problem Classic Shell corrupted itself / can't get rid of it

[Stereodude]

So today without any explanation Classic Shell seems to have eaten itself. It locks up when I click on it or use the Windows key. I can't seem to figure out how to uninstall it or recover. I've rebooted several times, but the problem persists and I'm stuck.

 

[Stereodude]

Okay, so I got it uninstalled by loading appwiz.cpl from the task manager and after rebooting I now have no shell on the computer. After I enter my password I get a black screen and no shell. I can launch task manager after I Control+Alt+Delete but am pretty much stuck on what to do next.

 

[Stereodude]

Manually launching explorer.exe does nothing. The registry shows explorer.exe as the shell.

 

[Mercutio]

Neat. Maybe create and sign in to a new user account by using Task Manager and the net command?

 

[Stereodude]

I don't think it's all that "neat". Reinstalling classic shell fixed nothing. Still a black screen.

This is my work PC. I have a second account, but what good will that do me? I need to get this one working.

Okay, I just tried the second user account that hasn't been used in months and it has the same problem.

Trying sfc /scannow now

 

[Mercutio]

You might have to overwrite ntuser.dat to get it going again. Signing in to see if another account works should at least tell you if the problem is with the user or system registry entries.

 

[Stereodude]

You might have to overwrite ntuser.dat to get it going again. Signing in to see if another account works should at least tell you if the problem is with the user or system registry entries.

Once this scan is done I will reboot and log into the second account directly and see if it's any different. I tried doing the switch user and logging into it when it I still had the black screen and no shell.

 

[Stereodude]

sfc /scannow found nothing, but after I unplugged an older USB memory stick from my USB 3 hub (that's always plugged in there) the shell loaded and everything seems normal.

 

[Mercutio]

This technet article on defining the User Shell might also be helpful. The issue you're experiencing should be fixable. You might also try System Restore if that looks like too much work.

 

[Stereodude]

It works fine now after I unplugged this USB flash drive. Got me... It works with it plugged back into the hub too.

I guess the controller got into some weird state that was causing explorer to hang when it was accessing it.

 

[Mercutio]

Neat.

 

[ddrueding]

I've had many random issues that were fixed when a USB storage device, even one that had been in the system a long time, were removed. I don't even keep card readers connected to my system anymore, as that was one of the first steps when troubleshooting anything.