Member Avatar for peacesam

Hi All,

Has anyone had an issue with opening folders, or my computer and nothing would comes up?
I have been having this issue for quite awhile now but it seems to happen randomly. Some days i could use the computer fine without coming across this issue.

There are currently two solutions that i am using but it get's a little annoying:

1) Restart the computer

2) Pull up task manager, end explorer.exe. Then, run explorer.exe
This method would solve the problem but generally, you will have to perform the same process again when you need to open a drive, folder or my computer on your desktop. Restarting the pc would normally solve this issue.

Does anyone know why something would trigger the explorer.exe to not work correctly?

Thanks in advance!

Sam

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  • Latest Post Latest Post by RTFMID10T

Dani AI

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described a classic intermittent Explorer hang: double‑clicking folders or "My Computer" sometimes does nothing until the shell is restarted or the PC is rebooted. That temporary fix is expected, but avoid destructive ideas such as deleting core system binaries (as suggested by ) — that risks breaking the OS. Running the supported image-and-file-integrity checks (DISM then SFC on modern Windows) is a sensible early step to rule out damaged system files. (support.microsoft.com)

The most common root causes are third‑party shell (context‑menu) extensions, unreachable/misbehaving mapped network locations, service/WMI corruption, aggressive AV or sync clients, or a bad user profile. To isolate: perform a clean boot to disable non‑Microsoft services/startups; use a shell‑extension inspector to temporarily disable non‑Microsoft context‑menu/namespace handlers; check Event Viewer for Explorer/Application errors at the time the hang occurs; and test in Safe Mode or with a new local user to see if the problem is profile‑specific. If WMI is implicated (as suggested), follow Microsoft guidance for diagnosing/repairing the repository rather than deleting files blindly. (support.microsoft.com)

A practical, prioritized checklist:

  1. Boot to a clean‑boot environment and try to reproduce the hang.
  2. If the hang stops, re‑enable services/startups in halves to find the offender.
  3. Run image + file integrity repairs (DISM then SFC) from an elevated prompt.
  4. Use ShellExView (or similar) to disable non‑Microsoft shell extensions and retest.
  5. Unmap or disconnect network shares that might be unreachable and test again.
  6. Collect Event Viewer errors and (for deeper debugging) a ProcMon capture if needed. These steps follow Microsoft/NirSoft guidance. (support.microsoft.com)

When asking for more help, include exact Windows edition and build, timestamps and Event Viewer error IDs from when Explorer hung, whether Safe Mode or a new user account is affected, and whether mapped drives, AV, or file‑sync clients are present. That information makes it straightforward to recommend a narrow fix.

Recommended Answers

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Member Avatar for mjdodd

I do not know the exacgt answer but try this!
turn off system restore
delete explorer
shut down normally
restart
windows will then restore original explorer (if it does n't then down load it or restore from recovery

it should work if explorer is the problem!

good luck
M

Member Avatar for peacesam

Thanks for the reply, system restore has been turned off since i installed the OS. I will try that option.

Member Avatar for caperjack

windows will then restore original explorer (if it does n't then down load it or restore from recovery


M

were do you download windows explorer from ,i went looking and all i find is internet explorer

Member Avatar for caperjack

i suggest doing a system file check ,
go to start /run and type in
sfc /scsnnow , space between the c and / it may ask for your windows cd

Edited by caperjack because: n/a
Member Avatar for RTFMID10T

are you running XP? i've seen this happen due to WMI and if you disable this in services it usually fixes the issue.

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