Windows Explorer and the underlying windowing system

[chrstrbrts]

Hello,

I've had an issue with Windows Explorer today.

After an important update, Windows Explorer doesn't launch.

Instead, I get a black screen and functional mouse pointer.

So, I bring up Task Manager, end the process tree for the Windows Explorer process that is running after startup, and start a new Windows Explorer process.

The desktop comes right up.

Clearly, something is wrong with the registry.

But, that's not what I'm really interested in.

Clearly, Windows Explorer is running on top of some other deeper running software that handles the windowing environment.

Otherwise, there wouldn't be any GUI functionality whatsoever, and we all know that task manager is a GUI based program.

What is that software?

Is it listed as a running process on task manager?

If so, what happens if I end it?

 

[corkyg]

Sounds like something got corrupted in the update process. Explorer is simply the file manager for Windows. I have never seen what you described. What version of Windows?

 

[chrstrbrts]

What version of Windows?

7.

Do you know anything about the underlying windowing environment that Windows uses?

 

[corkyg]

Never heard that expression, and not sure what you mean by it. AFIK, Windows 7 operates in the NTFS environment.

 

[Ketchup]

Windows hasn't had an "underlying environment" since 95, when it was a gui running on top of MS DOS. First thing to try would be uninstalling the latest updates and seeing if the correct behavior returns.

 

[chrstrbrts]

AFIK, Windows 7 operates in the NTFS environment.

Doesn't NTFS stand for new technology file system?

Windows hasn't had an "underlying environment" since 95, when it was a gui running on top of MS DOS.

I'm aware of that.

Though, there is an underlying windowing environment over which Windows Explorer runs.

It's a windowing manager called Desktop Window Manager.

I did find it in task manager under services.

I tried to stop it, but task manager wouldn't let me.

I suppose that the kernel protects it for obvious reasons.

First thing to try would be uninstalling the latest updates and seeing if the correct behavior returns.

I tried that; that doesn't work.

 

[Ketchup]

DWM (Desktop Windows Manager) only runs if you are running the GUI effects. It runs on top of explorer. You can still disable it and have a very Windows 95/98/2000-ish visual experience (or a 7-ish experience without the transparency). If you are able to bring up Task Manager with your standard GUI, then DWM is probably not your issues. In Windows 7 you have the ability to stop the DWM process from the Processes tab of Task Manager, so you can always try turning that off upon first boot to see if that affects your issue.

Since you can prove that Windows Update did not cause this, you can start looking into other things, such as recently installed programs, a good malware scan, looking at the startup programs, or a system restore back to before the issue began. Even a file system scan wouldn't be a bad idea at this point.