Windows 11 file explorer not responding after update, also unable to download

Question

Over the past several months every time my desktop computer updates Windows 11 Home the file explorer stops working and does not respond, though it does list all folders. Usually I could restore functionality by uninstalling the update, but this past week the last one (KB5065426) (26100.6584) caused the same problem and I am now locked out of all my files and folders! I also discovered that I am unable to download anything from the internet.

My computer is a Dell Inspiron 3891, running Windows 11 Home x64 10.0.24100 Build 26100.

I have tried ALL the suggested fixes and NOTHING works.

I have restarted Explorer, cleared its cache.

I have uninstalled Microsoft OneDrive, Google Drive, and DropBox.

I have rebuilt the Index.

I have stopped all services except Windows.

I ran a repair re-install Windows 11, version 24H2 (repair version).

I have run other CMD codes with no effect.

File explorer opens to the Quick Access list but clicking individual folders or libraries does nothing. I can right click on the library icons and can check Properties which counts the files but can not see or open any folder. Oddly my image files are visible on the Gallery icon beneath Home, but Pictures folder does not open. Until I re-installed Windows, the images were recent dates, but now they are missing and start in 2022.

What is more frustrating is that today when attempting to download an alternate file program it failed to download. Even downloading an image file failed.

Since nothing has fixed it, I am posting this request for help.

Any suggestions appreciated.

Answer 1

Hello there! Thanks for the update, Michael. That's a huge relief. Since the new account works fine, the issue isn’t with Windows 11. It’s just your old user profile that got corrupted. The fix is simple: move your files from the old account to the new one. This is a much easier problem to fix.

The plan is to move all of your important stuff from the old, corrupted account to the new one. Think of it like moving to a new house on your computer, so you can leave all the broken parts of the old one behind.

Step 1: Copy Your Files
Log in to the new account you created.
Open File Explorer and go to C:\Users. You'll see your old user folder there.
Open that old folder and copy all your main folders like Documents, Pictures, Desktop, and Downloads.
Paste them into the same folders under your new account.

Step 2: Get Everything Else Set Up
You'll need to log back into your web browser to retrieve your bookmarks and passwords.
Reinstall and sign into any cloud programs like OneDrive or Dropbox.
You might need to reinstall a few of your other programs, especially if they aren't working right.

Once you have everything moved and confirmed that it's all working, you can safely delete the old, problematic account to free up space. Let me know how it goes.

Answer 2

Thank you for your quick response, RuthMayB. I've been unable to sleep tonight because of this problem and have just tried your suggestion to create another account.

I set up a local test account without a Microsoft sign-in but with administrator privileges. Restarted and logged in as the test and was pleased that everything seems to work properly. I created/saved a text file, downloaded an image file, and created a couple folders on File Explorer. I also downloaded a an alternative file utility program, Total Commander, to see if it would work on both accounts.

I've just logged out of the test account and returned to my account. File Explorer is still unresponsive, But Total Commander does work, though I don't know how to use it yet. I'm concerned that it only found a few of my documents folders. However my Document Properties in File Explorer shows the true number which is very large, I think, 93,200 Files, 5,167 Folders = 368 GB.

So you are correct that this problem is connected to a corrupt user profile/account and not Windows.

What should I do now?

Answer 3

Good day! That's a real pain, I get it. This is a tricky one, especially after a big update. Before we get into anything complicated, if you log into a different user account on your PC, do you see the same problem?

The reason I'm asking is that sometimes just one user profile gets corrupted, and the rest of Windows works fine. This can cause all sorts of strange behavior that a regular fix can't solve. The easiest way to check is to make a new local account and see if everything works there.

At this moment, the best first step is to do just that. Go into your Windows settings, create a new local user account, and then log in to it. Once you're there, try using File Explorer and downloading something. Can you try that and tell me what happens?

Let me know if that works for you, and we can go from there.