Windows Explorer (Windows XP Pro SP2) formerly launched and opened within 1-2 seconds, but is now taking 30-45 seconds. Additional diagnostic observations follow…
[1] During the period between launching Windows Explorer (WindowsShiftKey+E) and the appearance of the application, there is no noticeable disk activity and CPU utilization is low.
[2] When using the WindowsShiftKey+E method to launch Windows Explorer, the delay occurs on the first as well as all subsequent attempts. The delay also occurs whether or not a Windows Explorer window is already open.
[3] Using WindowsShiftKey+E to launch Windows Explorer results in about a 30 second delay before the application is launched. Interestingly, however, clicking on the following shortcut starts Windows Explorer immediately:
C:\WINDOWS\explorer.exe /e,"C:\Documents and Settings\<user>\My Documents"
Therefore, the behavior is different depending upon the method by which Windows Explorer is launched (keyboard shortcut versus program shortcut).
[4] Opening a Microsoft Word 2003 document by clicking on the file name displayed within Windows Explorer results in about a 45 second delay before the application is launched and the document is loaded. However, if Word is invoked directly (through the Start -> All Programs menu), it starts promptly; and if the document is then selected from within Word (File -> Open), it opens instantly. A .PDF document, in contrast, opens immediately when the file name is clicked within Windows Explorer.
[5] It does not appear that Norton Internet Security 2006 is responsible for this issue. As a test, I did disable the two features "Program component monitoring" and "Program launch monitoring", as well as disabling the Norton AntiVirus option "Turn Office Plug-in on". Yet, these changes did not alter the behaviors I have reported (alas!).
[6] There is no malware on the machine (as reported by Norton Internet Security 2006, Webroot Spy Sweeper 5.0, Ad-Aware SE Professional, and SpyBot).
[7] The PC is not joined to a network (and thus there are no mapped network drives). “My Network Places” does not contain any shortcuts, and I have disabled the option "Automatically search for network folders and printers" in Windows Explorer. There are no FTP shortcuts on the PC, and a search of the registry did not find any values with a network reference (the "\\" designation).
[8] There are no bad media in the floppy/CD/DVD drives.
[9] All MRU (Most Recently Used) items have been cleared, all items in the folder "C:\Documents and Settings\<user>\Recent" have been deleted, and all Temporary Internet Files deleted.
[10] Running “CHKDSK /R” did not reveal any problems.
[11] Running "sfc /scannow" did not reveal any problems.
[12] Re-registering Shell32.dll ("regsvr2 /i shell32.dll") succeeded, but did not help with the problem.
[13] With the exception of this problem, the PC is operating properly in all other respects.
All 'helpful hints' and troubleshooting recommendations are appreciated and welcome!
[1] During the period between launching Windows Explorer (WindowsShiftKey+E) and the appearance of the application, there is no noticeable disk activity and CPU utilization is low.
[2] When using the WindowsShiftKey+E method to launch Windows Explorer, the delay occurs on the first as well as all subsequent attempts. The delay also occurs whether or not a Windows Explorer window is already open.
[3] Using WindowsShiftKey+E to launch Windows Explorer results in about a 30 second delay before the application is launched. Interestingly, however, clicking on the following shortcut starts Windows Explorer immediately:
C:\WINDOWS\explorer.exe /e,"C:\Documents and Settings\<user>\My Documents"
Therefore, the behavior is different depending upon the method by which Windows Explorer is launched (keyboard shortcut versus program shortcut).
[4] Opening a Microsoft Word 2003 document by clicking on the file name displayed within Windows Explorer results in about a 45 second delay before the application is launched and the document is loaded. However, if Word is invoked directly (through the Start -> All Programs menu), it starts promptly; and if the document is then selected from within Word (File -> Open), it opens instantly. A .PDF document, in contrast, opens immediately when the file name is clicked within Windows Explorer.
[5] It does not appear that Norton Internet Security 2006 is responsible for this issue. As a test, I did disable the two features "Program component monitoring" and "Program launch monitoring", as well as disabling the Norton AntiVirus option "Turn Office Plug-in on". Yet, these changes did not alter the behaviors I have reported (alas!).
[6] There is no malware on the machine (as reported by Norton Internet Security 2006, Webroot Spy Sweeper 5.0, Ad-Aware SE Professional, and SpyBot).
[7] The PC is not joined to a network (and thus there are no mapped network drives). “My Network Places” does not contain any shortcuts, and I have disabled the option "Automatically search for network folders and printers" in Windows Explorer. There are no FTP shortcuts on the PC, and a search of the registry did not find any values with a network reference (the "\\" designation).
[8] There are no bad media in the floppy/CD/DVD drives.
[9] All MRU (Most Recently Used) items have been cleared, all items in the folder "C:\Documents and Settings\<user>\Recent" have been deleted, and all Temporary Internet Files deleted.
[10] Running “CHKDSK /R” did not reveal any problems.
[11] Running "sfc /scannow" did not reveal any problems.
[12] Re-registering Shell32.dll ("regsvr2 /i shell32.dll") succeeded, but did not help with the problem.
[13] With the exception of this problem, the PC is operating properly in all other respects.
All 'helpful hints' and troubleshooting recommendations are appreciated and welcome!