Windows Explorer Runtime Error (not related to Internet Explorer)

Dear Tech guys,
I badly need your support. Day before yesterday (01-Aug-06) night I
upgraded the yahoo toolbar and used their norton anti spy to scan. Then
I shut down the system and started to work the next day. Every thing is
perfectly ok except for one thing. In Windows Explorer, on any folder
or drive if I double click or open I get a crash. If I do explore then
there is no problem.

Below is the dialog that comes whenever we double click or open (for
eg: on C:\ or any folder in the left side pane of the windows explorer.
If I just keep expanding the + of the tree no problem, only on clicking
the item to open the following error occurs.)

Microsoft Visual C++ Runtime Library

program: C:\Windows\Explorer.exe

This Application has requested the Runtime to terminate it in an
unusual way.
Please contact the application's support team for more information.

I am running on Windows XP SP 2. I dont have google toolbar. I have
yahoo tool bar installed. I have tried uninstalling it and installing
it again and other combinations as well.

I have also tried sfc /scannow as well. It did not work.

It doesnt look like any adware or spyware (yahoo's norton spyware had
done a complete run and no problems in the system as reported by them).

What should I do now to get back to normal operation of windows
explorer.

Thanks and Regards,
Naga Kumar S

First thing you need to do for sure is get rid of Yahoo toolbar, or any other
toolbar that Microsoft didn't put in there. Some may disagree with me, but I
consider all of those to be spyware/junkware/malware. If Yahoo toolbar was
made by a company other than Yahoo, everyone including norton would consider
it junkware as well.

Next, try a system restore stepping back to the most recent settings that
worked.

After that, run Windows Update and get all of the critical updates, and
peruse the non-critical ones and see if you find any that might be helpful.

--
Sincerely,
Chris

My friend, I am having the exact same problem since yesterday, and I
have NOT INSTALLED ANTYHING lately. I also have the exact same config
as yours - yahoo yes, google no. I have tried all that you have tried,
and more. No results. Curiously enough, though, an Explorer replacement
(FileAnt) works perfectly.
I'll let you know if I find anything.
Alex

I do have the same problem. No virus found, no spyware.
It says that explorer crashed because of the module kernel32.dll.
Both file haven't change since a long tiime. Weird!

Any help is appreciated.

Thanks,

Problem solved!
In my case it was FreeDownload Manager that needed to be updated.

How I did figure it out is more instersting.
I used Shexview you can find it at
It shows you the extension for explorer, you can sort it by created
time. The chance that it's something you just changed in you system are
quite big.
Disable the supicous extension one by one and test explorer. Lucky me I
just had to do 4 tests.

I hope this help.

Olivier

Dear Olivier,
THANKS A TON. Your route worked out very well for me as well. In my
case as well it was the free download manager. Unforturnately I have
the latest version so nothing to update but I have disabled the stuff.

* I downloaded the tool shexview.
* Since something would have been updated without our knowledge, I
sorted the list based on the date created in descending.
* Saw the FDM (Free Download Manager) on 16th August which was the date
I have started having the problem.
* Disabled the FDMIEBHO and voila things started working perfectly.

Thanks again Olivier (olivier@doremieux.org).

I greatly appreciate your effort in resolving and posting it back.

Warm Regards,
Naga Kumar S

[Robokopp]

1st June 2011. Windows XP Home SP3 on Intel Pentium PC. This old thread has rescued me.

Today, I spent hours tracking down the same, "Windows Explorer search Files and Folders" problem. Merely clicking into the search box would produce the standard MicroSoft error message within only a few seconds. Always, there was the notification to Microsoft and the subsequent re-start of Windows Explorer.

Shexview revealed all. There were only 2 programs that I had installed in the last few days before this trouble began, MalwareBytes and Web Image Studio. Removing MalwareBytes did not resolve the issue. Using Shexview to DISABLE wispreview.dll brought about normal operation of Windows Explorer.

I then proved the point to myself 3 times, just for the fun of it. Disable dll = normal Win Explorer. Enabled dll = Error message.

Please accept my thanks for developing and providing this free utility. I will send a Shexview report to the company that supplied the application and I wonder...

Sincerely,
Robert Kopp
Australia

[Blazej]

In such situations you will have to try and work it out in the safe mode, so what you have to do is when the system gets started and when you get to see the windows sign at that time press F8. So in the safe mode check whether the same problem is there or not if it is not showing you the same problem then your system is in danger situations of repair installation of windows or reinstallation can also occur, so for the safety just scan your entire system completely with a good antivirus program like avg, so that and are you sure that the problem is not caused by internet explorer i would definitely advice you to stop using that and switch on to firefox that is a much better option.