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Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problemsFix Now →Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitchesFind Drivers →Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errorsFree Scan →If File Explorer closes as soon as you right-click, the context-menu path is a useful place to start troubleshooting—but the symptom alone does not identify the cause. A menu extension from an app, a software conflict, or Windows system-file trouble are among the possibilities. Work from low-impact checks toward more disruptive recovery steps, and avoid deleting registry entries or resetting Windows as a first response.
First, narrow down when the crash happens
Check whether the crash occurs with every file and folder or only a particular type or location. Also note whether Explorer closes immediately on right-click or only after you select Show more options. Windows 11 has a modern context menu as well as this route to additional entries; comparing the two behaviors may help narrow the symptom, but it does not identify a cause or fix it by itself. A Microsoft Community report describes a related crash when using Show More Options, but one report is not evidence of how common the issue is or what caused it: Microsoft Community discussion.
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Install available Windows updates and restart
Check Windows Update, install available updates, and restart the computer. Microsoft lists checking for updates and restarting among its general first steps for File Explorer trouble. Its guidance addresses Explorer problems such as failing to open or start, so treat these as sensible initial checks—not a guaranteed fix for a crash triggered specifically by right-clicking: Microsoft’s File Explorer troubleshooting guidance.
Check apps that add context-menu commands
If the problem began after you installed or updated an app, consider whether it adds commands to the right-click menu. Examples include archive utilities, cloud-sync clients, security tools, graphics utilities, and PDF apps. The timing may be a useful clue, but it does not prove that the app is responsible.
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Use the app’s supported update, repair, or uninstall process to test it, changing one app at a time where practical. Avoid deleting registry keys you do not understand: removing the wrong entry can cause other problems, and a crash during right-clicking does not establish which menu handler is involved.
Use a clean boot to test for software interference
A clean boot starts Windows with non-Microsoft services and startup programs disabled, helping test whether background software is involved. It is a broad diagnostic test, not a way to identify a particular context-menu extension on its own. Microsoft warns that startup changes can temporarily limit functionality and that managed-device policies may restrict the procedure. On a work or school computer, check with IT first.
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- Follow Microsoft’s clean-boot instructions to configure the startup test.
- Before changing settings, record which services and startup items you disable so you can restore them.
- Test right-clicking in File Explorer. If the crash stops, re-enable items methodically to narrow down which software is involved; the clean boot alone does not identify the culprit.
- When testing is finished, restore normal startup using Microsoft’s instructions.
Repair Windows system files if corruption is plausible
If Windows component corruption is a reasonable possibility, Microsoft’s recommended sequence is to run DISM before System File Checker (SFC). These utilities address Windows image and system-file integrity; they do not establish that corruption caused a right-click-only crash or resolve every third-party menu-extension problem. See Microsoft’s DISM and SFC guidance.
- Open Command Prompt as an administrator.
- Run
DISM.exe /Online /Cleanup-image /Restorehealthand wait for it to finish. - Then run
sfc /scannowand wait for verification to reach 100%.
If the crash continues, document it before escalating
Collect the Windows version and build, whether the crash affects all files or only certain types or locations, whether Show more options changes the behavior, and what changed shortly before the problem began. If you can obtain relevant crash details, include those too. This information can help Microsoft support or your organization’s IT team assess the issue. Microsoft also suggests Feedback Hub when File Explorer remains unreliable; see its general File Explorer troubleshooting guidance.
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Leave PC reset or reinstall for later
Resetting Windows is a high-impact recovery option, not a first-line fix for a right-click crash. Microsoft includes reset among later options in its general Explorer guidance, but does not guarantee it will resolve this specific symptom. Before considering a reset or reinstall, back up important files and make sure you have a recovery plan.
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