Explorer Freezes When Opening One Folder On Right Pane

[BillW50]

This problem just appeared a few weeks ago. And I have Windows XP on the
first partition (drive C), Windows 7 on the second (drive W), and data
on the third (drive D). And using Explorer with the folder tree pane,
one folder on the data drive causes Explorer to lock up. This folder is
called SD and contains a smaller version of My Documents, etc. My
Favorites point there, but not much else.

If I use the folder tree pane (on the left) to open the folder, it opens
up just fine. On the right pane though, Explorer locks up. No hour glass
even shows up sometimes. And clicking on anything within Explorer does
nothing. Ending the task, closes the Taskbar (and it restarts).

Now a few days ago, problem has disappeared. Although now clicking on
anything on the right pane, opens up in a new window. Even though you
have the folder options set to not to do so. I even tried to reset and
toggle the options back and forth, no good.

I have lots of backups and I am currently using an earlier version that
locks up Explorer. This machine has SP2. I tried installing SP3 and no
help (and over 1GB of lost disk space, thanks a lot Microsoft!). If
nobody knows how to fix either problem, I guess I'll go to a much
earlier backup. I rather not though. And it might come back again
anyway. TIA

 

[BillW50]

In BillW50 typed on Sat, 25 Jul 2009 10:07:40 -0500:

This problem just appeared a few weeks ago. And I have Windows XP on
the first partition (drive C), Windows 7 on the second (drive W), and
data on the third (drive D). And using Explorer with the folder tree
pane, one folder on the data drive causes Explorer to lock up. This
folder is called SD and contains a smaller version of My Documents,
etc. My Favorites point there, but not much else.

If I use the folder tree pane (on the left) to open the folder, it
opens up just fine. On the right pane though, Explorer locks up. No
hour glass even shows up sometimes. And clicking on anything within
Explorer does nothing. Ending the task, closes the Taskbar (and it
restarts).
Now a few days ago, problem has disappeared. Although now clicking on
anything on the right pane, opens up in a new window. Even though you
have the folder options set to not to do so. I even tried to reset and
toggle the options back and forth, no good.

I have lots of backups and I am currently using an earlier version
that locks up Explorer. This machine has SP2. I tried installing SP3
and no help (and over 1GB of lost disk space, thanks a lot
Microsoft!). If nobody knows how to fix either problem, I guess I'll
go to a much earlier backup. I rather not though. And it might come
back again anyway. TIA

Something to add... this problem popped up shortly after I upgraded IE6
to IE8. It might not mean anything, but I'll check it out.

 

[BillW50]

In Tim Meddick typed on Sat, 25 Jul 2009 23:26:11 +0100:

Unfortunately, I can't do anything about your problem with the
"freezing folder" problem.

Except to say, sometimes it's caused by a corruption of data on the
hard-disk.

Running " chkdsk /f " on the drive, might solve the problem.

(Open a 'Command Prompt' (dos-box) windows and type - chkdsk /f -
then you may have to choose [press] the letter [y] to run on next
boot - do this and press [enter] - reboot to run the check)

After running " chkdsk /f " - I would endeavour to delete the
offending folder as well.

Sounds like a very reasonable theory Tim. Except I also have Windows 7
on this same machine and it doesn't have this problem. And I also ran
CHKDSK on this partition without any switches and it turns up clean.
Remember this is a data partition and I didn't access anything on this
partition before running CHKDSK.

Concerning the other problem - Luckily, I can see that you are using
M$ Outlook Express as your news reader.

So I can post

 

[Kelly]

Explorer Crashes - No desktop/Icons/Start Button

Control/Alt/Delete - When the Windows Task Manager dialog box appears, go
to Processes, find Explorer.exe highlight it and choose End Process.

Keep the task manager open then select the File menu and then New Task
(Run). When the Create New Task dialog box appears, type in Explorer and
press the OK button. Windows Explorer should restart complete with the
Taskbar and Start button.

Or see line 319: http://www.kellys-korner-xp.com/xp_tweaks.htm

If the folder houses .avi's....

100% CPU usage when using Media Player/AVI files

AVI Search Remove (Line 74)
http://www.kellys-korner-xp.com/xp_tweaks.htm

And/or- go to Start/Run and type in: regsvr32 /u shmedia.dll

--

All the Best,
Kelly (MS-MVP/DTS&XP)

Taskbar Repair Tool Plus!
http://www.kellys-korner-xp.com/taskbarplus!.htm

In Tim Meddick typed on Sat, 25 Jul 2009 23:26:11 +0100:

Unfortunately, I can't do anything about your problem with the
"freezing folder" problem.

Except to say, sometimes it's caused by a corruption of data on the
hard-disk.

Running " chkdsk /f " on the drive, might solve the problem.

(Open a 'Command Prompt' (dos-box) windows and type - chkdsk /f -
then you may have to choose [press] the letter [y] to run on next
boot - do this and press [enter] - reboot to run the check)

After running " chkdsk /f " - I would endeavour to delete the
offending folder as well.

Sounds like a very reasonable theory Tim. Except I also have Windows 7 on
this same machine and it doesn't have this problem. And I also ran CHKDSK
on this partition without any switches and it turns up clean. Remember
this is a data partition and I didn't access anything on this partition
before running CHKDSK.

Concerning the other problem - Luckily, I can see that you are using
M$ Outlook Express as your news reader.

So I can post

 

[Tim Meddick]

Your comments are greatly appreciated...

==

Cheers, Tim Meddick, Peckham, London.

In Tim Meddick typed on Sat, 25 Jul 2009 23:26:11 +0100:

Unfortunately, I can't do anything about your problem with the
"freezing folder" problem.

Except to say, sometimes it's caused by a corruption of data on the
hard-disk.

Running " chkdsk /f " on the drive, might solve the problem.

(Open a 'Command Prompt' (dos-box) windows and type - chkdsk /f -
then you may have to choose [press] the letter [y] to run on next
boot - do this and press [enter] - reboot to run the check)

After running " chkdsk /f " - I would endeavour to delete the
offending folder as well.

Sounds like a very reasonable theory Tim. Except I also have Windows 7 on this same
machine and it doesn't have this problem. And I also ran CHKDSK on this partition
without any switches and it turns up clean. Remember this is a data partition and I
didn't access anything on this partition before running CHKDSK.

Concerning the other problem - Luckily, I can see that you are using
M$ Outlook Express as your news reader.

So I can post

 

[woodsmith]

Kelly this is a good answer and it works. Now can you come up with an answer
to stop the problem from happening again?

Explorer Crashes - No desktop/Icons/Start Button

Control/Alt/Delete - When the Windows Task Manager dialog box appears, go
to Processes, find Explorer.exe highlight it and choose End Process.

Keep the task manager open then select the File menu and then New Task
(Run). When the Create New Task dialog box appears, type in Explorer and
press the OK button. Windows Explorer should restart complete with the
Taskbar and Start button.

Or see line 319: http://www.kellys-korner-xp.com/xp_tweaks.htm

If the folder houses .avi's....

100% CPU usage when using Media Player/AVI files

AVI Search Remove (Line 74)
http://www.kellys-korner-xp.com/xp_tweaks.htm

And/or- go to Start/Run and type in: regsvr32 /u shmedia.dll

--

All the Best,
Kelly (MS-MVP/DTS&XP)

Taskbar Repair Tool Plus!
http://www.kellys-korner-xp.com/taskbarplus!.htm

In Tim Meddick typed on Sat, 25 Jul 2009 23:26:11 +0100:

Unfortunately, I can't do anything about your problem with the
"freezing folder" problem.

Except to say, sometimes it's caused by a corruption of data on the
hard-disk.

Running " chkdsk /f " on the drive, might solve the problem.

(Open a 'Command Prompt' (dos-box) windows and type - chkdsk /f -
then you may have to choose [press] the letter [y] to run on next
boot - do this and press [enter] - reboot to run the check)

After running " chkdsk /f " - I would endeavour to delete the
offending folder as well.

Sounds like a very reasonable theory Tim. Except I also have Windows 7 on
this same machine and it doesn't have this problem. And I also ran CHKDSK
on this partition without any switches and it turns up clean. Remember
this is a data partition and I didn't access anything on this partition
before running CHKDSK.

Concerning the other problem - Luckily, I can see that you are using
M$ Outlook Express as your news reader.

So I can post

 

[Kelly]

Thanks and glad to hear it. Without knowing exactly what worked for you, I
will assume it has/had to do with avi's:

More info and a bit of the same:

This has to do with how Windows XP previews files when opened with Explorer.

Suggestions:

1. Disable thumbnail view by going to Start/Run/CMD: regsvr32 /u
shmedia.dll
2. And/or run this edit. This edit prevents high usage when browsing AVI
files.

Automated:

AVI Search Remove (Line 74)
http://www.kellys-korner-xp.com/xp_tweaks.htm

Manual Edit: Go to Start/Run/Regedit and navigate to the key below and
delete the default data (right pane).

Or:

HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\SystemFileAssociations\.avi\shellex\PropertyHandler

Windows Stops Responding When You Click a Large AVI File in Windows
Explorer" http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=822430

--

All the Best,
Kelly (MS-MVP/DTS&XP)

Taskbar Repair Tool Plus!
http://www.kellys-korner-xp.com/taskbarplus!.htm

Kelly this is a good answer and it works. Now can you come up with an
answer
to stop the problem from happening again?

Explorer Crashes - No desktop/Icons/Start Button

Control/Alt/Delete - When the Windows Task Manager dialog box appears,
go
to Processes, find Explorer.exe highlight it and choose End Process.

Keep the task manager open then select the File menu and then New Task
(Run). When the Create New Task dialog box appears, type in Explorer and
press the OK button. Windows Explorer should restart complete with the
Taskbar and Start button.

Or see line 319: http://www.kellys-korner-xp.com/xp_tweaks.htm

If the folder houses .avi's....

100% CPU usage when using Media Player/AVI files

AVI Search Remove (Line 74)
http://www.kellys-korner-xp.com/xp_tweaks.htm

And/or- go to Start/Run and type in: regsvr32 /u shmedia.dll

--

All the Best,
Kelly (MS-MVP/DTS&XP)

Taskbar Repair Tool Plus!
http://www.kellys-korner-xp.com/taskbarplus!.htm

In Tim Meddick typed on Sat, 25 Jul 2009 23:26:11 +0100:
Unfortunately, I can't do anything about your problem with the
"freezing folder" problem.

Except to say, sometimes it's caused by a corruption of data on the
hard-disk.

Running " chkdsk /f " on the drive, might solve the problem.

(Open a 'Command Prompt' (dos-box) windows and type - chkdsk /f -
then you may have to choose [press] the letter [y] to run on next
boot - do this and press [enter] - reboot to run the check)

After running " chkdsk /f " - I would endeavour to delete the
offending folder as well.

Sounds like a very reasonable theory Tim. Except I also have Windows 7
on
this same machine and it doesn't have this problem. And I also ran
CHKDSK
on this partition without any switches and it turns up clean. Remember
this is a data partition and I didn't access anything on this partition
before running CHKDSK.

Concerning the other problem - Luckily, I can see that you are using
M$ Outlook Express as your news reader.

So I can post

 

[Chris]

Kelly,

You are amazing! Thanks. This was happening to me as well and your
recommendations corrected the issue.

Chris

Thanks and glad to hear it. Without knowing exactly what worked for you, I
will assume it has/had to do with avi's:

More info and a bit of the same:

This has to do with how Windows XP previews files when opened with Explorer.

Suggestions:

1. Disable thumbnail view by going to Start/Run/CMD: regsvr32 /u
shmedia.dll
2. And/or run this edit. This edit prevents high usage when browsing AVI
files.

Automated:

AVI Search Remove (Line 74)
http://www.kellys-korner-xp.com/xp_tweaks.htm

Manual Edit: Go to Start/Run/Regedit and navigate to the key below and
delete the default data (right pane).

Or:

HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\SystemFileAssociations\.avi\shellex\PropertyHandler

Windows Stops Responding When You Click a Large AVI File in Windows
Explorer" http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=822430

--

All the Best,
Kelly (MS-MVP/DTS&XP)

Taskbar Repair Tool Plus!
http://www.kellys-korner-xp.com/taskbarplus!.htm

Kelly this is a good answer and it works. Now can you come up with an
answer
to stop the problem from happening again?

Explorer Crashes - No desktop/Icons/Start Button

Control/Alt/Delete - When the Windows Task Manager dialog box appears,
go
to Processes, find Explorer.exe highlight it and choose End Process.

Keep the task manager open then select the File menu and then New Task
(Run). When the Create New Task dialog box appears, type in Explorer and
press the OK button. Windows Explorer should restart complete with the
Taskbar and Start button.

Or see line 319: http://www.kellys-korner-xp.com/xp_tweaks.htm

If the folder houses .avi's....

100% CPU usage when using Media Player/AVI files

AVI Search Remove (Line 74)
http://www.kellys-korner-xp.com/xp_tweaks.htm

And/or- go to Start/Run and type in: regsvr32 /u shmedia.dll

--

All the Best,
Kelly (MS-MVP/DTS&XP)

Taskbar Repair Tool Plus!
http://www.kellys-korner-xp.com/taskbarplus!.htm


In Tim Meddick typed on Sat, 25 Jul 2009 23:26:11 +0100:
Unfortunately, I can't do anything about your problem with the
"freezing folder" problem.

Except to say, sometimes it's caused by a corruption of data on the
hard-disk.

Running " chkdsk /f " on the drive, might solve the problem.

(Open a 'Command Prompt' (dos-box) windows and type - chkdsk /f -
then you may have to choose [press] the letter [y] to run on next
boot - do this and press [enter] - reboot to run the check)

After running " chkdsk /f " - I would endeavour to delete the
offending folder as well.

Sounds like a very reasonable theory Tim. Except I also have Windows 7
on
this same machine and it doesn't have this problem. And I also ran
CHKDSK
on this partition without any switches and it turns up clean. Remember
this is a data partition and I didn't access anything on this partition
before running CHKDSK.

Concerning the other problem - Luckily, I can see that you are using
M$ Outlook Express as your news reader.

So I can post