Cant run explorer.exe

I will try the installation with another DVD.

stupid question...are you using a legit version of windows?

Yes, it worked fine before.
I cluttered my pc with too many things and felt I need to run a clean install and after the
installation finished this happend  


I kind of found a temp solution for this,
using explorerxp I copied explorer.exe to the desktop
edited the permissions and went back to C:\windows and
replaced explorer.exe, although it works it's still annoying
having to do it everytime I boot  


If anyone finds out how to fix this please let me know.

Could be something wrong with your DVD

Yeah maybe I'll test it with another installation. First I gotta see if any of my friends have one.

^Yeah, try with another DVD of the same version and WITH your key.

Well no-one has one so I'll have to go back to xp until I sort out a new copy  .
Anyway thank you for helping out.

You can install XP, download a copy from Internet and try the installation with that copy BUT with your key. This is legal and you can do it.

try you hdd manufacturer for a low level format utility, or anything to zero the drive. then install with your old disk.

Yeah I just found a original download, if it still doesn't work I'll find a way to zero out the hdd then try again. Thanks again for the help  .

Explorer.EXE-Windows cannot access the specified device, path, or file. You may not have the appropriate permissions to access the item on opening any FOLDER on Windows 7

After working on it for 3 hours, and trying many usual ways
(scanning for viruses, sfc /scannow gave "Windows Resource Protection could not start the repair service", secedit did not do anything (as usual), Subinacl refused to install and gave error “The Windows Installer Service Could Not Be Accessed”); found the problem is due to a permissions issue with C:\Windows\Registration folder

I also scoured the internet and failed to find a resolution (other than a clean windows reinstall by formatting the hard drive)


Solution:
-Click on Start
-In Search box, type c:\windows\Registration
-You will get Registration folder on the top (as a part of search results)
-Right click on Registration and click on Properties
-Go to Security tab and click on Advanced on bottom
-Verify the the Current owner (under Owner tab) is set to Administrators
-Go back to Permissions tab and verify the following permission entries:

Allow Administrators Special <not inherited> This folder and files (full control)
Allow Everyone Special <not inherited> This folder and files
Allow SYSTEM Special <not inherited> This folder and files (full control)

-Edit Administrators & SYSTEM and ensure it Applies to This folder and files; and all boxes under Allow are checked

-Edit Everyone and ensure it Applies to This folder and files; and boxes to ticked are Traverse folder/execute file, List folder/read data, Read attributes, Read extended attributes and Read permissions


-If any of the three is missing (Everyone & Administrators most likely), just click on Add and type the name of the one missing, Check Names and OK it and then set the permissions as stated above


-Finally, put a check under Replace all child objects permissions with inheritable permissions from this object and click on OK on all the following prompts and restart the computer.

  =Everything would be back to normal


Then you just ensure you have a proper security program like BitDefender installed which should cover you for viruses, spywares, rootkits and has a strong firewall, to keep such issues at bay

Thank you. THANK YOU!!!!! After searching and trying EVERYTHING I could find online to fix this problem - I couldn't run Windows Explorer, my sound was no longer functioning, I could not get into Control Panel, in fact the only way I could get your fix to work was to use an alternate to Windows Explorer (xplorer2) to get access to the Registration folder (when I right clicked on it from the search in the Start menu, Properties was not available.) I couldn't even do a non-destructive re-install of Windows 7 because it would start and then tell me certain files could not be accessed/read and it would stop.

So I was in process, after about 10 hours of searching and trying every solution on the internet, of doing a full destructive reinstall of Windows 7. Looking at a few days of trying to reinstall programs (if I could find the discs!) and getting things back up again. Then I saw a link to this, in the comments of a web page for a solution that did not work. Tried it - and almost wanted to cry when it worked.

You saved me days of work. I cannot thank you enough. You are my technical hero.

Jeff

I have this same problem and I have tried everything I can think of to rid myself of it. I can't figure it out, I tried this solution but while in advanced I couldn't change anything. Now I can't even get into the registration properties. I am so lost and so discouraged to continue trying but if anyone can give me a hand I would be overjoyed.