allank

Solution: I was able to boot into Safe Mode with Command Prompt, and then ran the System Restore by executing %systemroot%\system32\restore\rstrui.exe. I restored to before the updates, and all is well (or at least as "well" as it was before the updates!)

Yes, it's XP Pro, but I can't do a System Restore - no desktop, no command prompt, not even in Safe Mode. I even tried to startup with F8 picking the last known good option - didn't work. Windows boots fine, I get the Welcome screen and then I get the Windows Explorer has encountered an error and has to close notice. I'm then left with an empty blue screen. I've taken the drive out and plugged it in as a second drive in a working computer, and am now trying to run an online scan on both drives - so far nothing. I remember that there's a registry key that if deleted will restore the desktop,

Anyone out there an expert on Windows Explorer? After doing a bunch of security updates, Windows Explorer quits immediately after startup. Same thing in Safe Mode. Task Manager quits when trying to launch an app using Run. Any ideas? I can't run Regedit or any other command, because the Task Manager quits as soon as I type anything into the Run field. Any help will be greatly appreciated.