Windows won't paste folders into different folders or drives.

garydt · 27 Nov 2014

Hi,
I've been trying to sort this problem for 2 days and it's driving me nuts!

I can copy folder(s) but when I try to paste them into another folder or drive I get a pop-up -

Microsoft Visual C++ Runtime Library Runtime Error! Program C:\windows\explorer.exe abnormal program termination.

when I click OK all my desktop icons disappear for a second or 2 and then they come back. When I right click, the Paste option is grey as if it has forgotten I've copied something 30 seconds before.

I can copy a few small files to different folders and drives but that's about it.

I've run anti-virus and mailware - nothing. I've run sfc /scannow, no results. I tried to do a clean boot but it couldn't find misconfig.exe . So I downloaded the file and tried to paste it into windows\system32 and it asked if I wanted to paste it over the old one. Clicking ok it said access is denied. So I ran misconfig from the desktop, did a clean boot, tried copy and paste and the same runtime error came up.

I checked the permissions for the windows folders and C drive: both said I didn't have full control, I just have Modify, read and write. When I tried to get full control it came with access is denied.

I've tried copy and paste in Safe Mode, still get the error. I don't know what else to do. Any help would be great.

Thanks.

bigmck · 27 Nov 2014

What files are you trying to paste? If you are trying to paste files into a System Folder, there might be a problem. Are you doing that?

garydt · 27 Nov 2014

No, I'm just trying to back up various files and folders on to another drive.
when I first noticed the problem I was trying to copy a few folders from an external hard drive to a new memory stick but the error message popped. so I tried copying a small folder from C: to D:and that didn't work. I can only paste things on to the desktop.

Ztruker · 27 Nov 2014

Boot to Safe Mode and try it. If it works then something is running that is causing the problem. Try this:

Perform a clean startup to determine whether background programs are interfering with your game or program

garydt · 27 Nov 2014

I've tried both, still got the error

Ztruker · 27 Nov 2014

Where is the other drive located? Is it a 2nd internal hard drive or an external hard drive?
Can you create a folder on the other drive?
Can you open folders or files that are already on the other drive.

Where did the drive come from and was it in use in another computer?

lehnerus2000 · 28 Nov 2014

I'm not exactly sure what you are trying to do.

When Windows refuses to cooperate, I simply swap to Linux Mint 17 and use it to copy/paste what I want.

Do you have access to a Live Linux CD/DVD/USB (e.g. Ubuntu, Linux Mint, etc.)?
You can use it to copy the files to the required location.

garydt · 28 Nov 2014

I could download Linux Mint 17

Are you saying there's no fix / solution to windows not pasting?

lehnerus2000 · 28 Nov 2014

I'm not saying that.

I've never seen this problem.
You have mentioned that you tried several standard fixes, which don't work for you (e.g. sfc, malware scans, etc.).

I can paste folders and files into System32.

Did you just install or update something before you noticed this issue?

Have you tried using System Restore?

Have you tried turning off your AV program, before attempting to "Copy & Paste"?

garydt · 28 Nov 2014

Thank you for replying.
I've just tried turning my av programs off and tried copying a folder from a drive to C drive and the error still came up. I can copy files, folder(s) from anywhere but when I paste anywhere, either with right-click or ctrl+v, the error still comes up.

I've got Norton 360, Mailwarebytes, and Webroot Securityanywhere.

I've tried system restore going back a month, still the same. I've tried creating another user account and logging onto that account, still couldn't paste.

On Tuesday I bought a 128gig usb 3.0 memory stick and windows installed the driver for it. I formatted the usb stick to fts32 and I then tried to paste a few folders onto it from an external hard drive and that was when the error first came up. Now, I can't paste anywhere.