resort I even tried PC recovery, but that failed too. (I had Windows updates set to automatic and wasn't paying attention to it, but through this I found out it had actually been failing every time for almost 2 years 🤣)

Then... I noticed an icon I don't even remember installing, and when I tried PC recovery through that, it actually worked! (It's a program called 'Maestro Recovery' — I wonder if that's used in other countries too?) Anyway, it seems like this program had been blocking the updates. So now, after going through recovery and updates, I'm using InDesign without any problems.

Anyway, since the situation was so frustrating, I ended up solving it with the primitive method of reinstalling Windows... but since Illustrator and Photoshop worked fine without any issues, I didn't think it was a Windows version problem... is there something you suspect could be the reason InDesign wasn't working, based on the method I used to fix it? Could it be that something among the apps on my account was conflicting with InDesign?

And thank you for taking your valuable time to help with my problem and for caring about it.

Have a great day!

Abhishek Rao

Community Manager

Hi @lee00,

Thank you for taking the time to share such a detailed update, and I'm glad to hear you're able to use InDesign again.

Based on your description, the fact that InDesign worked correctly under a new Windows user account strongly suggests the issue was related to your original Windows user profile or system environment rather than InDesign itself. Additionally, since your Windows updates had been failing for a long time and the issue was resolved after successfully repairing Windows, it's likely that an underlying Windows configuration or permission issue was preventing InDesign from launching properly. If you face this in future, providing the helpx article for the same. Ref: Crash, freeze, or app open issues at launch | InDesign

Thank you again for sharing the resolution. It will be very helpful for others who may encounter a similar issue.

Abhishek

Mike Witherell

Community Expert

Hi Hyunju,

Here is an exhaustive troubleshooting compendium that covers up to 4 ways to reset InDesign. You might need the atomic option (the 4th one).

Mike Witherell

Anubhav M

Community Manager

Hello @hyunju0809

I’m sorry to hear about your experience. I hope Bob and Leo’s suggestions helped resolve the problem. If not, please try running Illustrator under a different administrator account (Windows) and after rebooting your computer in Safe Mode (Windows), and share your observations.

Looking forward to hearing from you.
Anubhav

BobLevine

Community Expert

How much RAM do you have? Also, while I can’t say it’s the reason, your Windows installation is more than two years out of date. I strongly suggest that you update it.

lee00Author

Participant

Yeah. I think the RAM is enough.

I never thought the Windows version would be a problem because other Adobe programs worked🫢

I'll try to update it.

Thanks for the answer

leo.r

Community Expert

Try these general troubleshooting steps:

https://www.rockymountaintraining.com/adobe-indesign-rebuilding-preferences-cache/

Will it make a difference?

lee00Author

Participant

No..😭

The first method was not possible to attempt because after launching InDesign, no window appears on screen, making it impossible to access any menus or settings.

For the third method, I renamed the folders as instructed and then tried opening an InDesign file, but the window still did not appear.

Also, a new "InDesign" folder has been automatically recreated after the renaming.

I was using InDesign without any issues until April, but it suddenly stopped working after that.😫

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