Restart Windows Explorer Without Rebooting Computer

Windows Explorer, also known as the "shell", is the interface you use to control Windows. Windows Explorer is what displays your desktop, icons, task bar, and Start menu. Sometimes Windows Explorer may become frozen or unresponsive, or you may need to restart it after installing a program. You can use the Task Manager to quickly shut down Windows Explorer and restart it, instead of having to wait for your computer to reboot.

Steps

Windows 7, Vista, and XP

  1. Press .Ctrl+⇧ Shift+Esc. This will open the Task Manager.
  2. Click the .Processes tab. This will display a list of all of the processes currently running on your computer.
  3. Click the "Image Name" column header to sort the processes alphabetically. This will make it easier to find explorer.exe
  4. Select .explorer.exe from the list. It's easiest to find if the list is in alphabetic order.
  5. Click .End Process button. Confirm that you want to end the process. Windows Explorer will be closed. Your task bar and desktop will disappear, and any open Explorer windows will be closed.
  6. Click "File" and select "New Task (Run...)". This will open the Run window.
  7. Type .explorer and press ↵ Enter. The Windows Explorer interface will restart. Your task bar will return, as well as your desktop and icons. Any Explorer windows that were previously opened will not be reopened.[1]

Windows 8 and 10

  1. Press .Ctrl+⇧ Shift+Esc. This will open the Task Manager.
  2. Click "More details" at the bottom of the window. This will change the view so that you can see all of your active processes.
  3. Scroll down to the "Windows processes" section. This section is at the bottom of the list.
  4. Find and select the "Windows Explorer" entry. It will have the Windows Explorer folder icon.
  5. Perform a quick restart of Windows Explorer by clicking .Restart. When you select Windows Explorer the End task button turns into a Restart button. Clicking this will quickly close and restart Windows Explorer in one step.[2]
  6. Close and restart Windows Explorer manually. If you'd prefer to restart Windows Explorer yourself, you can still close and restart it manually like in older versions of Windows:
    • Right-click on Windows Explorer and select "End task". This will close Windows Explorer immediately.
    • Click "File" and select "Run new task". This will open the Run window.
    • Type explorer and press ↵ Enter. This will reboot Windows Explorer.

Tips

  • In Windows 8 and 10, you can hold Ctrl+⇧ Shift and right-click the taskbar to get the "Exit Explorer" option. This will quickly close Explorer without having to open the Task Manager.[3]
  • When Windows Explorer is closed, you cannot use shortcuts that use the ⊞ Win key.

Related Articles

Sources and Citations

  1. ↑ http://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/forum/windows_vista-desktop/how-to-restart-windows-explorer/4cc7ac28-fb45-e011-9577-d485645a8348
  2. ↑ http://www.howtogeek.com/179053/how-to-restart-the-start-screen-and-taskbar-explorer.exe-in-windows-8.x/
  3. ↑ http://www.howtogeek.com/198815/use-this-secret-trick-to-close-and-restart-explorer.exe-in-windows/
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