Windows is one of the most popular operating system for the computer. Windows 10 is the latest version of it. UI of windows 10 is very customizable and it gives you a very minimalistic look. Some of Windows 10 operating system shows you that file explorer not responding. If you are a windows user then you might face that problem too. Some high-end computers also face this error in windows 10. It doesn’t depend on your PC configuration all the time. There is some internal problem can be the reason for this problem.
We store all our data in the hard drive of a computer. We can access our hard drive data through windows file explorer. It’s very annoying when file explorer stops responding at emergency time. In some cases, File explorer stops responding frequently whenever you want to open it. Let’s get rid of this error forever using some simple trick.
File Explorer Not Responding FIx
This error can occur for several reasons. We don’t know which one is actually yours that’s why we are providing all the solutions we have to fix the file explorer problem. I hope all of them work on your device and you can solve the problem.
01. Free Some Storage
File explorer stops responding when the hard drive is full or has very little space available on it. Delete some unnecessary data that you don’t need or move it somewhere else. Upgrading storage can also solve this problem but that will cost you some money. You can use google drive or one drive to store your data and free up some space from your computer.
02. Windows Explorer Restart
You can restart your windows explorer to solve this. Windows explorer runs all the folders of your computer. You have to restart it from the windows task manager.
- Press “CTRL+SHIFT+ESC” and it will open the task manager.
- You will find windows explorer there.
- Right Click on the windows explorer and click on restart.
If windows explorer is not available there you should do it manually. Go to File>>Run New Task from the task manager and type “explorer“. Check the “create this task with administrator privilege” to get admin access for opening windows explorer. This may help you solve File explorer not responding problem.
03. Restart Your Computer
Sometimes this problem happens because of some simple reason that goes with a simple restart of your device. Rebooting the device solves a lot of the simple problem of your device. You can restart it in many ways. Go to the start menu and press the power button. Here you find the restart button. The start menu also appeared by pressing the windows key from any program.
04. Update Install
Windows come with a new update every month. In every update, windows fix a lot of bugs from the operating system. You should keep updating your computer windows for better performance of it and security reason. Windows updates it’s privacy policy every month to make you more secure on the internet. You get the notification to update your PC from your taskbar if you are connected to an internet connection. If you don’t then follow these steps to update your windows 10.
- Press “Windows Key+ I” to open the settings of your device.
- Go to update and security and if you don’t then search it on the search bar.
- Go to the Windows Update from the left sidebar.
- It will take some time to download the update.
- Reboot your device after you download the updates.
You can schedule the update if you are doing some other stuff on your computer. After the restart, your device might not show file explorer not responding.
05. Display Settings
Display settings of windows should be 100% for launching file explorer easily. File explorer recommends full display to open. Make your windows display setting to 100%.
- Go to your windows setting by pressing “Windows Key + I”
- Search for “Display Settings”
- Change the Display text and apps settings from under scale and Layout.
- Make it 100% if it’s not.
- Restart the device.
Check if the file explorer not responding problem still exist or not.
06. Install Drivers
Drivers installing is very important for the performance of a windows computer. Drivers connect the hardware and the software with the operating system so it can operate all the programs perfectly. Installing drivers is not enough but you have to update them regularly if the updates are available. Drivers depend on the motherboard. You can download the drivers online or get it from the disk you got when you buy the motherboard.
Get the official version of drivers on the motherboard company website. Here are some links to get the official drivers.
The official version is better than any third-party driver solution pack. There are many universal driver packs available online. Installing drivers might solve the file explorer not responding problem.
07. Clear Quick Access
This solution is only possible if you can manage to open file explorer once. Open the file explorer and select “Quick Access” from the left sidebar. Right-click on it and go-to option. You will see the clear option in the general category. Reboot your computer now and you might able to open the file explorer without any problem.
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FAQ's
Is this solution only for windows 10?
These solutions mainly work on windows 10 but it will also work on some other windows like windows 7 and windows 8,8.1. All the windows are developed by Microsoft so there is a chance to work these tricks on any windows.
Why does this error occur?
The Windows operating system we use is pirated most of the time. Only a few people buy windows with license and rest of don’t use the original one. This is the reason we find so many bugs and performance issues in our operating system.
Device hardware is also a problem in file explorer not responding problem. If your device has low end hardware then it will not respond in many tasks.
