Windows Explorer Right Click Strange Behaviour

Hi there,

I've got an issue in windows explorer that only appears to happen on files when I right click to bring up the context menu.

1. Load windows explorer (which takes a while)
2. Open any folder with files and right click on a file.
3. Windows explorer appears to hang and does not respond, it then flickers and my folder pane appears to perform a refresh. The context menu does not appear
4. If I right click the same file again, the context menu appears immediately.

This only appears to happen on the first right click of a file in a folder tree. I can then right click afterwards and everything is ok until I choose another file to right click on or change folders.

This problem is causing me so many problems as I use the right click functionality for everything.

It's as if something is happening when I first attempt to right click on a file and it's bizarre how explorer then refreshes itself forgetting that I had asked for the context menu to be displayed..

I'm not sure if this is software related or something else. I don't appear to have any malware problems but you can never be too sure.

I've downloaded ShellExView and run that. I disabled everything Non-Microsoft related and I still get the problem. My context menu was empty of extra options and it still locked my PC and I had to right click again after the application had refreshed.

I've run CCleaner on my machine and I have also run Registry Mechanic to clean up my registry.

I don't have many options on my context menu, but the ones that are there are really useful to me.

Can anyone suggest other avenues I could try to isolate this problem and fix it?

Regards,

Emma

 

See if this might apply, http://windowsxp.mvps.org/rcdelay.htm

You can also read this thread, http://forums.majorgeeks.com/showthread.php?t=116575&highlight=right+click

Steve

 

Hi,

Thanks for the reply. I have seen the link regarding the possibility of a network share being linked with one of my context menu entries. I check did all the entries with ShellExView and it was still happening when I disabled the context applications so I didn't think it was possible that I had a network share as one.

The thing which concerns me is that I always have to right click twice to get the context menu. If I had a problem with a particular context application wouldn't that mean that it happens every time? Windows Explorer seems to be doing something when I attempt the first right click and it just forgets about my right click request.

I had task manager watching when I attempted the right click earlier and even though the explorer application locked up upon the first attempt (per file) the CPU usage and memory didn't even budge.

Emma

 

Didn't budge when the menu was actually open?

See if this changes anything.

1. Click Start, and then click Control Panel.
2. In Control Panel, double-click Display, and then click the Appearance tab.
3. On the Appearance tab, click Effects.
4. In the Effects dialog box, click to clear the Use the following transition effect for menus and tooltips check box, and then click OK two times.

Steve

 

Hi,

Thanks for the suggestion. I did as you said but still when I right click on a file in windows explorer it will take roughly 15 seconds for the application to respond from its hung state and the window flickers as if it is performing some kind of folder refresh and then nothing happens. I can then right click to get the menu up.

With regards to the processor in task manager. When I right click I watched the performance and memory details and although my PC windows explorer was hanging in task manager everything appeared ok. No spikes on the graph etc...

Thanks for the continued help, this really has stumped me.

Emma

 

Does it only happen in Windows Explorer, right-click anywhere else ok?

Also, what type of files are in the folders, are they .jpeg,.avi, etc.? Sometimes picture or movie files will have another program associated with them and can either crash or delay Windows Explorer.

Have you defraged the hard drive lately?

Steve

 

Hi Again,

Thank you thank you... This was indeed the problem. I downloaded the reg scanner application this evening and sure enough there was a shell command that was trying to access a computer that no longer exists on my network.

I am indebted to you for this help. I'd tried ShellExView earlier in the week but didn't realise what this little program was doing that was different.

Thanks again - I can happily right click to my hearts content...

Emma

 

Great!

Good job Emma.

Steve