Classic Shell: Forum

Classic shell stopped working on my Windows 7 computer. I uninstalled the program, downloaded and installed the latest version but it still doesn't work.
When I go to the start menu, all the classic shell programs are there but nothing happens when I try to start them.
Any ideas please?

What do you mean by "all the classic shell programs are there"? A screenshot would be helpful.

Hi Ivo,
When I go to Start/All Programs/Classic Shell I see the following: "Classic Explorer Settings", "Classic IE9 Settings", "Classic Shell Help", "Classic Shell Readme", "Classic Shell Update" & "Classic Shell Start Menu Settings". All these seem ok except "Classic Shell Start Menu Settings"
The "Classic Shell Start Menu" doesn't appear to be there when I click on start and it certainly doesn't show a cascading menu.
When I right click the Start button/Properties I get the standard Windows 7 Taskbar and Start Menu Properties page with Taskbar, Start Menu, Toolbar tabs but no Classic Shell tab.
If required, how do I get a screen shot for you?

You can start Classic Start Menu from C:\Program Files\Classic Shell\ClassicStartMenu.exe. Doesn't starting that enable the Start button on your taskbar? If it does, then for some reason, ClassicStartMenu.exe is not automatically starting when you start Windows. Place it in your startup folder inside All programs.

Also, if you are familiar with Services.msc, check if the Classic Shell service is running and set it to Automatic.Sorry, I didn't realize you were running Windows 7. There is no service on Windows 7.

_________________
Links to some general topics:

● Compare Start Menus

● Read the Search box usage guide.

I am a Windows enthusiast and did Classic Shell's testing and usability/UX feedback.

The start button doesn't enable when I try to start Classic Start Menu from that location. I've checked Task Manager for the the Classic Shell service and its not there.

Sorry, the service is there only on Windows 8. Try to download the installer again and do a 'Repair' installation.

_________________
Links to some general topics:

● Compare Start Menus

● Read the Search box usage guide.

I am a Windows enthusiast and did Classic Shell's testing and usability/UX feedback.

Nope! still doesn't work, I give up. A pity, because I was very happy when the cascading start menu was working, but something knocked it out (a windows update maybe?) and nothing I've done to date will restore it>

My classic shell doesn't starts anymore
I have windows 7.
Actually the start menu doesn't change at all. ClassicStartMenu appears in taskmanager list but the menu is the classical windows 7.
I tried uninstall reinstall repair... everything.
The explorer toolbar works fine.
What should I do?

Type "Classic Start Menu Settings" in the Windows 7 start menu and run it. Does it show any settings?

No. It doesn't show any settings.
The toolbar settings works... I can change the settings for the toolbar.
Just the start menu doesn't work at all

Do you have a third party anti-malware installed which may be blocking the Start Menu process?

_________________
Links to some general topics:

● Compare Start Menus

● Read the Search box usage guide.

I am a Windows enthusiast and did Classic Shell's testing and usability/UX feedback.

I have Avira Free antivirus... I turned it off.. still doesn't work
I also turned zonealarm off... still doesn't work.

This is an capture of my task manager.
Maybe it helps.

The only software I see that may be related to the problem is the 7 Taskbar Tweaker. Few people have reported incompatibility in the past. I've been using it myself for years without problems though.
Just as a test, disable it (uncheck "Run at startup" in the 7TT settings) and log off. See if that fixes things.

I've also been using 7+TT without issue. Zone Alarm also often causes a lot of incompatibilities and problems with MANY programs from my personal experience. I would recommend uninstalling ZA temporarily to see if it works with ZA installed.

_________________
Links to some general topics:

● Compare Start Menus

● Read the Search box usage guide.

I am a Windows enthusiast and did Classic Shell's testing and usability/UX feedback.

I stopped 7 taskbar tweaker.
Still doesn't work....
You might be right with ZA though... the problems started because of ZA.
Can you recomend another firewall instead of ZA?
Thank you.

Modern versions of Windows don't need a third party firewall. The built-in one is excellent, although it doesn't block outbound programs by default. You can install a free program like Windows7FirewallControl by Sphinx Software to block outbound connections in Windows Firewall and get a notification when something is blocked. Of course, this 3rd party recommendation is only for your convenience. Use at your own risk. Unsupported by Classic Shell.

_________________
Links to some general topics:

● Compare Start Menus

● Read the Search box usage guide.

I am a Windows enthusiast and did Classic Shell's testing and usability/UX feedback.

I have uninstalled ZoneAlarm and now classicshell works.
Thank you for your time and suggestions.
I wish you all the best.

Hi All, I'm back. I'd given up all hope of running Classic Shell until I saw the post from circlewalk. Tried putting ZoneAlarm to sleep - didn't work. Uninstalled ZoneAlarm - bingo! Classic Shell came up on the re-boot. My only worry now is, ZoneAlarm was a great product, Where do I go now for something similar that will work with Classic Shell?