Control Panel open causes "Windows Explorer has stopped working"....

Hi

Each time I try to open the Control Panel a message box pops up saying
"Windows Explorer has stopped working" and then "Windows Explorer is
restarting...".

This means I can't open the Control Panel at all which is bad.

Does someone know if/what I can do to solve that problem ?


Thanks in advance!

Best
Eigil

On Jun 21, 2:50 pm, "Eigil Krogh" <q...@ekrogh.com> wrote:
> Hi
>
> Each time I try to open the Control Panel a message box pops up saying
> "Windows Explorer has stopped working" and then "Windows Explorer is
> restarting...".
>
> This means I can't open the Control Panel at all which is bad.
>
> Does someone know if/what I can do to solve that problem ?
>
> Thanks in advance!
>
> Best
> Eigil

Eigil:

I am having the same problem. It just started in the last couple of
days. Have you installed any new software in the last couple of days?

Lee Jones
Assistant Director of IT, Catholic Diocese of Richmond

Lee

No as far as I remember I didn't install software just before the problem
came.

I have reinstalled VISTA (choosing Update), but that didn't change anything.

Best Eigil

<> wrote in message
news: oups.com...
> On Jun 21, 2:50 pm, "Eigil Krogh" <q...@ekrogh.com> wrote:
>> Hi
>>
>> Each time I try to open the Control Panel a message box pops up saying
>> "Windows Explorer has stopped working" and then "Windows Explorer is
>> restarting...".
>>
>> This means I can't open the Control Panel at all which is bad.
>>
>> Does someone know if/what I can do to solve that problem ?
>>
>> Thanks in advance!
>>
>> Best
>> Eigil
>
> Eigil:
>
> I am having the same problem. It just started in the last couple of
> days. Have you installed any new software in the last couple of days?
>
> Lee Jones
> Assistant Director of IT, Catholic Diocese of Richmond
>

Hi

By reading the forum
http://forums.microsoft.com/technet/...&tf=0&pageid=2 I
got the idea to look at the .cpl files in System32 and got my problem
solved.

It turnes out to be a file with the name ALSNDMGR.cpl. This file seems to
come from RealTek. It was installed by Driver Detective along with a RealTek
driver for my sound card.

Best
Eigil

<> wrote in message
news: oups.com...
> On Jun 21, 2:50 pm, "Eigil Krogh" <q...@ekrogh.com> wrote:
>> Hi
>>
>> Each time I try to open the Control Panel a message box pops up saying
>> "Windows Explorer has stopped working" and then "Windows Explorer is
>> restarting...".
>>
>> This means I can't open the Control Panel at all which is bad.
>>
>> Does someone know if/what I can do to solve that problem ?
>>
>> Thanks in advance!
>>
>> Best
>> Eigil
>
> Eigil:
>
> I am having the same problem. It just started in the last couple of
> days. Have you installed any new software in the last couple of days?
>
> Lee Jones
> Assistant Director of IT, Catholic Diocese of Richmond
>

"Eigil Krogh" wrote:

> got the idea to look at the .cpl files in System32 and got my problem
> solved.
Very good hint!
I just moved every movable .cpl file to a different directory and started
the control panel. Wonder! It worked. Than I copied the saved .cpl files
back, one by one, and restarted the control panel evey time until it crashed.
So I found that my Firebird2control.cpl was not working with vista.

I blame the MS-Developers of the control panel that they don't block those
..cpl that doesn't work any longer instead of crashing the whole control panel.

On Tue, 10 Jul 2007 07:18:03 -0700, Horst Neubauer <Horst
>"Eigil Krogh" wrote:

>> got the idea to look at the .cpl files in System32 and got my problem
>> solved. Very good hint!

>I just moved every movable .cpl file to a different directory and started
>the control panel. Wonder! It worked. Than I copied the saved .cpl files
>back, one by one, and restarted the control panel evey time until it crashed.
>So I found that my Firebird2control.cpl was not working with vista.

Ah, "test to break". Well done ;-)

>I blame the MS-Developers of the control panel that they don't block those
>.cpl that doesn't work any longer instead of crashing the whole control panel.

Actually, you can blame 'em for a bit more than that; the way Control
Panel is ennumerated is a safety risk. Each .CPL file can provide the
enumerator with callback code, so that in effect, when you think you
are merely "listing the control panel", you are in reality potentially
running code in any or all items there.

So if someone says "Blah in Control Panel is malware,. delete it for
safety", the malware could have the drop on you. By the time you list
Control Panel and select Blah, it's already run its code and could be
doing anything, such as creating a Blah2 even as you delete Blah, or
deleting your data files in the background as a "poison pill".

That's why an incompatible .CPL is crashing you even when you are not
doing anything with that particular item.

What is not clear is whether this "trust me, I'm a .CPL file" callback
opportunity is exposed whenever .CPL files are found in contexts other
than Control Panel; say, as an attachment listed in OE.

Safety Rule #1: The system should not take risks that the user has
indicated no intention to take.

A lot of our malware headaches come from breaking that rule.

I would loooove someone to post here and tell me I'm wrong, e.g. "that
was fixed in Vista way back in the beta period". But, AFAIK, etc.


>-- Risk Management is the clue that asks:
"Why do I keep open buckets of petrol next to all the
ashtrays in the lounge, when I don't even have a car?"
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