- Windows 11 has been hit by a bug that crashes Explorer.exe
- This means that the core interface essentially disappears
- Fortunately, Microsoft has implemented a fix, but you’ll need to install the latest optional update to take advantage of it
Windows 11 has a bug that breaks important parts of the interface for some people, but the good news is that Microsoft has now issued a fix.
Windows Latest reports that the bug was carried by the January update, but also previous monthly updates, and it causes Explorer.exe, which is the central pillar of the Windows 11 interface, to crash.
If Windows Explorer bombs out, this can cause your entire desktop interface to disappear, meaning the taskbar disappears and you won’t be able to access the Start menu or system tray (or desktop folders for that matter).
Restarting Explorer (in Task Manager) is a possible solution, as is just resetting the PC, but obviously this is an inconvenient and rather ugly bug.
This only affects PCs that have certain apps installed, as Microsoft explains in a support document: “This update fixes an issue where Explorer.exe might stop responding (hang) the first time you log on to your PC if certain apps were configured as startup apps. This might cause the taskbar to not appear.”
However, the company does not elaborate on which apps may be problematic here.
Analysis: a fix is in – and it should be the first of many
As mentioned, if you’ve been plagued by mysterious crashes where the Windows 11 interface has essentially done a disappearing act, there’s now a cure available for this bug.
Microsoft has provided a fix in a new optional update released a few days ago, patch KB5074105. You’ll find this under Windows Update (in Settings), just check for updates and it should be revealed.
I wouldn’t normally recommend installing a preview update, but if you’ve been hit with a particularly annoying bug – like this one – and it’s going to be fixed by an optional update, then it’s probably worth the risk. By that I mean that preview updates are inherently flawed – as they’re still in testing – but if you’re already suffering at the hands of something frustrating, it’s very likely that you’ll get a favorable trade-off. That is certainly the case here.
Note that since the fix is still rolling out, you may not get it right away, though any wait shouldn’t be long at this point.
Microsoft is already working on fine-tuning Windows 11 to overcome bugs and address performance pain points, and has promised that this year will be a period of fixing the desktop operating system. Hopefully this means there will be fewer problems with Windows 11 updates as 2026 progresses, but we’ll just have to see if that becomes the reality for the OS over time.
It can’t get any worse than January, mind you, with the first month of 2026 proving to be something of a nightmare for Microsoft, and more to the point, a disaster for some of its Windows 11 customers.
The best laptops for all budgets
Follow TechRadar on Google News and add us as a preferred source to get our expert news, reviews and opinions in your feeds. Be sure to click the Follow button!
And of course you can also follow TechRadar on YouTube and TikTok for news, reviews, video unboxings, and get regular updates from us on WhatsApp also.
