Windows Explorer hangs and crashes

Question

Windows Explorer hangs and crashes

Vitalii Spasiuk 5

Source

Windows Explorer

Summary

Stopped responding and was closed

Date

‎3/‎17/‎2026 6:39 PM

Status

Report sent

Description

A problem caused this program to stop interacting with Windows.

Faulting Application Path: C:\Windows\explorer.exe

Problem signature

Problem Event Name: AppHangXProcB1

Application Name: explorer.exe

Application Version: 10.0.26100.8036

Application Timestamp: 528e5b22

Hang Signature: d20b

Hang Type: 134217800

Waiting on Application Name: svchost.exe

Waiting on Application Version: 10.0.26100.7705

OS Version: 10.0.26200.2.0.0.256.4

Locale ID: 1033

Additional Hang Signature 1: d20b236d507687ec077eb194c48718fe

Additional Hang Signature 2: 68fb

Additional Hang Signature 3: 68fb92441b6fe31f5949f1b309148e86

Additional Hang Signature 4: 0007

Additional Hang Signature 5: 00075dd9b708f03029698daa026e43fb

Additional Hang Signature 6: 42ba

Additional Hang Signature 7: 42bac8564070fdc23c139ad23906e1c9

Extra information about the problem

Bucket ID: c34ae18c66600e5136a5400b2baa3dc4 (0)

Carson 0 Reputation points

2026-05-10T02:47:40.4733333+00:00

So was this the fix for this, my windows ui, task manager, and right click are all broken right after logon

2 answers

Your answer

Carson 0 Reputation points

2026-05-10T02:47:40.4733333+00:00

So was this the fix for this, my windows ui, task manager, and right click are all broken right after logon

Answer 1

Chen Tran 10,310 Independent Advisor

Hello Vitalii,

Thank you for posting question on Microsoft Windows Forum!

Based on the provided error signature (AppHangXProcB1) which indicates that Windows Explorer (explorer.exe) stopped responding because it was waiting on another process, in this case svchost.exe. That might point to a system service or background process hanging and blocking Explorer.

The suggestion here is to perform a clean slate for the Explorer process to see if it fixes the immediate hang by pressing Ctrl + Shift + Esc to open Task Manager. Find Windows Explorer in the list. Right-click it and select Restart.

Another suggestion is to clear the File Explorer Cache. Sometimes a corrupted "Recent Files" link or a stuck thumbnail cache causes Explorer to hang while trying to load the "Home" or "Quick Access" view. Also, try to disable Quick Access. Since sometimes pinned items or recent files cause hangs. In Folder Options, set Explorer to open This PC instead of Quick Access.

Since your error log mentions svchost.exe, there might be some underlying corruption. It is worth running System File Checker + DISM by opening an elevated Command Prompt and run this command DISM /Online /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealth and then run the command sfc /scannow Then reboot when done. These fix corrupt system files that might cause explorer instability.

Another point worth mentioning here is that you are running OS Version 10.0.26200. This is a Windows Insider Preview build (likely the Canary or Dev channel). Making sure you are on the latest build. Checking Windows Update to see if a newer build (like 26212 or higher) is available.

Hope the above information is helpful! If it is. Free feel to hit "Accepted" for benefitting others in community having the same issue too.

Chen Tran 10,310 Reputation points Independent Advisor

2026-03-18T11:17:26.32+00:00

Hi Vitalii,

Hope you are doing well!

May I know the latest status of the issue?

Hope the provided information is helpful! If it is. It is appreciated to consider clicking "Accept Answer".
Vitalii Spasiuk 5 Reputation points

2026-03-24T19:22:29.4933333+00:00

Hi Chen!

By experimenting, I determined that the hangs are related to notifications, regardless of whether they are system notifications or third-party app notifications. For example, I use a USB device, the Explorer freezes as soon as it is supposed to display a notification that it is safe to remove the hardware. If I use the Snipping Tool, the Explorer freezes as soon as there is a system notification to view the screenshot that I have just taken. The same applies to any chat application that uses system notifications.

Unfortunately, none of the suggested troubleshoots helped.

I tried the Analyze Wait Chain in the Task Manager as some Reddit threads suggested, and killing the last svhost made it unfrozen

The point about the insider build is strange, as this is a work company-managed machine configured to be as stable as possible. Plus, the Insider section in the Settings states that I can join the Insider Program.
Vitalii Spasiuk 5 Reputation points

2026-03-24T19:47:59.0033333+00:00

P.S.

Here is my personal desktop running not the latest Canary build without any Explorer-related issues
Chen Tran 10,310 Reputation points Independent Advisor

2026-03-25T09:45:14.85+00:00
Hi Vitalii,

Thank you for the extra information!

Based on the latest provided information. Sometimes the logic that decides how to show a notification (e.g., during "Focus" sessions) causes the hang. You can go to Settings > System > Notifications. Toggle Do Not Disturb to On, then back to Off. Under "Priority notifications," ensure there is not a massive list of apps. Also, if the underlying database that stores notifications is corrupted, the svchost.exe (hosting the Push Notifications service) will hang when trying to write a new entry. You can consider to reset the Notification database.

On the other hand, it is useful to identify exactly which service(s) are inside the hanging svchost and isolate them with a clean boot or targeted service disable. You can refer to below article for more information.

https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/topic/how-to-perform-a-clean-boot-in-windows-da2f9573-6eec-00ad-2f8a-a97a1807f3dd

Hope the provided information is helpful! If it is. It is appreciated to consider clicking "Accept Answer".
Vitalii Spasiuk 5 Reputation points

2026-03-26T20:24:55.5866667+00:00

So in general, the Diagnostic Startup improved the situation. Now the Explorer does not hang and I get the notifications. There is still an odd behavior when I unplug the second monitor, the icons for the open applications disappear. But this is a minor thing compared to the unresponsive Taskbar and all the related UI elements.
Vitalii Spasiuk 5 Reputation points

2026-04-22T13:05:45.4933333+00:00

The issue persists even after the OS reset. In general, any applications freeze after triggering a notification. To make them work, I can analyze the wait chain in the Task Manager, locate a runtime broker (svhost) process, kill it, and the applications unfreeze.

Answer 2

The hang report shows that explorer.exe (File Explorer / shell) is hanging while waiting on svchost.exe in a cross‑process hang (AppHangXProcB1). This means Explorer itself is not necessarily the root cause; it is blocked waiting for a service or component hosted in svchost.exe.

On modern Windows, hang diagnostics include fields such as WaitingOnAppName and WaitingOnAppVersion specifically to identify this situation. In this case:

Waiting on Application Name: svchost.exe
Waiting on Application Version: 10.0.26100.7705

This indicates a service or COM component inside that svchost.exe instance is not responding in time, causing Explorer to stop interacting with Windows and be terminated.

Because the context only documents the hang-reporting fields and not specific remediation steps for this particular build or service, the only supported conclusion from the provided information is:

The problem is a cross‑process hang where Explorer is waiting on svchost.exe, not a simple crash in explorer.exe itself.
The diagnostic fields (such as WaitingOnAppName and related fields) are working as designed to report which other process is being waited on.

Further isolation (which specific service inside svchost.exe, which shell extension, or which COM component is involved) is not covered in the provided context.

References:

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Windows Explorer hangs and crashes

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