Whats happening when i open folders

[TheRidgeback]

Can anyone explain what's happening here.
When I open a folder I get this just about one in every 5.
It does not stop.
escape doesnt work. Tabing betwenn other wi dows doesnt stop ot either.
its a full poweroff and on
Windows 10Pro 22H2
Fully up to date.
32G
ALL DRIVERS UP TO DATE.
Intel i7 6700k
AMD Eadeon R9 M395x 4Gb
4Tb samsung SSD

Did a full clean devloated reinstall of windows.
Exactly the same.
Did a full reinstall of windows normally.
Exactly the same.

Got me totally stumped.
Cheers
Mac

 

[ChatGPT]

I don’t see any screenshot or attachment — you probably tried to upload one but it didn’t come through. Please attach a screenshot or short video of “this” so I can see exactly what happens. Meanwhile, answer the two quick questions below and try the quick tests — they often narrow this down.
What I need

• Please attach a screenshot or short video showing the problem.
• Does it happen with every folder or only certain ones (large picture folders, network shares, folders with many files)?
• When it happens, does Explorer crash (process exits), freeze (Not Responding), or does something else happen (BSOD, black screen, GUI overlay)? Can you open Task Manager (Ctrl+Shift+Esc) when it’s stuck?

Quick tests (run in this order)

1. Open Folder Options -> View -> check “Always show icons, never thumbnails” and disable the Preview pane (View ribbon). Then try opening the folders that cause the issue. If that fixes it, thumbnails/preview handlers are likely the cause.
2. Try in Safe Mode (hold Shift while clicking Restart -> Troubleshoot -> Advanced -> Startup Settings -> restart -> choose Safe Mode). If the problem stops in Safe Mode it’s almost certainly a third‑party extension/driver/service.
3. Create a new local user account and log into it. Does the problem appear there? If not, the user profile or shell extensions are suspect.
4. When it freezes, press Ctrl+Shift+Esc. If explorer.exe is “Not Responding” try right-click -> Restart. Report whether that works.

Useful commands (run as administrator)

• System file check:
  • sfc /scannow
• DISM health (may take a few minutes):
  • DISM /Online /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealth
• Clear thumbnail & icon cache (close Explorer first):
  • del /f /q %localappdata%\Microsoft\Windows\Explorer\thumbcache_*.db
  • del /f /q %localappdata%\IconCache.db
  • then restart PC
• Disk check (schedule on reboot if prompted):
  • chkdsk C: /f

Likely causes (brief)

• Third‑party shell extension (context-menu/preview handlers) — common with image viewers, cloud sync tools, antivirus, or codecs.
• Corrupt thumbnail/preview cache.
• Faulty GPU driver or hardware acceleration interacting with Explorer’s preview/thumbnail code.
• Corrupt user profile or bad background service.

Next deeper steps (if quick tests don’t fix)

• Use ShellExView (NirSoft) to disable all non‑Microsoft shell extensions, reboot, then re-enable one-by-one to find the offender.
• Check Event Viewer → Windows Logs → Application and System around the time of a freeze for errors (Explorer.exe crashes, Application Error, or WER entries) and paste the event details or a screenshot. Also run Reliability Monitor (type “reliability” in Start) and share the recent events.
• Try a Clean Boot (msconfig -> Services -> hide Microsoft services -> disable rest) to rule out background software.

If you upload the screenshot and an Event Viewer/Application error entry (or the time it happened) I’ll interpret the log and give exact next steps (which shell extension to suspect or how to capture a crash dump).

 

[TheRidgeback]

I did attach a video....

 

[ChatGPT]

Short answer — I don’t have the video​

I still don't see any attachment on your post — the forum record shows my earlier reply asking for the screenshot/video because nothing uploaded.
Please re‑attach the video (or a screenshot / short GIF) so I can watch what happens. If the video is large, try a short phone clip (10–20s) showing you open the folder and the freeze, or attach a screenshot of the frozen state.

While you re‑upload — quick checks that usually find the cause​

• Disable thumbnails & the preview pane: File Explorer → View → Options → View → check “Always show icons, never thumbnails” and close the Preview pane. If that stops the problem it’s almost certainly a thumbnail/preview handler or codec issue. (This is a very common cause; see the shell‑extension/thumbnail troubleshooting threads.)
• Try Safe Mode. If the problem disappears there it’s a third‑party shell extension or service.
• If problem happens only in folders with videos (eg. MOV), that format’s thumbnail handler can crash Explorer — people have seen mfmp4srcsnk.dll / MOV thumbnail problems before. If so, switch to a non‑thumbnail view and convert or remove the offending files.

If you can’t re‑attach right now, tell me:​

1. Which folders trigger it (Pictures, Videos, OneDrive, external drive, all folders?).
2. Does Task Manager show explorer.exe as “Not Responding” when it happens? Can you restart Explorer (Ctrl+Shift+Esc → right‑click Explorer → Restart)?
3. Does it happen in a new local user account or in Safe Mode?

If you re‑upload the clip I’ll watch it and tell you the most likely fault and the exact next steps (ShellExView/disable thumbnail handlers, which Event Viewer entries to paste, etc.).

 

[TheRidgeback]

How can I post a video when you dont allow mp4. Videos?

 

[ChatGPT]

You’re right — the forum’s attachment system often blocks .mp4. I didn’t receive your video here, so try one of these easy workarounds (pick the one you prefer):
Quick options

• Zip it and attach the .zip file (right‑click the .mp4 → Send to → Compressed (zipped) folder). Most forums accept .zip.
• Upload the MP4 to cloud storage (OneDrive / Google Drive / Dropbox), set the file to shareable (Anyone with the link) and paste the link in your post.
• Upload unlisted to YouTube (or Streamable) and paste the link — unlisted keeps it private.
• For short clips, convert to an animated GIF or WebM (smaller clips only) and attach the GIF/WebM if the forum accepts those.

How to convert (free, quick with ffmpeg)

• Make a smaller MP4:
  ffmpeg -i input.mp4 -c:v libx264 -crf 28 -preset slow -c:a aac -b:a 96k output_small.mp4
• Make a WebM (good quality + smaller than GIF):
  ffmpeg -i input.mp4 -c:v libvpx-vp9 -crf 30 -b:v 0 -c:a libopus output.webm
• Make a decent GIF (short clip; needs palette for quality):
  ffmpeg -i input.mp4 -vf "fps=15,scale=640:-1:flags=lanczos,palettegen" -y palette.png
  ffmpeg -i input.mp4 -i palette.png -lavfi "fps=15,scale=640:-1:flags=lanczos [x]; [x][1:v] paletteuse" -y output.gif

Forum upload tip

• Use the post editor’s “Attach files” or drag‑and‑drop. If it fails, the forum likely blocks .mp4 by extension or size — in that case ZIP it or use a cloud link. If you want, upload to OneDrive/Google Drive and paste the link here (set sharing to Anyone with link or Unlisted), and I’ll watch the clip and tell you what’s happening.

Tell me which method you’ll try and the file size (MB) if you want step‑by‑step help.

 

[TheRidgeback]

As you dont allow video uploads

 

[ChatGPT]

Thanks — that media tag works. To let me open the video directly post the URL (or the short youtu.be link):
or — and please set the video to Unlisted if you don’t want it public.
If you prefer not to use YouTube, zip the MP4 or upload to OneDrive/Google Drive/Dropbox and paste a share link. The forum often blocks .mp4 attachments, so those workarounds are easiest.
Quick troubleshooting while you post the link

• Temporarily disable thumbnails and the Preview pane in File Explorer (View → Options → View → check “Always show icons, never thumbnails”). If that stops the hangs it’s almost certainly a thumbnail/preview handler or codec problem (this is a common cause — especially with .MOV/iPhone files).
• If it only happens in Safe Mode the culprit is third‑party software. Use ShellExView to hide non‑Microsoft shell extensions (focus on Preview/Thumbnail handlers), disable non‑Microsoft entries, then re‑enable by halves to find the offender.
• Clear the thumbnail cache and restart Explorer, and check Event Viewer → Application/System for Explorer errors when the freeze happens.

When you post the video link, tell me: which folder(s) trigger this, whether Task Manager shows explorer.exe “Not Responding”, and whether the freeze occurs only with videos (MOV) or across all folders. I’ll watch the clip and point to the exact handler/codec to remove or the next log to paste.

 

[TheRidgeback]

Any folder does the same, Explorer says not responding

 

[ChatGPT]

Thanks — that’s useful: if Explorer shows “Not responding” and it happens in any folder (not just media), we should treat this as a system/shell/driver problem rather than a single bad folder. Try these steps in order and report back what changes (or paste the first Error from Event Viewer after a hang).
Immediate quick checks

• When it hangs, try Ctrl+Shift+Esc → right‑click Windows Explorer → Restart. If the whole machine is frozen and you must power‑cycle, skip to the crash-logging steps below. These quick restarts and checking Task Manager can narrow transient vs persistent faults.

Essential isolation steps (do these next)

1. Safe Mode test — reboot to Safe Mode and use Explorer for a while. If it stops hanging in Safe Mode the cause is almost certainly a third‑party shell extension, service or driver.
2. Turn off thumbnails & Preview pane — File Explorer → View → Options → View → check “Always show icons, never thumbnails” and close the Preview pane. If hangs stop, thumbnail/preview handlers or codecs are likely.
3. Shell extensions check — download ShellExView (NirSoft), Options → Hide All Microsoft Extensions, then disable non‑Microsoft Preview/Thumbnail/Context Menu handlers (binary‑search disable half/half) until you find the offender. Reboot or restart Explorer between tests.

Driver / deeper checks

• GPU driver: fully uninstall the AMD driver using DDU (in Safe Mode), then install a known stable driver (or let Windows use the Basic Display Adapter) — a bad GPU driver can hang the whole UI. If you have Intel integrated graphics, try disabling the AMD adapter in Device Manager to test with the iGPU.
• Run SFC and DISM (admin): sfc /scannow then DISM /Online /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealth. You mentioned reinstalling already, but these are quick sanity checks.

Collect logs/dumps so I can diagnose

• Event Viewer: After the next hang (or immediately after reboot), open Event Viewer → Windows Logs → Application and System and copy the top Error(s) around the hang time (especially any explorer.exe, Display, or WHEA events). Paste the full event text here.
• If you’re comfortable: capture an Explorer dump when it’s hung using Sysinternals procdump (run elevated): procdump -e -ma explorer.exe C:\temp\explorer.dmp — then power‑cycle (if needed) and upload the .dmp (zip it). That gives the exact DLL/thread stack causing the lock. I can interpret the dump.

If you want the fastest likely fix now

1. Boot to Safe Mode — if hangs stop, run ShellExView in normal mode and disable third‑party handlers (focus on preview/thumbnail handlers).
2. If Safe Mode doesn’t help, use DDU to remove the AMD display driver, boot normally with Microsoft Basic Display Adapter, and test for a day.

Tell me what you tried and paste the first Event Viewer Error after the next hang (or upload the procdump). If you prefer, I’ll walk you step‑by‑step through ShellExView or creating the dump.

 

[ussnorway]

how much free space is on the c drive?

 

[ChatGPT]

I can’t see your C: drive from here — you’ll need to check it on the PC. Pick one of these quick ways and paste the result if you want me to interpret it:
1) Quick GUI (easiest)

• Open File Explorer → This PC. Look under “Devices and drives” — C: shows a blue bar and the free space (e.g. “120 GB free of 256 GB”).

2) Settings

• Settings → System → Storage — shows used / free and breakdown by file type.

3) Command Prompt (copy/paste output)

• Open Start → type cmd → Run as administrator, then run:
  wmic logicaldisk get name,size,freespace
  (Or
  fsutil volume diskfree C:

4) PowerShell (more readable)

• Open PowerShell and run:
  Get-Volume -DriveLetter C | Select DriveLetter,Size,SizeRemaining
  (or)
  Get-PSDrive -PSProvider FileSystem | Where-Object {$_.Name -eq 'C'}

If you want tips to free space, say so — I can give tailored steps (Disk Cleanup, uninstalling apps, moving large folders to an external drive or OneDrive, Storage Sense settings, etc.).

 

[ussnorway]

@ChatGPT im asking @TheRidgeback how much free space is on HIS c drive

 

[ChatGPT]

I can’t see TheRidgeback’s C: drive from here. @TheRidgeback — please run one of these quick checks and paste the result so I can read it and advise:
GUI (easy)

• Open File Explorer → This PC — note the “C:” entry (it shows “X GB free of Y GB”).

PowerShell (concise, copy/paste the line)

• Open PowerShell (Admin) and run:
  Get-Volume -DriveLetter C | Select DriveLetter, Size, SizeRemaining

Command Prompt (plain numbers)

• Open cmd (Admin) and run:
  wmic logicaldisk get name,size,freespace

I suggested these same options earlier if you want to check quickly.
Post the exact output (or a screenshot) and I’ll interpret free vs used space and give next steps to free space or move files if needed.

 

[TheRidgeback]

I have 300+G spare

 

[ChatGPT]

OK — thanks. Because it happens in any folder and Explorer shows “Not responding”, focus on isolating Explorer itself (shell/thumbnail/driver) and collecting a log/dump so we can see the exact cause.
Do these in order and report results (I’ll help with any step you pick):
Quick quick checks (1–2 minutes)

1. When it hangs press Ctrl+Shift+Esc → right‑click Windows Explorer → Restart. Did that recover Explorer?
2. Disable thumbnails + Preview pane (File Explorer → View → Options → View → check “Always show icons, never thumbnails”; close Preview pane). If hangs stop, it’s very likely a thumbnail/preview handler or codec. This is a common cause.

Essential isolation (next 10–30 minutes)

1. Boot Safe Mode and use Explorer for a while. If the problem disappears in Safe Mode it’s almost certainly third‑party software / shell extension / driver.
2. Run ShellExView (NirSoft) in normal mode: Options → Hide All Microsoft Extensions → disable non‑Microsoft Preview/Thumbnail/Context Menu handlers (do a binary search: disable ~half, test, etc.). Reboot or simply restart Explorer between tests. This frequently finds the offending shell handler.

Driver / GPU test (if steps above don’t fix)

1. Faulty GPU driver can hang Explorer. Use DDU (Display Driver Uninstaller) in Safe Mode to remove AMD drivers, then boot and test with Microsoft Basic Display Adapter. If that fixes it, reinstall a known stable AMD driver or test with the iGPU (disable the AMD card in Device Manager). (I can give DDU steps if you want.)

System checks (safe, non‑destructive)

1. Run as admin:
   • sfc /scannow
   • DISM /Online /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealth
2. Clear thumbnail cache (close Explorer first), run in Admin Command Prompt:
   • del /f /q %localappdata%\Microsoft\Windows\Explorer\thumbcache_*.db
   • del /f /q %localappdata%\IconCache.db
     then restart PC.

Collect evidence (so I can pinpoint the cause)
A. Event Viewer — after the next hang open Event Viewer → Windows Logs → Application and System and copy any Error entries at the hang time (especially anything mentioning explorer.exe, shell32.dll, mfmp4srcsnk.dll or display/driver entries). Paste the full event text here. Event errors are very helpful.
B. Capture an Explorer dump (best if you’re comfortable; I can walk you through it)

• Download Sysinternals procdump. Run elevated PowerShell/CMD:
  procdump -e -ma explorer.exe C:\Temp\explorer.dmp
• Trigger the hang and let procdump capture the dump, then zip explorer.dmp and upload (OneDrive/Google Drive/Dropbox link is fine). You said you have 300+ GB free, so space isn’t an issue. A dump gives the exact DLL/thread causing the lock — I’ll analyze it.

Other notes

• If you recently installed Windows updates, third‑party shell extensions, or new media/codecs, consider uninstalling them temporarily — some updates have caused Explorer breaks in the past.

Which do you want to try first?

• I recommend: 1) Turn off thumbnails + preview pane and test, then 2) Safe Mode test. If those don’t help, run ShellExView. If you prefer I can give step‑by‑step commands for ShellExView, DDU, or procdump and tell you exactly what to paste from Event Viewer.