Fixing Windows Explorer Crashes
Windows Explorer crashes are one of the commonest system problems. The user right clicks a file or folder in Windows Explorer and the result is an error message informing the user “Windows Explorer encountered a problem and needs to close.” We could be tempted to curse Microsoft, but there’s every probability it’s not their fault. Explorer, after all, is a very stable utility and has been for years. Windows encountered a problem doesn't necessarily mean Windows caused the Explorer crash in the first place.
Shell extensions
Many moons ago, Microsoft opened up Explorer functionality to developers, allowing them to write shell extensions that integrate into the service. Right click in Explorer and there’s a good chance you’ll see a good few 3rd party applications have added functions to the menu. As an example, a quick glance at my own menu shows I can scan a file with anti-virus software, open an image with an alternative application, securely erase files, create a zip archive, and convert a file to Adobe PDF.
But just because someone decides to write a shell extension for their application, doesn’t mean they’ve done a good job of it! With the advent of thumbnails, there’s even more scope for 3rd party application developers to get things wrong, and one of the commonest causes of Explorer crashes we’re aware of, is where thumbnails are being rendered. The problem with an Explorer crash is it doesn’t tell you why or, if it was caused by a shell extension, which one caused the fault. It can’t because shell extensions are simply COM objects that are effectively integrated into Explorer. All Explorer knows is that it can’t handle the task asked of it.
At this point it’s worth saying that not all Windows Explorer crashes are due to 3rd party developers. It’s possible a virus infection, spyware or some other malware has affected or infected Explorer itself. However, if we have sensible protection (and most of us do) then the most probable cause is a 3rd party application extension. The good news is we should be able to isolate the cause with relative ease by deactivating all the shelled application extensions and see if the problem still manifests itself.
ShelExView
There is a free utility called “ShelExView” written by Nir Sofer (thanks Nir) that will list all Explorer application extensions and give us the option to disable / enable them. The link for the download page is http://www.nirsoft.net/utils/shexview.html
This useful software utility can be simply downloaded and run by clicking the executable file. Once open, click ‘company’ to sort into publisher order and deactivate all the extensions NOT published by Microsoft, then run Explorer and see if the problem is still manifest. If Explorer works the way it should without crashing then you’ve found the cause. From here on it’s easy to reactivate the shell extensions one by one until you isolate the one causing the problem. Once you know the application, you can check for a possible update with the publishers, or simply keep the extension deactivated in Explorer. Or write a snotty email to the developers!
This advisory won’t fix every Windows Explorer crash because every system has its own unique configuration. But it’s an excellent starting point and the chances are very high that your problem with Explorer crashes will be solved.