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Unable to activate Windows Search after sudden self-deactivation
Ok I've been trying to find a solution for 3 days now. I've ggogled a lot but only found the standard ways but nothing helps.
The problem at hand is this:
I'd been using Windows Search (in the explorer upper right corner and start menu) often and intensely. After a session of using CCleaner and a reboot my Search Service didn't work anymore. It even disappeared in the Service Manager (services.msc). I found that the files SearchIndexer.exe, SearchFilterHost.exe and SearchProtocolHost.exe were missing from the system32 folder and the syswow64 folder. The file SearchFolder.dll is ok and there BTW (in both folders).
I used "DLL Suite" to download these files but they seem to be incompatible with my system somehow. Since the cmd prompt "regsvr32 SearchIndexer.exe" gives me the error that i should check the compatibility of the file for a 32 or 64 bit version of regsvr32.exe.
Furthermore when I add the files manually then it appears in the Service Manager but it says "Failed to read description. Error Code: 2" and if i try to start it "failed to find the patch specified" (the event viewer displays an error with the same message).
When i activate the search service through the feature manager it works fine, configures to 30% then reboots, starts off at 35% and - at the last try up till now - it got through to 98% then immediately switches to failure configuring-revert changes and the files get deleted.
I cant rebuild the index (i think it wouldnt do anything because the indexing service is not running too) because i cant access the indexing options.
I tried the Microsoft Fix-It too but the only thing it returns is "search is not up to date" and tells me to get search 4 but that is only for WinXP.
I found the tipp to start in safemode with networking and try again i will do that and try the same in cleanboot so if anyone answers it might take some time for me to answer back.
Also maybe someone knows if i can use the files from someone elses computer. I have Win 7 Ultimate SP1 x64 with all updates to today's date. Maybe someone would have the same OS as me and would be nice enough to upload these files I mentioned earlier so I can try them out.
Help is appreciated and I thank you beforehand.
P.S.: I also looked into the registry for the "ef..." key and there wasnt any like this. The *.blf and *.regtrans-ms files i tried to delete but they are "open in system" and i dont know how to delete them. I'll try to delete them in safemode and cleanboot again.
Edit: Ok I tried safemode AND cleanboot but both didnt work...I'm at my wit's end. The Only idea I have now is reinstalling Win7, since repair doesn't work it says hat this setup is not compatible with the OS used even with a created repair disc just minutes before the attempted repair install. I would look which software is on my system partition, backup my registry for everything thats not so i dont need to reinstall every software and game even though they are still there (like steam and games, origin and games, etc...) backup my personal files and then format the system partition and reinstalling after which i would reinstate the backup of the registry i just made...
Last edited by Hazuzi; 24 Nov 2013 at 13:31.