Sharepoint 2010 missing library tool menu in document library

Sorry about the serious blog post but I thought this would help a few people with an annoying problem. As the title states, if you’ve just upgraded to Sharepoint 2010 (this will apply to mostly users who have upgraded from MOSS 2007 to Sharepoint 2010) and you find that some of your document libraries are missing the library tools menu then keep reading….

Step 1. Navigate to the document library that is missing the tool menu.

Step 2. Click on Site Actions -> Edit Page

Once you have done that you should then see a difference in the main content section – You will notice a big button that says ‘Add a web part’ and then a couple of headings which may differ (but be similar) on your site like so:

According to a few articles the tools menu gets hidden when there are web parts added to a document library page and if your 2007 had any they may even be hidden from your view until you hit ‘Edit Page’. Now this would only apply if you are happy to get rid of the webpart/s but if you are hoping to have the best of both worlds, then I can’t help you at this point in time. Luckily for me they were completely unwanted web parts. I can, however, offer you a workaround which is at the bottom of this post.

Step 3. Delete the unwanted webpart/s by navigating to the far right of the webpart and clicking the arrow seen below:

Click on delete. It will prompt you whether you want to permanently delete the web part. Click on Yes if you are willing to let go of this web part and all the information it holds (not really considering a lot of webparts just reference a list or library located somewhere else). I suggest before you do this to have a look at the properties of your web part and make sure you aren’t permanently losing all the information it presents.

Step 4. Click on Stop Editing!

You should now have your library tools.

Workaround if you want to keep your webpart:

Step 1. Navigate to the document library missing the library tools

Step 2. Tick any item already uploaded in the document library like so (folders or documents, it doesn’t matter):

Once the item is ticked you will then see the library tools menu!

20 Responses to “Sharepoint 2010 missing library tool menu in document library”

florida business insurance 1 August 2011 at 7:21 pm #

thanks for this amazing post.i like this information.
florida business insurance 3 September 2011 at 6:38 pm #

that is really an interesting for the library purpose and also for the peoples who used them.
Terry Whymark 22 September 2011 at 2:54 am #

Cheers! That was taking me ages to sort out.
Grace Maria 23 September 2011 at 3:57 am #

Thanks for this Hint! It really helped me.
mopar parts 3 October 2011 at 4:23 pm #

Due to the missing of the files there are many errors occurs in the format of the document.
Alex @ Easy ways to make money online 4 October 2011 at 10:52 pm #

Thanks a lot for the step-by-step instruction. I’ll try to bookmark this page, just in case I encounter such an error.
biofreeze 25 October 2011 at 3:23 pm #

it is a very good news and it solved my problem…thanks for this amazing post..keep it up.
biofreeze 2 November 2011 at 4:06 pm #

There are many problems created due tot he missing files and the final result can not be given. so immediately done some help to remove the error.
AR @ make money online 8 November 2011 at 6:00 pm #

Thanks again for this post… I used it in my blog, as I myself shift to sharepoint 2010 also.
ray 16 November 2011 at 5:04 am #

You are doing a great job. It is great way to share your knowledge. You never know your tips may help someone in trouble. I will share it with my friends if I could also help someone indirectly. Try to write more often, if not technical issues than share whatever you have. It will be great to see more updates.
florida business insurance 1 December 2011 at 10:15 pm #

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Daniel 9 December 2011 at 5:24 am #

Thanks alot. I was wondering what was making this doc library’s toolbar not show. There was a hidden web part on the page. Great tip.
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There are lots of people who still do not have the knowledge of Sharepoint.
mopar parts 13 January 2012 at 6:50 pm #

The post is very informative and useful for me.Thanks for sharing this information.
florida business insurance 14 January 2012 at 3:23 pm #

Thanks again for this post… I used it in my blog, as I myself shift to sharepoint 2010 also
biofreeze 14 January 2012 at 4:04 pm #

Fully agree with your post here.I think many people unaware about it and it will solve such people problem.You showed easily with pics help
florida business insurance 20 January 2012 at 9:04 pm #

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biofreeze 20 January 2012 at 9:49 pm #

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