Explorer always crashing

[Opetich]

Hi.
I just installed Windows 7 x64 (Build: 7600? i think, at least it is what it says at cmd) and it is always crashing " Windows Explorer has stopped working", then it closes and restarts it, and after a few seconds or minutes it happens again, and again, also noticed that it also crashes when i try to use the search on the start menu, but it doesn't crashes on a explorer window search.


Computer: X2
Description:
Faulting application name: Explorer.EXE, version: 6.1.7600.16385, time stamp: 0x4a5bc9bb
Faulting module name: Explorer.EXE, version: 6.1.7600.16385, time stamp: 0x4a5bc9bb
Exception code: 0xc000041d
Fault offset: 0x00000000000361f5
Faulting process id: 0x7f4
Faulting application start time: 0x01ca3a2a58a99a60
Faulting application path: C:\Windows\Explorer.EXE
Faulting module path: C:\Windows\Explorer.EXE
Report Id: 7ff5f220-a61e-11de-8140-0018f39a15e0

it also happens with diferents exception codes.
Also this dvd works with a computer from a friend.

thanks in advance

 

[musiclover7]

Are you running Zone alarm software?

The error you are getting seems to point to right click context errors. I have heard of others getting that error when using ZA...

Just a thought..

 

[zigzag3143]

Hi.
I just installed Windows 7 x64 (Build: 7600? i think, at least it is what it says at cmd) and it is always crashing " Windows Explorer has stopped working", then it closes and restarts it, and after a few seconds or minutes it happens again, and again, also noticed that it also crashes when i try to use the search on the start menu, but it doesn't crashes on a explorer window search.


Computer: X2
Description:
Faulting application name: Explorer.EXE, version: 6.1.7600.16385, time stamp: 0x4a5bc9bb
Faulting module name: Explorer.EXE, version: 6.1.7600.16385, time stamp: 0x4a5bc9bb
Exception code: 0xc000041d
Fault offset: 0x00000000000361f5
Faulting process id: 0x7f4
Faulting application start time: 0x01ca3a2a58a99a60
Faulting application path: C:\Windows\Explorer.EXE
Faulting module path: C:\Windows\Explorer.EXE
Report Id: 7ff5f220-a61e-11de-8140-0018f39a15e0

it also happens with diferents exception codes.
Also this dvd works with a computer from a friend.

thanks in advance

Can you go to c:\windows\minidump, zip the dump file (*.dmp) and upload it for us to debug

let us know if you need help with any of this

Ken

 

[Opetich]

Are you running Zone alarm software?

The error you are getting seems to point to right click context errors. I have heard of others getting that error when using ZA...

Just a thought..

Not running anything, just installed brand new.

Can you go to c:\windows\minidump, zip the dump file (*.dmp) and upload it for us to debug

let us know if you need help with any of this

Ken

cant find any dump files :S

 

[zigzag3143]

O

Try searching *.dmp on the drive where your OS is

ken

 

[Opetich]

no files *.dmp found :S

 

[zigzag3143]

O

My fault i think. did you get the info provided in your first post from event viewer?

 

[Opetich]

yes, there is also this one
like:
Faulting application name: Explorer.EXE, version: 6.1.7600.16385, time stamp: 0x4a5bc9bb
Faulting module name: Explorer.EXE, version: 6.1.7600.16385, time stamp: 0x4a5bc9bb
Exception code: 0xc000008f
Fault offset: 0x0000000000051989
Faulting process id: 0x2b0
Faulting application start time: 0x01ca3abdd8f2f700
Faulting application path: C:\Windows\Explorer.EXE
Faulting module path: C:\Windows\Explorer.EXE
Report Id: 2304b9a0-a6b1-11de-83e0-0018f39a15e0

 

[H2SO4]

(@ZigZag: the "\windows\minidump" dumps are specific to BSODs. Since Explorer.exe is a user-mode process, it's crashes do not typically bring down the whole system, and there's no minidump generated in that folder.)

Since you seem able to reproduce this quite readily, there's a way to gather more info that may allow me or someone else here to tell you why Explorer's crashing. If you'd like to give it a go...

1) Download and install the x64 version of the "Debugging Tools" package: http://www.microsoft.com/whdc/devtools/debugging/install64bit.mspx#

2) From the folder where you installed it, run WinDBG.exe as admin (right-click, "run as admin...").

3) Press F6, sort "by executable", find EXPLORER.EXE, select, OK.

4) It'll spew out a whole bunch of numbers and eventually dump you on a prompt at the bottom of the page. Just type G and press enter. This attaches the debugger to Explorer but then lets the process "Go" and continue to work.

5) Do what you normally do to reproduce the Explorer crash.

6) This time, you may find that instead of the normal Explorer crash sequence, it just seems to hang and go unresponsive. That's because WinDBG has detected the crash and "broken in" to take control of the Explorer process.

7) Ignore all the WinDBG spew again and wait for the prompt, then type this:

.dump /m exp1.dmp

If you don't give it a full path, the exp1.dmp file will be created in the same folder where you installed the debugger package. If the file is small enough when zipped up, please upload it here.

8) It doesn't really matter what you to do restart Explorer after the memory dump has been written. Just kill WinDBG and that should take out the old Explorer instance which crashed, then restart Explorer any way you normally would.

 

[Opetich]

Here are the WinDBG dumpfiles, the first file is using the search in the start menu, and the 2nd is from a random crash from explorer.

 

[zigzag3143]

SA

Understood, and thanks for the ongoing tutorial on debugging

Ken

 

[H2SO4]

Here are the WinDBG dumpfiles, the first file is using the search in the start menu, and the 2nd is from a random crash from explorer.

Nice work

These are both "rendering" crashes, meaning that Explorer was painting bits of itself and its UI elements - such as buttons - when it encountered a problem.

Before we get too caught up, did you "mod" the user interface in any way you can think of? Install a 3rd-party theme or replace UI elements with something non-standard, or use a resource editor to draw on the standard elements... that sort of thing?


First dump:

0:005> kL
Child-SP          RetAddr           Call Site
00000000`029defe0 00000000`ff76181a explorer!CCrossFader::UpdatePercent+0xca
00000000`029df030 00000000`ff7619b8 explorer!CDesktopHost::_AnimateView+0x7bc
00000000`029df0e0 00000000`ff71ce44 explorer!CDesktopHost::WndProc+0x76c
00000000`029df1e0 00000000`7775c3c1 explorer!CDesktopHost::s_WndProc+0xbf
00000000`029df210 00000000`77756484 user32!UserCallWinProcCheckWow+0x1ad
00000000`029df2d0 00000000`77756400 user32!CallWindowProcAorW+0xdc
00000000`029df320 000007fe`fc4461b9 user32!CallWindowProcW+0x18
00000000`029df360 000007fe`fc446944 comctl32!CallOriginalWndProc+0x1d
00000000`029df3a0 000007fe`fc44670c comctl32!CallNextSubclassProc+0x8c
00000000`029df420 00000000`ff71ca16 comctl32!DefSubclassProc+0x7c
00000000`029df470 00000000`ff71ca87 explorer!DefSubclassProc+0x56
00000000`029df4a0 000007fe`fc446944 explorer!CAccessible::s_SubclassProc+0x6a
00000000`029df4d0 000007fe`fc44681b comctl32!CallNextSubclassProc+0x8c
00000000`029df550 00000000`7775c3c1 comctl32!MasterSubclassProc+0xe7
00000000`029df5f0 00000000`7775c60a user32!UserCallWinProcCheckWow+0x1ad
00000000`029df6b0 00000000`ff711177 user32!DispatchMessageWorker+0x3b5
00000000`029df730 00000000`ff740431 explorer!CTray::_MessageLoop+0x446
00000000`029df7c0 000007fe`ff26c8ea explorer!CTray::MainThreadProc+0x8a
00000000`029df7f0 00000000`7763f56d shlwapi!WrapperThreadProc+0x19b
00000000`029df8f0 00000000`77873281 kernel32!BaseThreadInitThunk+0xd

Second dump:

00000000`0237eb00 00000000`ff753746 explorer!DrawRadialGradient+0x1fc
00000000`0237ec10 00000000`ff7534cf explorer!CTaskBtnGroup::_DrawHotTrackingLight+0x300
00000000`0237eca0 00000000`ff753368 explorer!CTaskBtnGroup::_DrawRegularButtonHotTracking+0x1c7
00000000`0237ed30 00000000`ff713961 explorer!CTaskBtnGroup::_DrawRegularButton+0x51d
00000000`0237f110 00000000`ff71424b explorer!CTaskBtnGroup::Render+0x4b5
00000000`0237f210 00000000`ff71281f explorer!CTaskListWnd::_HandlePaint+0x2bb
00000000`0237f2b0 00000000`ff7112c0 explorer!CTaskListWnd::v_WndProc+0x75f
00000000`0237f3b0 00000000`7775b601 explorer!CImpWndProc::s_WndProc+0x91
00000000`0237f3f0 00000000`7775a01b user32!UserCallWinProcCheckWow+0x163
00000000`0237f4b0 00000000`7775a061 user32!DispatchClientMessage+0xc3
00000000`0237f510 00000000`7788fdf5 user32!_fnDWORD+0x2d
00000000`0237f570 00000000`777565aa ntdll!KiUserCallbackDispatcherContinue
00000000`0237f5f8 00000000`7775523a user32!ZwUserCallHwndLock+0xa
00000000`0237f600 00000000`ff71858f user32!UpdateWindow+0x3e
00000000`0237f630 000007fe`fc621ebc explorer!CTaskListWnd::OnPostUpdate+0x3b
00000000`0237f660 000007fe`fc621d85 UIAnimation!UI::Animation::CTimer::OnTimerTick+0x11d
00000000`0237f7d0 000007fe`fc6211e9 UIAnimation!UI::Animation::CTimer::WndProc+0xe9
00000000`0237f800 00000000`7775c3c1 UIAnimation!UI::Animation::CTimer::StaticWndProc+0x45
00000000`0237f840 00000000`7775c60a user32!UserCallWinProcCheckWow+0x1ad
00000000`0237f900 00000000`ff711177 user32!DispatchMessageWorker+0x3b5

 

[Opetich]

I didn't install anything, its a fresh install of windows, format & install.
I was just exploring windows, and started having this problems.

 

[Opetich]

Changing from Aero theme to basic and high contrast themes, seems to solve the start menu search bug, but explorer still seems to crash a lot :S

also had 2 bsod, attached

 

[H2SO4]

Changing from Aero theme to basic and high contrast themes, seems to solve the start menu search bug, but explorer still seems to crash a lot :S

also had 2 bsod, attached

One of those BSODs is a kernel-mode rendering crash which happened while drawing WerFault.exe visual elements - the act of drawing the "explorer has crashed" message box caused another crash down in the guts of the OS

In the other, the OS realised that the contents of some critical data it had earlier paged out to disk are not intact. When the same data pages were read back into physical memory (from the pagefile), some sort of irrecoverable inconsistency was detected.

Given the only hits I get when I search for the crashing Explorer function names point back to this thread, it's unlikely to be a widespread problem. My gut feeling is that your box has hardware issues, especially if you've downloaded your copy of Win7 7600 from Microsoft and then verified the image before install. Clean installs of an OS don't tend to crash this readily unless there's an underlying hardware fault.

You might want to test whether you can reproduce the Explorer crashes in BASEVIDEO (VGA) mode. From an elevated (run as admin) CMD prompt:

BCDEDIT /SET VGA ON

(And then ... OFF to go back to your default video settings on the next reboot.)

 

[Opetich]

In VGA mode, and without aero it stops crashing :x
maybe i should check hardware.

but oh well thanks, going to reinstall xp and try to find if I have any hardware issue or something

 

[H2SO4]

In VGA mode, and without aero it stops crashing :x
maybe i should check hardware.

but oh well thanks, going to reinstall xp and try to find if I have any hardware issue or something

Good luck with it. I was going to suggest testing what happens with a very, very fresh video driver, if one is available for your video card. It may bypass whatever code is leading to these rendering crashes.

 

[Opetich]

Unfortnely I dont have one available lol
but i'll wait 1 day going to try some of my friends

 

[Opetich]

Changing Graphics Card Didn't change anything, same error :s

 

[fac13]

Are you by any chance running Nvidia drivers beginning "190.", perhaps 190.62?

If so, you need to uninstall them and install a driver in the 180's (186.18, for example).

Lots of people are having this problem with the 64 bit version of Windows 7, as a google search will confirm. Regressing to the older drivers fixed it for me and many others.