How To safely shutdown and restart Windows Explorer (Explorer.exe) in Windows Vista

There are few things more frustrating than having Windows Explorer (Explorer.exe) FUBAR while you're working or playing in windows (not to mention when it crashes completely and unexpectedly.) If you ever find yourself in a situation where you want to restart the explorer process, you can follow these steps to restart it in a safe manner.

Step 1. Shutdown Windows Explorer

• Click on the start button
• Press and hold Ctrl+Shift then Right-Click on a blank spot on the start menu

• You should see the following dialog. Click on Exit Explorer

Step 2. Restart Windows Explorer

• Open the task manager by pressing the ctrl+shift+esc keys
• Click on File > New Task(Run)
• Enter Explorer next to Open: and press Enter

This process will safely shutdown and then restart the Windows Explorer process.