Semi transparent rectangle in the middle of my screen?

Hi Raymond,

Welcome to Microsoft Community forum.

I request you to answer following question.

1. Does this issue occurs on all the applications you use?
2. Are you using any third party antivirus application?

This issue usually occurs because of third party application conflict for example Razer synapse, Double Twist.

I suggest you to follow below mentioned methods and check if the issue gets resolved.

Method 1

I suggest you to open task manager and check for applications running if you think some application are not required right click and end the task.

1. Press ‘Windows key + X’
2. Click on task manager

If issue persists, follow method 2;

Method 2

I suggest you to uninstall unwanted applications from control panel and check if issue persists.

1) Press ‘Windows key + X’ key to open a task list from the bottom left corner of the screen.
2) Select Control Panel.
3) Select Programs and Features.
4) Double click on the program you want to uninstall and follow the onscreen instructions.

You may also use the following link to uninstall the program

http://support2.microsoft.com/mats/program_install_and_uninstall

Hope this helps. Write to us for further assistance. 

Hello, thanks for the response!

I'm not sure what you mean by all my applications. The rectangle is on the desktop, as if it is part of the wallpaper. I have several applications with which I use to modify my desktop, such as Stardock Fences, etc. However, I have tried disabling all of these, but the rectangle persists. 

I've tried using Task Manager to end processes and services.msc to end services. However, I cannot find any local user processes that I have not tried killed. I've tried to end some of the System services carefully. I managed to kill a lot of them before I accidentally ended a process that caused my computer to restart.

I use Avast Free Anti-virus 2014.9.0.2021.

Is there a way for me to identify this program? For example, a way to view all processes, services, and whatnot associated with the desktop? This would allow me to narrow down the range of processes that could be causing the problem.

Thanks

Hi Raymond,

Thank you for your valuable reply.

I suggest you to follow the below mentioned methods and check if it resolves the issue.

Method 1

Clean boot

A clean boot is performed to start Windows by using a minimal set of drivers and startup programs. This method helps you identify which program might be causing the issue.

 http://support.microsoft.com/kb/929135

Note: Once you are done with clean boot, please follow the section ‘How to reset the computer to start as usual after troubleshooting with clean boot’ under ‘more information’ in the article to put your computer back to normal startup.

If issue persists, follow the method 2;

Method 2

I suggest you to change the desktop wallpaper as a work around and check if it resolves the issue.

1. Right click on desktop
2. Click on personalize
3. Click on desktop back ground and change the picture
4. Switch back to original picture and check if you are getting the same issue

Hope this helps, write to us for further assistance.