Member Avatar for jaelb

I have a customer running Vista and IE 7.0.6000.16643

She can successfully navigate our Web site except when she comes to one of our password protected links. The moment she clicks on one, she gets a message that says: IE has stopped working. Windows will close IE... etc. We will notify you if there is a solution to the problem etc.

I'm mystified about this. I don't run Vista and my Windows XP works perfectly.

  • 2 Contributors
  • 3 Replies
  • 95 Views
  • 12 Hours Discussion Span
  • Latest Post Latest Post by scru

Dani AI

Generated

Short, practical checklist to diagnose an IE7-on-Vista crash that happens only when a password-protected link is clicked (builds on 's suggestion to isolate the environment and 's report of the symptom).

Start by collecting facts from the machine that crashes. Open Event Viewer (Windows Logs -> Application) right after reproducing the crash and note the "Faulting application" and "Faulting module" lines — the module name (for example a third‑party DLL like a toolbar or an antivirus plugin) is the single most useful clue. If a non‑Microsoft DLL appears, remove or update that component first.

Use simple isolation steps: run Internet Explorer with add‑ons disabled (iexplore.exe -extoff), test from a new Vista user account, and try a different browser to confirm the problem is IE‑specific. Temporarily toggle IE Protected Mode only for testing (Security tab) and update the system video/network drivers — driver/component conflicts can show up when content or authentication changes the browser state.

If the cause is still unclear, capture the HTTP exchange (for example with a proxy) to see what the server sends when the protected link is requested (401s, redirects, or unusual headers). Collect a crash dump (Windows Error Reporting or ProcDump) or copy the exact Event Viewer details and the faulting-module name; that information lets you decide whether to remove a third‑party DLL, apply a Windows/IE update, or escalate to a deeper debug (WinDbg / Microsoft support). Following these steps will localize the problem quickly and point to either a client add‑on, a driver, or a server response that triggers the crash.

Recommended Answers

All 3 Replies

Member Avatar for scru

Does a Data Execution Prevention message pop up on the taskbar by any chance? Does the page have any flash objects, or active x controls or similar?

Member Avatar for jaelb

Scru, The page has nothing special in the way of objects... just straight html page. I don't know if a data execution prevention message pops up, but it is a great question and I'll investigate.

Member Avatar for scru

Well I hope that's the problem because beyond that I don't know why it should (and it would be easy to fix). It used to happen to me on IE until I turned IE DEP off. But honestly, DEP shouldn't be blocking a plain HTML page. If this problem is common enough, and you have some time on your hands, you can virtualise a windows vista OS (for free) and try to reproduce the problem since it could pose problems to your clients who use Vista.

I hope you get a fix that doesn't require that though.

Be a part of the DaniWeb community

We're a friendly, industry-focused community of developers, IT pros, digital marketers, and technology enthusiasts meeting, networking, learning, and sharing knowledge.