Member Avatar for tpeoples

I am having a problem with Windows Vista. When I close an application (any), I get a message saying it encountered a problem and had to close, then it restarts the application. I can select "Cancel" and it will cancel the restart, but if I don't catch it, it restarts the application.

Any suggestions?

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As described, processes are being relaunched after they terminate. That behavior is commonly caused either by Windows' restart/recovery infrastructure or by a supervising process (shell extension, service, or third‑party monitor). 's pointer toward explorer/services is useful; the next step is to find who is reporting the crash and who is doing the restart.

Check what Windows logged. Run perfmon /rel (Reliability Monitor) and eventvwr.msc (Event Viewer -> Windows Logs -> Application). Look for Error entries (often Event ID 1000 / Application Error) and any references to the Restart Manager or Windows Error Reporting. Windows provides APIs that let applications register for automatic restart; see the official docs for RegisterApplicationRestart and the Restart Manager for background on how Windows can relaunch apps: RegisterApplicationRestart and .

Practical next steps: reproduce a restart, then inspect the latest log entry for the faulting module name and exception code. Test with a Clean Boot (msconfig — hide Microsoft services, disable others, disable Startup items) and in Safe Mode to see if the problem is third‑party. Run sfc /scannow to check system files and update drivers. If the logs point to a specific program or shell extension, reinstall or disable that component.

For deeper analysis capture a user‑mode crash dump (ProcDump is a lightweight, Microsoft Sysinternals tool): ProcDump. Once the faulting module is identified, search for known fixes (service/driver updates, app patches, or uninstall the offending extension). Take backups or a System Restore point before making wide changes.

Member Avatar for rangarecon

this could be as simple as an explorer.exe error in the process list -> to a more advanced system 32 or scvhost.exe error. Have you checked your services list to see if the service for the explorer.exe is running efficiently?

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