Windows 10: Windows 10 right-click on start menu and within file explorer is malfunctioning

My Windows 10 right-click functionality and file explorer was malfunctioning. However, it's not just a problem in explorer, but also right-click functionality in the Start menu.

Here are the symptoms I have found:

1 After a fresh reboot, some of the app icons pinned in the Start menu are blank. None of the icons in the Start menu itself exhibit this, only the pinned ones.

2 If I right-click the Start menu, some applications will launch while others do not. It seems that the ones that launch are the ones introduced in Windows 10 such as

- Apps & features
- Power options
- System
- Settings
- Search

while others that don’t work are
- Device manager
- Disk management
- Computer management
- Command Prompt
- Command Prompt Admin

If I try to launch one of the ones that I know will fail, then file explorer will be messed up from that point forward until I reboot. I will explain below.

3 If I launch file explorer after a reboot, I can move my way around drives and folders. I can double-click on files and the associated app will launch and open the file e.g. txt, docx, pdf etc. If I try to right-click a file, I get the blue circle and the right-click context menu never shows up. From that point on explorer is locked up. I can no longer double click on a file.

I have tried the following:

Re-starting the locked up explorer in task manager does no good. I cannot double click files in the new explorer instance if the previous one was already broken..

I have run DISM and SFC. They didn't find errors.


I have booted to safe mode. The problem does not appear when in safe mode. Everything works fine.

I have run Msconfig and set it to diagnostic mode and rebooted. The is no problem.


I kept running Msconfig and determined that it was not any of the third party services. After many hours of enabling small groups at a time of the Microsoft services, I finally determined that it was the Windows Search service that was the problem. It would not start. I ran the troubleshooter. It changed fixed some permissions and then the service could start.


Once Windows Search was running, the right click problem disappeared.


I just wanted to share this with you as I could not find any mention of this anywhere.

:)

 

Windows 10 Tweaks

Pressing “Windows+Pause Break” (it’s up there next to scroll lock) opens the “System” Window.

Windows 10: In the new version of Windows, Explorer has a section called Quick Access. This includes your frequent folders and recent files. Explorer defaults to opening this page when you open a new window. If you’d rather open the usual This PC, with links to your drives and library folders, follow these steps:

• Open a new Explorer window.
• Click View in the ribbon.
• Click Options.
• Under General, next to “Open File Explorer to:” choose “This PC.”
• Click OK

credit to Lifehacker.

 

Feature suggestion: Add right-click menu

Suggestion: Please add a Windows 7 Jump-List and/or right-click menu to the GPU-Z icon in the Windows taskbar. Possible menus in it would be "Exit" and "About GPU-Z...".
Maybe also "Switch to tab 1/Switch to tab 2/Switch to videocard 1/Switch to videocard 2" too.
Examples of programs that have such menus are ICQ, Skype, AIM.

NOTE: It seems for a right-click menu, Windows 7 is not needed - it works on WinXP and Vista too.
But even a Windows 7 Jump-list may be good enough.
What do you think?

 

'Open in new window' right-click menu option for File Explorer


I just submitted this suggestion on Windows Uservoice:

The idea: the right-click menu for folders in File Explorer has an option called 'Open in new window', which opens that folder in a new File Explorer window. Very useful for copying and moving things, and opening destination folders without accessing the start menu a second time.

right-click menu option for File Explorer – Feature Suggestions for Windows