How To Restart Windows Explorer

It can be very annoying when Windows Explorer suddenly stops responding. Waiting for it to recover is definitely not entertaining and holding the power button to force shutdown your PC is not a recommended option because it could induce data loss.

When a program hangs, we just kill it and restart it, so why not do the same with Windows explorer? You can just restart Explorer and it should working fine again.

In this Tutorial, we are going to show you different methods to restart Windows Explorer, both Automatic and Manual.

Method #1: Kill and Restart Windows Explorer from Task Manager (Manual)

This is the most common way to restart Windows Explorer, but it might not be the most comfortable one. Press Ctrl+Shift+Esc keys on your keyboard, this will start Windows Task manager. This combination is faster than going through Ctrl+Alt+Del.

In Task Manager, move to the “Processes” tab and find and click on the “explorer.exe” process name to select it. Once selected, click on “End Process” located at the bottom right corner of the window. From the prompt, click on “End Process” again and Windows explorer will be killed.

Restart Windows Explorer

Now, to start Windows explorer again, you will have to use Task manager too. Task manager should be already open (Press Ctrl+Shift+Esc again if you can’t see it), just click on “File” at the top of the window. From the menu, click on “New Task (Run)” and type “explorer” in the next window. Now, click on “OK” and Windows Explorer will restart.

Note: In this method, Windows explorer’s process is terminated, then restarted. Normally, terminating Windows Explorer doesn’t affect other apps, but it’s best to save data and close all apps before doing this, just to be safe.

Method #2: Exit Windows Explorer from the Start Menu (Manual)

This is an easier and safer method than the above method. In this method, the Windows explorer exits properly while saving your settings, instead of just killing it on the spot.

All you need to do is open start menu and press and hold Ctrl+Shift keys. While the keys are held, right click on any blank area (where there are no options to process) and you will see the option of “Exit Explorer”. Click on it and Windows Explorer will exit after saving all the settings.

If windows explorer doesn’t restart automatically, you will have to restart Windows Explorer using the process mentioned in the method #1.

Method #3: Use a Shortcut to Restart Windows Explorer (Automatic)

If you constantly need to restart explorer, then it is better to make the process automatic for convenience. Using a batch file, we will go through same process in “Method #1”, but you will only have to open a file to execute the process.

To get started, open Note Pad and copy/paste the below mentioned script in it:

taskkill /f /IM explorer.exe
start explorer.exe
exit

Make sure you copy/paste exactly, including the line spacing and separate all three lines.

Now, click on “File” and from the menu click on “Save”. You need to name the file as “Restart Explorer.bat”, make sure you remove “.txt” and add “.bat” properly. Save the file anywhere you like, but make sure the location is easier to access when you need to restart Windows explorer

All you need to do now is, double-click on the newly created file and Windows explorer will exit and restart again automatically.

Method #4: Add Restart Explorer Shortcut to Context Menu

If you are looking for a faster and more reliable way to automatically restart Windows explorer, then you can do it right from the context menu (right-click menu) as well. This is a better option as compared to creating a shortcut, you can access context menu anywhere while using Windows explorer, but a shortcut is limited to a specified location.

Note: This method involves tweaking Windows Registry, and any mistake can affect Windows functions. So, it is recommended that you first create a backup of Windows Registry and then continue. Furthermore, this method involves use of the Batch file “Shortcut” that we created in the method #3. This means, you first need to follow method #3 and then continue to this method.

To open Windows Registry, press Windows+R keys to open “Run…” and in there, type “regedit” and hit “OK”.

In the Registry, you need to navigate to this area by double clicking on each option:

HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT — > Directory –> Background

Under “Background” you will see an option of “Shell”. Right-click on it and hover your mouse cursor over “New”. From the side menu, click on “Key” and rename this key as “Restart Explorer” and hit enter.

Now, right click on the new “Restart Explorer” option and hover your mouse cursor over “New” to see the side menu and select “Key” from it. Name this key as “Command” and hit enter.

Go to the batch file “Shortcut” that we created in the Method #3 and hold Shift key and right click on it. From the context menu, click on “Copy as Path” to copy the path of the “Shortcut”.

Now, come back to Registry editor again and click on “Command” (the new key we created earlier) to select it. Once selected, you will see an option of “Default” in the Right panel. Right click on “Default” and from the context menu, click on “Modify”.

A tiny window will open up, here paste the “shortcut” path you just copied by pressing Ctrl+V keys and click on “OK”.

Now, you will see the option of “Restart Explorer” in the context menu whenever you will right click on a blank area in Windows. Just click on it to restart Windows Explorer.

Note: if at any time in the future, you change the location of the Batch file “Restart Explorer Shortcut”, you will have to copy the new path again and paste it in the “Default” section of the “Command” option. Otherwise, the option in Context menu will stop working.

If you know any other interesting way to restart explorer or have any questions regarding any process, let us know in the comments below.

Filed in Computers . Read more about Windows.

How to Restart Windows Explorer in Windows 10

By Bryan Clark 05 August 2018

When your computer starts to act up, it’s tempting to just restart the PC. But what you might not know is that you can often fix the problem without waiting for a full restart. Instead, you can usually just restart the Windows Explorer to clear up the issue.

Windows Explorer (aka Explorer.exe) is a program manager process that, in essence, controls the graphical interface of the programs you use most often — Start menu, notifications, the taskbar, and File Explorer. By restarting it, you’re essentially hitting the reboot button, but without the timely restart process; it’s done in seconds and usually ready to go right after.

There are multiple ways to accomplish the restart, but we’re just going to go with the most straightforward method: the Task Manager.

1. Open the Windows task Manager. You can either use the “three finger salute,” of Control + Shift + Escape, or right click the Start Menu and click Task Manager.

2. Depending on the version of Windows (and whether you’ve already done this previously), you may need to click More details at the bottom to see the processes. If you’re already seeing all of the running processes, just skip this step.

3. Click Processes at the top. This may already be the active tab, but if not you’ll simply have to click on it to make it active.

4. Scroll to the bottom, under Windows processes, and click Windows Explorer to highlight.

Как перезапустить Проводник Windows (explorer.exe)

В этой статье показаны действия, с помощью которых можно перезапустить Проводник Windows (explorer.exe).

Проводник Windows — графическая оболочка (приложение), с помощью которой пользователь получает доступ к файлам в операционной системе.

Очень часто после применения различных твиков реестра, чтобы изменения вступили в силу, необходимо перезапустить Проводник Windows. Также в некоторых случаях при «зависании» проводника, его можно просто перезапустить вместо перезагрузки компьютера.

Данный материал носит информационно-познавательный характер, рассматривающий различные способы перезапуска проводника Windows

Как перезапустить Проводник Windows используя «Диспетчер задач»

Это самый простой и распространённый способ перезапуска проводника.

Откройте диспетчер задач, для этого нажмите сочетание клавиш Ctrl + Shift + Esc, далее на вкладке Процессы найдите процесс с именем Проводник, выделите его нажатием левой кнопки мыши и нажмите кнопку Перезапустить.

Также можно кликнуть правой кнопкой мыши на процессе с именем Проводник, и в появившемся контекстном меню выберите пункт Перезапустить.

Как перезапустить Проводник Windows в командной строке

Запустите командную строку от имени администратора и выполните следующие команды:

Сначала принудительно завершаем процесс explorer.exe

Затем запускаем процесс explorer.exe заново

Как перезапустить Проводник Windows с помощью «cmd» или «bat» файла

Если Вам часто приходится перезапускать Проводник Windows, то для этого можно создать командный файл (cmd) или пакетный файл (bat).

Создайте текстовый документ в который скопируйте и вставьте следующий код:

::restart explorer.exe
@echo off
taskkill /F /IM explorer.exe
start explorer.exe

Сохраните файл и измените его расширение с .txt на .cmd или .bat

Теперь, если вы запустите созданный файл, то будет выполнен перезапуск проводника.

С помощью таких не сложных действий можно перезапустить Проводник Windows.

3 Ways to Restart Windows Explorer in Windows 10

There are times when Windows Explorer gets stuck or even the Start Menu or the task bar is not responding. The best solution is to restart Windows Explorer without restarting the system.

In this article, we will discuss different ways to restart Windows Explorer to fix the issues without restarting the system.

What is Windows Explorer/File Explorer

Windows Explorer, also known as the File Explorer is the soul of Windows. It is the User Interface through which a user connects to all the applications and the services the Windows is hosting.

The process running behind Windows Explorer is Explorer.exe. It is also the process that runs the Desktop, taskbar, notification tray, Start Menu, all of the Dialog Boxes and Prompts, and controller Interfaces.

Without the explorer.exe process, Windows would simply not be operatable under a graphical user interface.

How to restart Windows Explorer

There are ways to restart the explorer.exe process. Let’s start with the basics and work our way up from there.

Restart Windows Explorer using the Task Manager

Windows Task Manager is a resource management tool for Windows that can manage processes, tune up performance, and manage Windows startup and services.

It is also used to kill applications and processes that have become unresponsive or would not entirely quit and keep running in the background.

1. Press Ctrl + Shift + Esc keyboard shortcut keys to open the Task Manager.
2. Click on More details at the bottom.
3. Under the Processes tab, right-click the Windows Explorer process and then click on Restart.
4. This will automatically shut down the explorer.exe process and then restart it again. All applications and folders using the process will close.

Stop and start Windows Explorer manually

1. Under the Processes tab, right-click the Windows Explorer process and then click on Go to details.
2. The Task Manager will then automatically jump to the Details tab and highlight the explorer.exe process. Now right-click the process and select End task.
3. A confirmation dialog box will appear. Select End process to terminate the process. Note that this will also close all applications using explorer.exe and will remain closed unless the process has been restarted.
4. Usually it takes a few minutes for Windows 10 to automatically restart the process. If you do not wish to wait, click on File in the top-left corner of the Task Manager and then select Run new task.
5. In the Create new task dialog box, enter explorer.exe. You may check the checkbox below to run the process with administrative privileges if you want to run Explorer as an administrator but it is not recommended in normal circumstances.
6. Click Ok. This will start Windows Explorer with all the user interface elements.

NOTE: Steps 1, 2 & 3 can also be achieved altogether by holding down Ctrl + Shift and then right-clicking on an empty space on the Taskbar.

Click on Exit explorer to kill the explorer.exe process. Then continue with steps 4, 5 & 6 to restart the process, by accessing the Task Manager with the shortcut keys Ctrl + Shift + Esc.

If you create a New Task by entering explorer.exe, while it is already running and can be seen in the Details tab, it will only open a new Windows Explorer window. This would not be equivalent to restarting the explorer.exe process.

Restart Windows Explorer using command line

The explorer.exe process can be restarted to achieve the same effects with the help of two simple commands. These can be run on both Command Prompt and PowerShell.

Launch Run by pressing the Windows Key + R and enter:

• cmd for Command Prompt
• powershell for Windows PowerShell (Or pwsh for PowerShell Core)

1. In the command line, enter the following command to terminate the explorer.exe process:
   taskkill /f /im explorer.exe
2. Once it successfully runs, enter the following command to restart the process:
   start explorer.exe

Restart Windows Explorer using an automatic batch file

1. Go to the Desktop and right-click on any blank space to open the Context Menu. Expand New and then select Text Document.
2. Open the text document and paste the following script in it:
   taskkill /f /IM explorer.exe
   start explorer.exe
   exit
3. Now click on File and then Save as.
4. Enter the name of the file as RestartWindowsExplorer.bat, and select Save as type as All Files.

Click on Save after browsing to the location of your choice.
You will now notice a new file has been created.

You simply need to run this file by double-clicking it each time you wish to restart the explorer.exe process. You can also assign a keyboard shortcut to this file.

It is not wise to restart the explorer.exe process very often and only recommended to do so when facing lag, or feeling that the operating system’s performance is not ideal, or effectively enforce some changes which you have made to the system that requires a system reboot.

Moreover, it is not always necessary that a process reboot is a perfect alternative for a system reboot, but there is no harm in trying it before going for a complete computer reboot.

Nonetheless, always ensure that all the data is saved in applications and programs utilizing the process, as they are bound to shut down when restarting the explorer.exe process.

Did you find this method effective to get rid of everyday lag and system slowness?