Problems with explorer.exe

Jennstar22 · 04-27-2009, 06:02 PM

Please help!

I am running Windows 2000 Professional and a few months ago received a msg stating
"Explorer.exe has generated errors and will be closed by Windows"

This error kept popping up every time I tried to click on something so I could no longer use it. Safe Mode provided no solution. The only way I could use my computer without interruption was pressing F8 booting up in the "Directory Domain Controls Only" (or something similar) mode.

Recently I installed a few new programs and suddenly, even in this mode, the same error has appeared. Every time I click on something it reappears which makes accessing the Control Panel impossible; I tried running it through Task Manager but this did not work either. I suspect that one of the programs I recently installed has messed with a critical .dll file but have no idea how to repair this.

Some sites have suggested removing Internet Explorer but my PC would not allow me to do this.

I have tried all the steps outlined on the Microsoft support site with little success. The Microsoft site says the problem may stem from Norton Antivirus but I've never had this on my PC. It also suggests to rename Apitrap.dll but there is no such .dll file in my WINNT directory.

To conflate the issue, I purchased this computer secondhand several years ago so I don't have any Repair Disc I can boot from.

Through the Task Manager I managed to uninstall all new programs I suspect of wrecking my OS but this has not worked either.

Somebody please help!

computer4u · 05-28-2009, 09:54 PM

you could try swapping the explorer.exe shell from another machine, or wiping your hdd (re-formatting) and installing windows. also try another windows cd, yours might have a defective exe.shell on it or something.

Riskyone101 · 05-31-2009, 08:44 AM

Hello and Welcome to TSF,

Report here:

NEW INSTRUCTIONS - Read This Before Posting For Malware Removal Help

Please read “Virus/Trojan/Spyware Removal Help “ and follow the instructions
very carefully; then, post all the requested logs and information in the Virus Help Forum
Please ensure that you create a new thread in the Virus Help Forum; not back here in this one.
Please be patient, as the Security Team Analysts are usually very busy; one of them will
answer your request as soon as they can.

04-27-2009, 06:02 PM	#1 (permalink)
Jennstar22 Registered User Join Date: Apr 2009 Posts: 1 OS: Windows 2000 Pro	Problems with explorer.exe Please help! I am running Windows 2000 Professional and a few months ago received a msg stating "Explorer.exe has generated errors and will be closed by Windows" This error kept popping up every time I tried to click on something so I could no longer use it. Safe Mode provided no solution. The only way I could use my computer without interruption was pressing F8 booting up in the "Directory Domain Controls Only" (or something similar) mode. Recently I installed a few new programs and suddenly, even in this mode, the same error has appeared. Every time I click on something it reappears which makes accessing the Control Panel impossible; I tried running it through Task Manager but this did not work either. I suspect that one of the programs I recently installed has messed with a critical .dll file but have no idea how to repair this. Some sites have suggested removing Internet Explorer but my PC would not allow me to do this. I have tried all the steps outlined on the Microsoft support site with little success. The Microsoft site says the problem may stem from Norton Antivirus but I've never had this on my PC. It also suggests to rename Apitrap.dll but there is no such .dll file in my WINNT directory. To conflate the issue, I purchased this computer secondhand several years ago so I don't have any Repair Disc I can boot from. Through the Task Manager I managed to uninstall all new programs I suspect of wrecking my OS but this has not worked either. Somebody please help!

05-28-2009, 09:54 PM	#2 (permalink)
computer4u Registered User Join Date: May 2009 Posts: 9 OS: Windows XP SP3	Re: Problems with explorer.exe you could try swapping the explorer.exe shell from another machine, or wiping your hdd (re-formatting) and installing windows. also try another windows cd, yours might have a defective exe.shell on it or something.

05-31-2009, 08:44 AM	#3 (permalink)
Riskyone101 Tech Hardware Team Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: Chicago, IL. Posts: 3,677 OS: XP Pro SP3, MCE 2005 sp3, Vista Ultimate SP2, Windows 7 Ultimate My System	Re: Problems with explorer.exe Hello and Welcome to TSF, Report here: NEW INSTRUCTIONS - Read This Before Posting For Malware Removal Help Please read “Virus/Trojan/Spyware Removal Help “ and follow the instructions very carefully; then, post all the requested logs and information in the Virus Help Forum Please ensure that you create a new thread in the Virus Help Forum; not back here in this one. Please be patient, as the Security Team Analysts are usually very busy; one of them will answer your request as soon as they can. __________________