Right Click Crashes Windows Explorer

  • Thread starter Thread starter Terry Smerling
  • Start date Start date
T

Terry Smerling

Each time I attempt a right click to access the context menu Windows
Explorer crashes. This is true whether I use Explorer or PowerDesk Pro 7 as
my file manager. As a result I am unable to zip files, rename files or run
executables as the Administrtor. The error message I get is simply that
"Windows Explorer has stopped working." I suspected that possibly Norton
360 was the culprit, but I disabled Norton 360 and the problem persists. I
believe this problem did not start until I installed Vista's SP1. I am
running Vista Home Premium on a powerful MicroExpress machine with ample
RAM. Any ideas or suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
 
Thank you for the quick reply. Before I posted I tried ShellExView and
disabled all non-MS context menu handlers, but the problem continued
nonetheless. Any other ideas?


Ramesh said:
Hi Terry,

This is most likely caused by a third-party shell extension. See "Method
2" here:

Right-click is slow or weird behavior caused by context menu handlers:
http://windowsxp.mvps.org/slowrightclick.htm

--
Regards,

Ramesh Srinivasan, Microsoft MVP [Windows Shell/User]
The Winhelponline Blog: http://www.winhelponline.com/blog
Windows® Troubleshooting: http://www.winhelponline.com


Terry Smerling said:
Each time I attempt a right click to access the context menu Windows
Explorer crashes. This is true whether I use Explorer or PowerDesk Pro 7
as my file manager. As a result I am unable to zip files, rename files
or run executables as the Administrtor. The error message I get is
simply that "Windows Explorer has stopped working." I suspected that
possibly Norton 360 was the culprit, but I disabled Norton 360 and the
problem persists. I believe this problem did not start until I installed
Vista's SP1. I am running Vista Home Premium on a powerful MicroExpress
machine with ample RAM. Any ideas or suggestions would be greatly
appreciated.
Click to expand...
Click to expand...
 
Terry Smerling said:
Thank you for the quick reply. Before I posted I tried ShellExView and
disabled all non-MS context menu handlers, but the problem continued
nonetheless. Any other ideas?


Ramesh said:
Hi Terry,

This is most likely caused by a third-party shell extension. See "Method
2" here:

Right-click is slow or weird behavior caused by context menu handlers:
http://windowsxp.mvps.org/slowrightclick.htm

--
Regards,

Ramesh Srinivasan, Microsoft MVP [Windows Shell/User]
The Winhelponline Blog: http://www.winhelponline.com/blog
Windows® Troubleshooting: http://www.winhelponline.com


Terry Smerling said:
Each time I attempt a right click to access the context menu Windows
Explorer crashes. This is true whether I use Explorer or PowerDesk Pro
7 as my file manager. As a result I am unable to zip files, rename
files or run executables as the Administrtor. The error message I get
is simply that "Windows Explorer has stopped working." I suspected that
possibly Norton 360 was the culprit, but I disabled Norton 360 and the
problem persists. I believe this problem did not start until I
installed Vista's SP1. I am running Vista Home Premium on a powerful
MicroExpress machine with ample RAM. Any ideas or suggestions would be
greatly appreciated.
Click to expand...
Click to expand...
Click to expand...

It is in fact a conflict between Power Desk 7 and Norton 360. See
http://community.norton.com/norton/...Norton_360&message.id=607&query.id=15033#M607
Hope it helps.
 
I am familair with the Avanquest patch. However, to iinstall it I must be
acting as the Administrator. To run the patch as Administrator, I must be
able to right click. And all of of a sudden I am caught in a Catch-22: I
have no right-click functionality to run the patch that will restore
right-click functionality.

Is there a way to run the patch as Administrator without right-clicking?

BTW, I uninstalled PowerDesk; and I still had the same problem with Windows
Explorer -- no ability to right click, e.g., to change a file's name


Stewart said:
Terry Smerling said:
Thank you for the quick reply. Before I posted I tried ShellExView and
disabled all non-MS context menu handlers, but the problem continued
nonetheless. Any other ideas?


Ramesh said:
Hi Terry,

This is most likely caused by a third-party shell extension. See "Method
2" here:

Right-click is slow or weird behavior caused by context menu handlers:
http://windowsxp.mvps.org/slowrightclick.htm

--
Regards,

Ramesh Srinivasan, Microsoft MVP [Windows Shell/User]
The Winhelponline Blog: http://www.winhelponline.com/blog
Windows® Troubleshooting: http://www.winhelponline.com


Each time I attempt a right click to access the context menu Windows
Explorer crashes. This is true whether I use Explorer or PowerDesk Pro
7 as my file manager. As a result I am unable to zip files, rename
files or run executables as the Administrtor. The error message I get
is simply that "Windows Explorer has stopped working." I suspected
that possibly Norton 360 was the culprit, but I disabled Norton 360 and
the problem persists. I believe this problem did not start until I
installed Vista's SP1. I am running Vista Home Premium on a powerful
MicroExpress machine with ample RAM. Any ideas or suggestions would be
greatly appreciated.
Click to expand...
Click to expand...

It is in fact a conflict between Power Desk 7 and Norton 360. See
http://community.norton.com/norton/...Norton_360&message.id=607&query.id=15033#M607
Hope it helps.
Click to expand...
 
Hi Terry,

What about other shell extensions (not only Context Menu handlers). Have you
tried temporarily disabling them as well?

Secondly, see if the Event Viewer provides any clue on the Windows Explorer
crash. Click Start, type eventvwr.msc. Check the Application and System logs
(match the date/time when the crash occurred.)

--
Regards,

Ramesh Srinivasan, Microsoft MVP [Windows Shell/User]
The Winhelponline Blog: http://www.winhelponline.com/blog
Windows® Troubleshooting: http://www.winhelponline.com


Terry Smerling said:
Thank you for the quick reply. Before I posted I tried ShellExView and
disabled all non-MS context menu handlers, but the problem continued
nonetheless. Any other ideas?


Ramesh said:
Hi Terry,

This is most likely caused by a third-party shell extension. See "Method
2" here:

Right-click is slow or weird behavior caused by context menu handlers:
http://windowsxp.mvps.org/slowrightclick.htm

--
Regards,

Ramesh Srinivasan, Microsoft MVP [Windows Shell/User]
The Winhelponline Blog: http://www.winhelponline.com/blog
Windows® Troubleshooting: http://www.winhelponline.com


Terry Smerling said:
Each time I attempt a right click to access the context menu Windows
Explorer crashes. This is true whether I use Explorer or PowerDesk Pro
7 as my file manager. As a result I am unable to zip files, rename
files or run executables as the Administrtor. The error message I get
is simply that "Windows Explorer has stopped working." I suspected that
possibly Norton 360 was the culprit, but I disabled Norton 360 and the
problem persists. I believe this problem did not start until I
installed Vista's SP1. I am running Vista Home Premium on a powerful
MicroExpress machine with ample RAM. Any ideas or suggestions would be
greatly appreciated.
Click to expand...
Click to expand...
Click to expand...
 
Hi Terry,

What about other shell extensions (not only Context Menu handlers). Have you
tried temporarily disabling them as well?

Secondly, see if the Event Viewer provides any clue on the Windows Explorer
crash. Click Start, type eventvwr.msc. Check the Application and System logs
(match the date/time when the crash occurred.)

--
Regards,

Ramesh Srinivasan, Microsoft MVP [Windows Shell/User]
The Winhelponline Blog: http://www.winhelponline.com/blog
Windows® Troubleshooting: http://www.winhelponline.com


Terry Smerling said:
Thank you for the quick reply. Before I posted I tried ShellExView and
disabled all non-MS context menu handlers, but the problem continued
nonetheless. Any other ideas?


Ramesh said:
Hi Terry,

This is most likely caused by a third-party shell extension. See "Method
2" here:

Right-click is slow or weird behavior caused by context menu handlers:
http://windowsxp.mvps.org/slowrightclick.htm

--
Regards,

Ramesh Srinivasan, Microsoft MVP [Windows Shell/User]
The Winhelponline Blog: http://www.winhelponline.com/blog
Windows® Troubleshooting: http://www.winhelponline.com


Terry Smerling said:
Each time I attempt a right click to access the context menu Windows
Explorer crashes. This is true whether I use Explorer or PowerDesk Pro
7 as my file manager. As a result I am unable to zip files, rename
files or run executables as the Administrtor. The error message I get
is simply that "Windows Explorer has stopped working." I suspected that
possibly Norton 360 was the culprit, but I disabled Norton 360 and the
problem persists. I believe this problem did not start until I
installed Vista's SP1. I am running Vista Home Premium on a powerful
MicroExpress machine with ample RAM. Any ideas or suggestions would be
greatly appreciated.
Click to expand...
Click to expand...
Click to expand...
 
Someone tipped me off to a simple fix. Using Regedit I changed Powerdesk
Menu to zPowerdesk Menu in
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\*\shellex\ContextMenuHandlers\PowerDesk Menu. Apparently
by doing this I insured that PowerDesk's Context Menus load last, and that
was all it took. Thank you for your attentitive responses.


Ramesh said:
Hi Terry,

What about other shell extensions (not only Context Menu handlers). Have
you tried temporarily disabling them as well?

Secondly, see if the Event Viewer provides any clue on the Windows
Explorer crash. Click Start, type eventvwr.msc. Check the Application and
System logs (match the date/time when the crash occurred.)

--
Regards,

Ramesh Srinivasan, Microsoft MVP [Windows Shell/User]
The Winhelponline Blog: http://www.winhelponline.com/blog
Windows® Troubleshooting: http://www.winhelponline.com


Terry Smerling said:
Thank you for the quick reply. Before I posted I tried ShellExView and
disabled all non-MS context menu handlers, but the problem continued
nonetheless. Any other ideas?


Ramesh said:
Hi Terry,

This is most likely caused by a third-party shell extension. See "Method
2" here:

Right-click is slow or weird behavior caused by context menu handlers:
http://windowsxp.mvps.org/slowrightclick.htm

--
Regards,

Ramesh Srinivasan, Microsoft MVP [Windows Shell/User]
The Winhelponline Blog: http://www.winhelponline.com/blog
Windows® Troubleshooting: http://www.winhelponline.com


Each time I attempt a right click to access the context menu Windows
Explorer crashes. This is true whether I use Explorer or PowerDesk Pro
7 as my file manager. As a result I am unable to zip files, rename
files or run executables as the Administrtor. The error message I get
is simply that "Windows Explorer has stopped working." I suspected
that possibly Norton 360 was the culprit, but I disabled Norton 360 and
the problem persists. I believe this problem did not start until I
installed Vista's SP1. I am running Vista Home Premium on a powerful
MicroExpress machine with ample RAM. Any ideas or suggestions would be
greatly appreciated.
Click to expand...
Click to expand...
Click to expand...
 
Interesting! So, it's the context menu handler shell extension in either
case. Wondering why troubleshooting using ShellExView did not isolate the
problem...

--
Regards,

Ramesh Srinivasan, Microsoft MVP [Windows Shell/User]
The Winhelponline Blog: http://www.winhelponline.com/blog
Windows® Troubleshooting: http://www.winhelponline.com


Terry Smerling said:
Someone tipped me off to a simple fix. Using Regedit I changed Powerdesk
Menu to zPowerdesk Menu in
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\*\shellex\ContextMenuHandlers\PowerDesk Menu.
Apparently by doing this I insured that PowerDesk's Context Menus load
last, and that was all it took. Thank you for your attentitive responses.


Ramesh said:
Hi Terry,

What about other shell extensions (not only Context Menu handlers). Have
you tried temporarily disabling them as well?

Secondly, see if the Event Viewer provides any clue on the Windows
Explorer crash. Click Start, type eventvwr.msc. Check the Application and
System logs (match the date/time when the crash occurred.)

--
Regards,

Ramesh Srinivasan, Microsoft MVP [Windows Shell/User]
The Winhelponline Blog: http://www.winhelponline.com/blog
Windows® Troubleshooting: http://www.winhelponline.com


Terry Smerling said:
Thank you for the quick reply. Before I posted I tried ShellExView and
disabled all non-MS context menu handlers, but the problem continued
nonetheless. Any other ideas?


Hi Terry,

This is most likely caused by a third-party shell extension. See
"Method 2" here:

Right-click is slow or weird behavior caused by context menu handlers:
http://windowsxp.mvps.org/slowrightclick.htm

--
Regards,

Ramesh Srinivasan, Microsoft MVP [Windows Shell/User]
The Winhelponline Blog: http://www.winhelponline.com/blog
Windows® Troubleshooting: http://www.winhelponline.com


Each time I attempt a right click to access the context menu Windows
Explorer crashes. This is true whether I use Explorer or PowerDesk
Pro 7 as my file manager. As a result I am unable to zip files,
rename files or run executables as the Administrtor. The error
message I get is simply that "Windows Explorer has stopped working."
I suspected that possibly Norton 360 was the culprit, but I disabled
Norton 360 and the problem persists. I believe this problem did not
start until I installed Vista's SP1. I am running Vista Home Premium
on a powerful MicroExpress machine with ample RAM. Any ideas or
suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
Click to expand...
Click to expand...
Click to expand...
 
Anonymous (6/18/2008)
Post in reply to: Terry SmerlingInteresting! So, it's the context menu handler shell extension in either case. Wondering why troubleshooting using ShellExView did not isolate the problem...
Click to expand...
I have a VERY similiar issue....Just installed SP1 and now right-clicking on the desktop backgroundfreezes the system for aprox 20 seconds.  I might have to try ShellExView.Matthew


Post Originated from http://www.VistaForums.com Vista Support Forums
 
Hi,

It's an old thread and I only see what you recently posted since you did not
include the contents of the thread you entered. If you are having context
menu issues, the solution is usually to use an editor such as the one I
provided a link for to selectively remove third party entries until it
behaves correctly.

--
Best of Luck,

Rick Rogers, aka "Nutcase" - Microsoft MVP

Windows help - www.rickrogers.org
 
What convinces you that this is a service issue?

There are only two services that directly affect the explorer shell, the
Themes service and the Windows Desktop Manager, and niether would manifest
itself as a problem by crashing explorer when a context menu is invoked. The
Themes service not running would invoke a classic shell, and the WDM not
loading would result in no shell at all.

Again, context menu crashes are nearly always third party related. Common
culprits include those that deal with compressed folders (winrar, for
example), and antivirus on-demand extensions. If your installation of Vista
was an upgrade, then there is a strong chance that something you had
installed in XP is not compatible with Vista (either the application itself
or the version that was in use during the upgrade).

Believe what you will, but I think you're heading in the wrong direction
with resolving this.

--
Best of Luck,

Rick Rogers, aka "Nutcase" - Microsoft MVP

Windows help - www.rickrogers.org
 
Hi,

Can I guarantee it? No, but it's a likely suspect. Troubleshooting means
trying different things to isolate the problem. Were the machine on my
workbench, I would take the same approach. I can only recommend based on
past experience when working support groups, it's up to you to decide what
to do.
P.S. Your link is for XP and I have Vista also
Click to expand...

Their tool works for Vista as well as XP.

--
Best of Luck,

Rick Rogers, aka "Nutcase" - Microsoft MVP

Windows help - www.rickrogers.org
 
Hi,

Antivirus solutions, nearly all of them, add context menu handlers to the
operating system for on-demand scanning. It's not the program itself causing
the problem so much as the handlers. Sometimes, removing the program is
insufficient, you need to clean out the remnants, which is why I recommended
the cleanup utility (which is rated for Win's 2000, XP, and Vista according
to its documentation).

--
Best of Luck,

Rick Rogers, aka "Nutcase" - Microsoft MVP

Windows help - www.rickrogers.org
 
Many 3rd party packages that claim to make a Window system run better cause
far more problems then they resolve because there developers do not have the
resouces to test them against all of the different permutations and
combinations of applications that may be installed each different version of
each OS.
 
Hi,

They all have them, but they aren't all implemented the same. Each version
of Windows requires changes in programming, and sometimes program vendors
are lax in following the new parameters.

FWIW, both McAfee and Symantec antivirus solutions have long been the bane
of support folk as both are overly intrusive, bogging down good systems, and
are well-known to cause numerous system issues for the masses since both are
commonly included in preinstalled systems. Removal is usually best way to
resolve the issues. Replacement solutions commonly recommended include, but
are not limited to, AVG, NOD32, Avira, Kaspersky, Avast, and BitDefender.

I know nothing of the tweaking utility you list. Simple question: Was the
system exhibiting this behavior before you installed it? If not, then it's a
possible cause.

--
Best of Luck,

Rick Rogers, aka "Nutcase" - Microsoft MVP

Windows help - www.rickrogers.org
 
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