File Explorer is one of the essential components of the Windows operating system that allows you to manage files, folders, and disks on your computer. File Explorer is also responsible for the appearance of the Windows user interface, such as the desktop, taskbar, start menu, and others. However, sometimes File Explorer can experience problems, such as hanging, slow, or not responding. This can interfere with your performance and comfort in using Windows 11.
To resolve the issue, you can try to restart File Explorer. Restarting File Explorer is a way to close and reopen the explorer.exe process that runs File Explorer and the Windows user interface. By restarting File Explorer, you can fix some of the problems that occur, such as updating settings, applying tweaks, or returning the system to a normal state.
There are several ways to restart File Explorer in Windows 11, ranging from the easiest to the most complicated. Here are some ways you can try.
Way 1: Restart File Explorer Using Task Manager
Task Manager is a built-in tool in Windows that allows you to monitor and manage processes, applications, and services running on your computer. You can use Task Manager to restart File Explorer easily and quickly. The following are the steps.
- Press the Ctrl + Shift + Esc buttons simultaneously to open Task Manager. Alternatively, you can also right-click on the start menu and select Task Manager.
- If Task Manager opens in simple mode, click on More details to see a complete list of processes.
- On the Processes tab, find Windows Explorer. If you have one or more File Explorer windows open, they’ll be at the top of the list under the Apps. If File Explorer doesn’t open, look for it under Background processes and scroll down until you find Windows Explorer.
- Click on Windows Explorer, then click the Restart button in the lower-right corner of Task Manager. Alternatively, you can also right-click on Windows Explorer and select Restart.
- Wait a few seconds for Windows to restart File Explorer. You’re done. The desktop and taskbar will flash briefly, and then reappear as usual.
Way 2: Restart File Explorer Using Command Prompt
Although it’s not as practical as using Task Manager, you can also restart File Explorer using Command Prompt, Windows PowerShell, or Windows Terminal. Anything you can run will be able to do this job. Note that you don’t need administrator privileges to restart File Explorer using Command Prompt. The following are the steps.
- Open Command Prompt, PowerShell, or Windows Terminal. You can press the Start key, type cmd (or powershell), and then click Run as administrator.
- Type the command taskkill /f /im explorer.exe and press Enter. The console will report that the process has been terminated.
- Next, run Windows Explorer using the command start explorer.exe.
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Way 3: Restart File Explorer Using a Script
Finally, you can also create a script to rerun Windows Explorer to your liking. You can then assign the script to a key or shortcut to restart File Explorer using the keyboard. The following are the steps.
- Open Notepad or another text editor application.
- Type the following two lines.
taskkill /f /im explorer.exe
start explorer.exe
- Save the file with a .bat extension, for example, restart-explorer.bat. You can save it in any location you want, such as on the desktop.
- To run the script, you can double-click on the file. Or, you can create a shortcut for the file and assign the shortcut key you want.
Conclusion
Restarting File Explorer is a useful way to fix some problems that occur in File Explorer or the Windows user interface. You can restart File Explorer in several ways, such as using Task Manager, Command Prompt, or scripts. You can choose the way that best suits your needs and abilities.