A couple weeks ago, I ran into one of those weird Windows 11 issues that took way too long to figure out. Maybe this story will help someone else who’s stuck!
I’d been noticing for a while that whenever I right-clicked on any file or folder, File Explorer would freeze for like 15-20 seconds, sometimes longer. On a bad day, it crashed completely and restarted. Super annoying, especially since I use the context menu all the time for renaming, copying files, etc.
First thing I did was the usual Google search for “Windows 11 File Explorer right click slow or freezes.” Most people suggested disabling third-party context menu extensions or updating Windows. Here’s what I tried:
- Used ShellExView to disable all non-Microsoft context menu handlers. No dice, still freezing.
- Ran System File Checker (
sfc /scannow). No corrupt files found.
- Booted into Safe Mode. Right-clicking was perfectly snappy there, so something was up in normal mode.
- Updated my AMD graphics and sound drivers, just in case - no change.
Some folks said to clear recent items and Quick Access, so I did that under “Folder Options > Clear File Explorer history.” Didn’t help, unfortunately.
The breakthrough came when I realized the freezing only happened on folders syncing with OneDrive. I noticed little blue circular arrows next to some of my folders - apparently, they were still syncing. I paused OneDrive sync and the right-click menu instantly stopped freezing on those folders. I then opened OneDrive settings and unchecked the big folders I wasn’t actually using cloud sync for (in “Choose folders…” under “Account”).
That fixed it 100% for me! No more hanging right-clicks, super fast context menus again.
So, my tip:
If Explorer hangs or crashes on right-click, especially with OneDrive icons on folders, check which folders you’re syncing. Too many large/stuck folders in OneDrive can seriously slow context menus (I think Windows tries to update the sync status for the menu every time).
Don’t only look for shady shell extensions - sometimes it’s a native Windows feature like OneDrive causing the pain. Try pausing sync, or remove big folders you don’t need in the cloud.
Hope this helps someone avoid the headaches I had!
