Fix PC Errors Blog

Windows Explorer is the executable that serves as the interface to the Windows operating system and as such it has its share of problems. This is the second article in a series that will deal with various Windows Explorer related issues.

Windows Says You Must Re-Install

After starting your computer in Windows 98 or Me, you may see a blank desktop and get an error message like this:

Error loading EXPLORER.EXE. You must reinstall Windows.
Explorer.exe [program_name]

where [program_name] is the name of a program.

After receiving the error your computer may hang or restart. You may also see this behavior in Safe Mode. This happens when Windows Explorer is set to run a program automatically on startup which is missing or damaged. Sometimes this can be a virus or Trojan horse.To fix the problem, you will need to edit the System.ini file and remove the program. You should also scan your computer with anti-virus and anti-spyware software. Follow these steps to repair Windows:

1. Use a startup disk to boot to a command prompt. If you don’t have a startup disk you will have to get one made on another computer. If no one you know is running Windows 98 or Me, you can visit www.bootdisk.com to make a boot disk on another computer.
2. Type C: and press ENTER at the command prompt.
3. Change to the Windows directory by typing CD \Windows and pressing ENTER.
4. Type Edit System.ini and press ENTER to edit the System.ini file.
5. Using the arrow keys, find the line starting with shell=Explorer.exe, in the [boot] section of the System.ini file.
6. Insert a semicolon in front of the test, so the line looks as follows:

   ;shell=Explorer.exe [program_name]
   

7. Using the arrow keys, move to the end of the line and press Enter to insert a new blank line.
8. Type Shell=Explorer.exe on the new line. The file should now read as follows:

   shell=Explorer.exe [program_name]
   Shell=Explorer.exe

9. Save the file by pressing ALT+F, then S.
10. Exit by pressing ALT+F, then X.
11. Remove the startup disk and restart.

Windows XP Quits When You View My Computer

While trying to use Windows Explorer to view items under My Computer, you may get an error if the Folders Explorer Bar is turned on:

Windows Explorer has encountered a problem and needs to close. We are sorry for the inconvenience. Please tell Microsoft about this problem.

This can happen if you have installed programs from the Kodak Picture Software CD version 1.3 or earlier, like Kodak EasyShare: Camera Connection, Picture Transfer, and Picture Software. Removing these programs using Add/Remove Programs in the Control Panel will fix the problem.

Windows Explorer Quits When You Map a Network Drive

When you try to map a drive to a network share or Web location using Windows Explorer, Windows Explorer may exit with one of the following errors:

Windows XP:

Explorer.exe has encountered a problem and needs to close. We are sorry for the inconvenience.

Windows 2000:

Access Violation

Explorer.exe has generated errors and will be closed by Windows. You will need to restart the program. An error log is being created.

This can happen if the length of the mapped network drive name exceeds 300 characters. You can fix this by installing the latest service pack for Windows XP or 2000:

Windows XP:

http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/sp2/default.mspx

Windows 2000:

http://www.microsoft.com/windows2000/downloads/servicepacks/sp4/default.mspx

Windows Explorer is the executable that serves as the interface to the Windows operating system and as such it has its share of problems. This is the first article in a series that will deal with various Windows Explorer related issues.

Thumbnail View Error

When trying to view the contents of a folder using the Thumbnail view, you may receive one of the following error messages:

• EXPLORER caused an invalid page fault in module THUMBVW.DLL at 015f:799eaee4
• EXPLORER caused an invalid page fault in module KERNEL32.DLL at 015f:bff9d709

This occurs when the Thumbs.db file (the file that contains thumbnails for a folder) in the folder is corrupted. To fix this problem, follow these steps:

1. Be sure that you are able to view hidden files. From the View menu in Windows Explorer, click Folder Options. Select the View tab, click Show All Files, and then click OK.
2. Delete the Thumbs.db file in the folder.If an error message displays, saying access is denied, then do one the following:
1. Close Windows Explorer, and then empty the Recycle Bin.
2. In Windows Explorer, click another folder to view its contents, and then empty the Recycle Bin.
3. Re-create the Thumbs.db file by clicking on the folder whose contents you are trying to view in Microsoft Windows Explorer, and then click Thumbnails on the View menu.

Windows Explorer is Blank or All Folders View is Missing

If Windows Explorer is blank or the All Folders view is missing, it may be that the ExplorerBar value in the HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Main
registry key is damaged.

To fix this problem, do the following:

1. Upgrade to the most current version of Microsoft Internet Explorer at http://www.microsoft.com/windows/ie/default.asp
2. Test to determine if the issue is resolved. If the issue is resolved, do not go to step 3. If the issue is not resolved, go to step 3.
3. Make sure that you have a backup of your computer available before editing the registry.
4. Use Registry Editor to delete the ExplorerBar value in the following registry key, and then restart your computer:HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Main

Too Many File Types

When you try to use the search feature in Windows Explorer, you may get the following error:

The instruction at 0×778aa57 reference memory at “0×3b0046″. The memory cannot be read.

This can happen if you just added more than 64 file types in the File Types tab under the Folder Options dialog (found in the Tools menu in Windows Explorer). To resolve this problem, get Service Pack 4 for Windows 2000 from:

http://www.microsoft.com/windows2000/downloads/servicepacks/sp4/default.mspx

White Desktop and BrowseUI.DLL Error

When you start up Microsoft Windows Millennium Edition (Me), the screen is white, and the following error message may appear:

Explorer has caused an error in Browseui.dll

You get a prompt to change desktop settings, because Active Desktop is turned off, but changing settings doesn’t help. The same error displays, and then the computer freezes.

You can resolve this issue by using the Registry Scan utility:

1. Insert the Windows Me emergency startup disk, and restart your computer.
2. Use the arrow key on your keyboard to select Start Computer Without CD-ROM Support, and then press Enter.
3. At the command prompt type scanreg /fix, and then press Enter.
4. After the ScanReg process is complete, restart your computer. The Registry Scan utility will find and remove corrupted registry entries and system files. The system replaces those files with a working copy of the files.

Explorer Causes an Invalid Page Fault in Browseui.DLL

After you log on to a Windows 98-based computer, you may get the following error:

This program has performed an illegal operation and will be shut down. If the problem persists, contact the program vendor.

If you click Details, the following error message will display:

- EXPLORER caused an invalid page fault in module EXPLORER.EXE at 167:00401f31

- EXPLORER caused an invalid page fault in module BROWSEUI.DLL at 167:00401f31

If you close the error, the computer starts with a blank desktop. Starting in safe mode does not solve the problem, but the memory address listed may change. This can happen if the Browseui.dll file is missing or damaged.

To fix this problem, try Method 1; if that fails, try Method 2.

Method 1: Repair Internet Explorer

1. Restart the computer to display the command prompt by inserting the Windows 98 Emergency Startup disk and starting the computer, or pressing the CTRL key while starting the computer  and selecting Command Prompt Only from the Windows Startup Menu.
2. At the command prompt, type edit c:\windows\system.ini, and then press the Enter key to open the System.ini file in MS-DOS Editor.
3. Use the arrow keys to navigate through MS-DOS Editor. Under the [Boot] section, change the following lineshell=Explorer.exeto:

   shell=Progman.exe

4. Press ALT+F to scroll down to Exit, and then press Enter. Select Yes to save the Windows\System.ini file and to return to the command prompt.
5. Restart your computer, and Program Manager will start.
6. Click File | Run, type control appwiz.cpl, and then click OK to open the Add/Remove Programs Properties dialog box.
7. On the Install/Uninstall tab, click Microsoft Internet Explorer 5 and Internet Tools, and then click Add/Remove.
8. Select the Repair Internet Explorer option, and then click OK. Follow the instructions in the wizard to repair Internet Explorer, and when you are prompted to restart the computer, click Yes.
9. Repeat steps 1 through 5, but in step 3, change the line shell=progman.exe to shell=explorer.exe.

If the error persists, follow the steps in Method 2.

Method 2: Restore Internet Explorer

1. Restart the computer to display the command prompt by inserting the Windows 98 Emergency Startup disk and starting the computer, or pressing the CTRL key while starting the computer  and selecting Command Prompt Only from the Windows Startup Menu.
2. At the command prompt, type edit c:\windows\system.ini, and then press the Enter key to open the System.ini file in MS-DOS Editor.
3. Use the arrow keys to navigate through MS-DOS Editor. Under the [Boot] section, change the following lineshell=Explorer.exeto:

   shell=Progman.exe

4. Press ALT+F to scroll down to Exit, and then press Enter. Select Yes to save the Windows\System.ini file and to return to the command prompt.
5. Restart your computer, and Program Manager will start.
6. Click File | Run, type control appwiz.cpl, and then click OK to open the Add/Remove Programs Properties dialog box.
7. On the Install/Uninstall tab, click Microsoft Internet Explorer 5 and Internet Tools, and then click Add/Remove..
8. Click the Restore to previous Windows Configuration option, and then click OK. Complete the wizard to restore the earlier Windows configuration, and when prompted to restart the computer, click Yes.
9. Repeat steps 1 through 5, but in step 3, change the line shell=progman.exe to shell=explorer.exe.

If both methods fail, you may have to completely reinstall the Windows 98 operating system. It should be noted that the reinstallation of Windows 98 may result in the loss of some Windows configuration information and/or data.

JavaScript is a scripting language developed by Netscape for web browsers and is the de facto standard for scripts on web pages (it is also possible to use VBScript but almost no one does since it is only supported by IE). Microsoft uses an implementation of JavaScript called JScript, and while there are some differences between the two (and implementations in other browsers), everyone refers to browser scripting as JavaScript. Many people think that Sun’s Java programming language and JavaScript are related but the only things they share in common are the name and superficial syntax conventions.

It is important to understand the difference between JavaScript, scripting languages like PHP and ASP, and web programming languages like Java and ASP.NET. JavaScript is a client-side scripting language, and it runs on your browser. Essentially, the web page you visit tells your computer what to do, and your computer does it. Scripting languages like PHP and ASP are server-side scripts that are read through an interpreter on the web server and displayed to your browser. Web programming languages like Java and ASP.NET (Java is not strictly a web programming language but ASP.NET is) are actually programs that run on the server, created ahead of time by the web site designers. Instead of parsing a script which can be changed on the fly, the web server acts as a front-end to another program and any changes to the program require that it be recompiled.

The Fundamental JavaScript Problem

Each browser has its own interpretation of JavaScript and this quickly leads to problems. A few years ago, nearly everyone used Internet Explorer to surf the web. There were still some holdouts from the 90’s Microsoft/Netscape browser war but not many. This lead web developers to code JavaScript that they only checked in Internet Explorer. Even though IE 4.0 kept to published web standards better than Netscape 4.0, Microsoft began developing its own proprietary implementation of JavaScript and other web languages, adding non-standard items and leaving other standard items unimplemented. The result was a lot of pages that only worked in IE.

Apple threw its own implementation into the mix with the Safari web browser in 2003, which muddied the waters a bit as Mac usage began to climb. A year later Firefox burst upon the scene as a faster, safer alternative to IE and gained 10 percent market share by November 2005. Moreover, Firefox closely implemented the standards set forth by the W3C, an independent group that has been publishing web standards since 1994 and whose director, Tim Berners-Lee, invented the World Wide Web in 1989.

With at least three major implementations out there, it is very difficult for web site designers to check that their pages work in all three browsers. When they don’t, JavaScript errors will occur.

Other Causes

Spyware can cause JavaScript errors if it modifies how your browser handles JavaScript code, which many do by capturing keystrokes and mouse-clicks hoping to catch your passwords and pin numbers on banking sites and online stores. Spyware will also try to place its own custom ads on web pages which also can cause JavaScript errors. Getting rid of spyware can be difficult but I have outlined steps to prevent, detect and clean up spyware in my Dealing with Spyware blog entry.

Pop-up blockers can also cause JavaScript errors although this is always the fault of the web site for not checking to see that pop-ups are disabled. If you trust the site you are on, you can disable the pop-up blocker for that site to see if it helps. Another trick is clearing your cache - some websites have multiple JavaScript files and if you don’t have the latest one you could be calling a piece of code that no longer exists.

If you use Firefox, you can cut down on the number of JavaScript errors by installing the NoScript extension. This will allow you to choose which sites run JavaScript and which do not. A lot of sites work fine without JavaScript for casual surfing.

The blue screen of death (BSOD) is likely the most famous component of the Windows operating system. First seen in Windows 3.1, it gained notoriety after appearing during Bill Gate’s unveiling of Windows 98. Anyone who ever used Windows 95, 98 or Me for any length of time has probably seen a BSOD, and though they are less common with Windows 2000, XP and Vista, they still occasionally appear. Windows XP and Vista will reboot if a bluescreen condition happens during the boot process and then display the “Windows has recovered from a serious error” message.

Causes of BSODs

In Windows 2000, XP and Vista, BSODs can be caused for a number of reasons. Below, I’ve listed some of the stop codes and possible causes, summarized from The Lazy Admin website:

• STOP_0×0000000A IRQL_NOT_LESS_EQUAL:
  Buggy device drivers, virus scanners and backup tools.
• STOP 0×0000001E KMODE_EXCEPTION_NOT_HANDLED:
  Programs, usually trojans and spyware (although legitimate remote control programs may cause the same problems) attempting to subvert the Windows logon process.
• STOP 0×0000007B INACCESSIBLE_BOOT_DEVICE:
  Hard drive failure, bad boot.ini configuration, or incompatible hard disk controller drivers. This can happen after swapping out a motherboard with another one having different disk controllers.
• STOP 0×00000050 PAGE_FAULT_IN_NONPAGED_AREA:
  Windows tries to access memory that is not available and can’t be written to the page file, typically caused by bad memory or printer drivers.
• STOP 0×0000007F UNEXPECTED_KERNAL_MODE_TRAP:
  Bad memory chips or CPU overclocking.
• STOP 0×00000024 NTFS_FILE_SYSTEM:
  Failing hard disk or buggy third-party disk defragmenters.
• STOP 0×0000002E DATA_BUS_ERROR:
  Hardware incompatibility, misconfigured BIOS settings or bad memory.

Troubleshooting Steps

The first thing to do is disable automatic restart after BSODs, before trouble begins. Right-click My Computer and choose Properties. In the Advanced tab, in the Startup and Recovery section, click Settings and then uncheck Automatically restart. Click OK twice.

If you do get a stop error there are a lot of things you can do, but the first steps to take are typically in the error message itself. If you need to, write down the error, especially the STOP code (like the ones listed above), and do a Google search on it if you have some other means of internet access.

Microsoft has provided a document on BSOD errors, that while highly technical, offers good advice based on the STOP code received. Skip ahead to page 22 and then find the error matching the one you got and try the troubleshooting steps there.

Most of the time, BSODs are hardware or driver related so your first priority after getting your computer up and running is backing up your data, if you aren’t doing that already.

If your computer has been moving slow lately, particularly after you log in, it may be because of a problem with the Windows Automatic Updates client. To check for this, open Task Manager (Ctrl-Shift-Esc) and look in the Processes tab. Sort by CPU usage and see if svchost.exe is at the top - if so, the problem is almost certainly related to Windows Updates.

You may be wondering what svchost.exe is and what it has to do with Windows Updates. Svchost.exe is a Windows executable that most Windows operating system components use to run services. A service is any program that runs constantly (unlike regular applications that you open and close), has to register itself with Windows and is listed under Control Panel -> Administrative Tools -> Services (switch to Classic View if you can’t find Administrative Tools). For example, whenever a program crashes you will see a dialog box pop up asking if you would like to send an error report to Microsoft. This “feature” is provided by Microsoft’s Error Reporting Service, which incidentally runs as svchost.exe.

The Windows Update client has two parts - one a stand-alone executable that runs when it’s time to check for updates (wuauclt.exe) and the Automatic Updates service that runs as svchost.exe. When you first start up your computer and log in, the stand-alone executable runs to check for updates but uses the service as well. This typically takes less than a minute and should not max out CPU usage for an extended period of time.

So what’s the fix? There’s quite a bit of information out on the Web about this and Microsoft has released a couple updates, but if your computer is really locked up you may have a hard time actually installing them. In fact I had to kill the svchost.exe process using Task Manager on one computer just to install the update (and that’s not an action I would recommend unless you really know what you are doing). The first thing you may need to do is temporarily fix the problem:

1. Open My Computer and go to Tools -> Folder Options…, then the View tab. Verify that Show Hidden Files is selected and that the two options starting with Hide are unchecked.
2. Click OK and then browse to C:\Windows\SoftwareDistribution\Download, delete everything in the folder but not the folder itself, and then go to the Windows Update site and try to get the latest updates. The files you deleted should start to reappear, that is normal.
3. If that does not work, go to Start -> Run…, type in net stop wuauserv, and hit Enter.
4. In Windows Explorer, browse to C:\Windows\SoftwareDistribution\DataStore and delete DataStore.edb (this will remove update history from Windows Update).
5. Go to Start -> Run…, type in net start wuauserv, hit Enter and go to the Windows Update site and try to get the latest updates.
6. If that does not work, repeat step #3 and then delete all files and folders under C:\Windows\SoftwareDistribution but not the folder itself, then repeat step #5.

Once your computer is in a usable state, download and install the appropriate update from this page:

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/927891

then download and install the latest Windows Update Client here:

http://download.windowsupdate.com/v7/windowsupdate/redist/standalone/WindowsUpdateAgent30-x86.exe

You may need to restart after the installation and the first time Windows Update runs afterward it may still use a lot of CPU but after that it should be fine.