Cannot access programs and features.

xbeethx

New Member
i've had this problem for a while, and can't seem to find any fix for it. i've looked through these forums for similar problems, and tried the given solutions but nothing seems to work.

i can open control panel fine, then when i double click programs and features, the loading icon appears briefly and disappears immediately.

i've downloaded several registry cleaning tools that haven't helped and tried to enable in the registry editor, which also didn't work.

can anybody help?

thanks.
 

My Computer

My Computer

System One

  • Manufacturer/Model
    Dell XPS420
    Memory
    6 gig
    Graphics Card(s)
    ATI Radeon HD3650 256 MB
    Sound Card
    Intergrated 7.1 Channel Audio
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Dell SP2009W 20 inch Flat Panel w Webcam
    Hard Drives
    640 gb
    Cooling
    Fan
    Keyboard
    Dell USB
    Mouse
    Dell USB 4 button optical
    Other Info
    DSL provided by ATT
Hello xbeethx, welcome to Vista Forums!





Using "several registry cleaning tools" has probably only made matters worse, that's the last thing one should do as most of them are nothing but snake oil and do nothing but delete the wrong 'things' from the registry and continued use will completely disable the PC.


Do you have a Vista install disk? If you do and the excellent suggestion from Richard above doesn't help, even after several runs, have a look at the tutorial at the link below.
Be sure to post back to keep us informed.

How To Perform a Repair Installation For Vista
 

My Computer

System One

  • Manufacturer/Model
    * BFK Customs *
    CPU
    Intel C2Q 9550 Yorkfield
    Motherboard
    ASUS P5Q Pro
    Memory
    8GB Dominator 8500C5D
    Graphics Card(s)
    XFX ATI 1GB 4870 XXX
    Sound Card
    Realtek HD 7-1
    Monitor(s) Displays
    1x 47" LCD HDMI & 2x 26" LCD HDMI
    Screen Resolution
    1920x1080P & 1920x1200
    Hard Drives
    2x 500GB 7200RPM 32MB Cache WD Caviar Black
    PSU
    Corsair 620HX
    Case
    CM Cosmos RC-1000
    Cooling
    Tuniq Tower 120, 2x 140mm and 3x 120mm case fans
    Keyboard
    HP Enhansed Multimedia
    Mouse
    Razer Diamondback 3G
    Internet Speed
    18.6Mb/s
    Other Info
    My First Build ;)
I agree with BFK. And FYI, what Rich is describing.....click on the Start Button and in the search box enter appwiz.cpl. If it appears in the results, what happens when you click on it? If it doesn't appear in the results, then a repair install will be needed.
 

My Computer

System One

  • Manufacturer/Model
    HP Pavilion s3700y (PC)
    CPU
    AMD Athlon 64 X2 Dual Core 5000+
    Motherboard
    Pegatron Acacia
    Memory
    3GB Micron Technology (PC2-6400)
    Graphics Card(s)
    NVIDEA GeForce 8400GS
    Sound Card
    Realtek High Def Audio
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Compaq WF1907
    Screen Resolution
    1360x768
    Hard Drives
    Western Digital 320GB
    Case
    Slimline
    Cooling
    A little fan
    Keyboard
    eMachines Enhanced Multimedia
    Mouse
    Logitech M305
    Internet Speed
    2703 kbps
i had a feeling they wouldn't help, but i was clutching at straws :(

i ran the sfc/scannow, it says windows resource protection has discovered corrupt files but was unable to fix some of them.

when i type appwiz.cpl, it does appear in the results, but when i click or press enter, a new windows explorer window opens and immediately closes...

i guess it's not really that big a deal, i have an external hard drive i could transfer all my files to and re-format my laptop. i just wanted to know if there was a fix and, if possible, find out what caused the problem in the first place, so i can avoid it in the future.

thanks for the help :)
 

My Computer

You definitely have corrupted file(s), but don't know that you have to format the drive. As BFK posted, you can repair install and you won't lose data/pic/etc files (even though a backup of what's important is crucial). Brink's explanation is EXCELLENT and walks you through it step-by-step. Take it from me, it works well.
Good luck on whatever you decide to do.
 

My Computer

System One

  • Manufacturer/Model
    HP Pavilion s3700y (PC)
    CPU
    AMD Athlon 64 X2 Dual Core 5000+
    Motherboard
    Pegatron Acacia
    Memory
    3GB Micron Technology (PC2-6400)
    Graphics Card(s)
    NVIDEA GeForce 8400GS
    Sound Card
    Realtek High Def Audio
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Compaq WF1907
    Screen Resolution
    1360x768
    Hard Drives
    Western Digital 320GB
    Case
    Slimline
    Cooling
    A little fan
    Keyboard
    eMachines Enhanced Multimedia
    Mouse
    Logitech M305
    Internet Speed
    2703 kbps
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