Windows Explorer is one of the most important components of your system. Windows Explorer keeps crashing. Users will have trouble accessing files and directories on their computers. Random crashes may not be a big deal. However, if Windows Explorer keeps crashing frequently, this is an issue that needs to be looked into.
If you don’t know what’s causing the problem, try some of the typical remedies to see if they stop the “Windows Explorer keeps crashing”error. Also, there are some steps you can take to try and fix it on your Windows computer.
Solution methods File Explorer keeps crashing
- Keep Windows up to date
- Clear explorer history
- Run a CHKDWe and SFC Scan
- Run Netsh Winsock Reset
- Check installed add-ons
- Make changes to the video card driver
- Disable Thumbnails
- Run windows folder in separate process
- Check account permission
- Disable quick access and install “Open File Explorer”on this computer
Keep Windows up to date
It is possible that “Explorer keeps crashing on Windows 10″is caused by glitches in the Windows operating system. Microsoft continues to improve the operating system by releasing updates for Windows. As a result, whenever a new update is available, keep Windows up to date.
- Go to the “Settings”window by pressing the “Win + I”keys at the same time.
- Select the Update & Security option on the screen.
- Find “Windows Update”in the left pane and click “Check for Updates”in the right pane.
- You can download updates if they appear on the screen.
- Restart your desktop after downloading the updates.
Clear explorer history
Windows Explorer, like your web browsers and other applications, keeps a history of the activities that took place in it. For example, let’s say you haven’t deleted your account or used File Explorer for a long time. Files may have been collected significantly, resulting in the “File Explorer keeps crashing”issue.
This should be fixed if you clear the history in Windows Explorer.
- From the start menu, type control in the search box.
- Select Control Panel from the list of options.
- In the upper right corner of the Control Panel window, type “file”in the search box.
- From the list of options, select “Explorer Options”.
- To clear the history in File Explorer, click Clear. Then click OK.
To open File Explorer, press the Windows logo key and E at the same time. Then make sure it works correctly.
Run a CHKDWe and SFC Scan
Some utilities may close unexpectedly due to bad drives or files on your system. If you start looking for damaged disks and fixing them manually, this will not be the best solution.
Windows has various built-in methods that can help you fix the problem of corrupted drives. Use some command line instructions to fix the problem on your computer.
Run a hard drive check
- In the Search window, write cmd and then right-click “Run as administrator”from the menu.
- At the command prompt, type chkdsk /f /r and press Enter.
- Press the Y key to confirm that you want the system to perform a hard disk check at the next startup, and then the Enter key.
- To force Windows to scan your hard drive, restart your computer. Then see if this solves the problem of Windows 10 File Explorer crashing.
Check system files.
- If CHKDWe doesn’t help, you can run System File Checker.
- As an administrator, open a command prompt.
- In the window, type SFC /scannow and press Enter.
- Then wait for Windows to detect any corrupted system files and if they are found, Windows will repair them immediately.
- Restart your computer to see if Windows 10 File Explorer crashes again; if so, try one of the options below.
Run Netsh Winsock Reset
“Reset netsh Winsock”is used to recover the computer after any socket problems. Problems can arise when you download an unfamiliar file or infect your computer with a malicious script. Running this command can help users resolve the “Windows Explorer keeps crashing” issue.
- Open Start and type cmd in the search box. Then right-click Command Prompt and choose Run as administrator from the context menu.
- When User Account Control prompts you, select Yes.
- To run a command, type it in the command prompt window and press Enter.
- netsh reset winsock
- Restart your Windows 10 PC.
- To open File Explorer, press the Windows logo key and E at the same time. Then make sure it works correctly.
Check installed add-ons
Installed add-ons can cause Windows 10 File Explorer to crash. In Windows File Explorer, various applications install add-ons. These add-ons are useful, but they can cause Windows Explorer to slow down or crash.
As a result, check if any add-ons for Windows Explorer are installed. If you have third-party add-ons installed, you should disable or uninstall them all. If this approach works, you can re-enable the add-ons one by one to identify the offender.
A third party application can be used to view detailed information and then disable installed add-ons.
Make changes to the video card driver
It is also possible that an outdated graphics card driver is causing File Explorer to crash in Windows 10. You can fix this factor by updating your computer’s graphics driver.
- To access Device Manager, press the Win + X keys at the same time.
- In the window that opens, expand Display Adapters, then right-click your graphics card and select Uninstall device.
- Select Uninstall this device driver program, and then click Uninstall.
- When you restart your computer, your video card will be reinstalled automatically.
- If Windows does not reinstall the video card driver automatically.
- Visit the graphics card manufacturer’s website for the latest driver for your device.
- Open Device Manager again and select “Scan for hardware changes”from the “Action”menu at the top.
- Restart your computer after the operation is complete to check if Windows 10 Explorer crashes again.
Disable Thumbnails
Thumbnails can cause Windows 10 File Explorer to crash. When there are multiple photos in a folder, this is a common occurrence. Disabling thumbnails will prevent File Explorer from crashing. Take a look at the following instructions:
- In the search area, write control panel, and then click Control Panel.
- Now search for “File”in the search area of the Control Panel.
- Then click “Explorer Options”and select “Large Icon View”.
- Select “Always show icons”rather than thumbnails on the “View”tab. Then click Apply and OK to save your changes.
- The “windows explorer freezing”issue should be resolved after deleting the thumbnails.
Run windows folder in separate process
Unless you select a separate process for each folder window, Explorer will use the same process. As a result, this can sometimes cause conflicts and complications, leading to the sudden failure of File Explorer.
- From the start menu, type control in the search box. Then select Control Panel from the list of options.
- In the upper right corner of the Control Panel window, type “file”in the search box. Then, from the list of options, select “Explorer Options”.
- Access to the view panel. Select “Launch folder windows in a separate process”, “Apply”, and then “OK”.
- To open File Explorer, press the Windows logo key and E at the same time. Then make sure it works correctly.
Check account permission
If you notice that Windows 10 Explorer crashes when you try to enter a specific folder, make sure you have full permissions to it. To do this, follow the recommendations below:
- Right-click the folder. Then select “Properties”from the context menu.
- Click the Security tab and select Advanced from the dropdown menu.
- Then, at the top, click “Edit”next to “Owner”and enter “Administrator”(your account) in the field.
- Add names in the “Enter the object name to select”section.
- To double-check that the name is correct, click Check Names. To exit the Select User or Group menu, click OK, then OK to save your changes.
- To change permissions, go to the Security tab in the User Properties window and click Edit.
- Check the “Allow Full Control”box in the “Administrator Permissions”box, then click “OK”to save the changes.
- Check if Windows 10 Explorer keeps crashing after getting full permission to browse a folder.
Disable quick access and install “Open File Explorer”on this computer
Quick access makes it easy to open a folder you use often. However, this can cause File Explorer to crash on Windows 10. To eliminate this possibility, set File Explorer to open This PC instead of Quick Access.
- Click the General tab in the File Explorer Options window (Control Panel).
- Instead of “Quick Access”set “Open File Explorer”to “This PC”.
- In the privacy section, uncheck both boxes
- “Show Recently Used Files in Quick Access”.
- “Show frequently used folders in Quick Access.”
- Save your changes by selecting Apply and OK.
Conclusion
Many people may find it difficult to recover all their data files. You will be in big trouble if you lose your data. I believe one of the solutions listed above will help you fix the “Windows Explorer keeps crashing” error.
I recommend creating a system image. Then quickly restore the backup if Windows 10 Explorer or the entire system crashes.