Windows Repair (All in One) doesn't repair Internet Explorer white screen

[johnlpemberton]

Here is a problem Tweaking.com has not fixed.

I had a Trojan virus on a PC running Windows 7 SP1, which I am confident is all removed now, having checked with several different anti-virus programs. 

I ended up with a number of Windows files missing/corrupt, and used Reimage PC Repair which fixed most problems, but I am left with Internet Explorer 10 showing a blank screen instead of displaying the page it has retrieved from the internet.

I believe IE has retrieved the page because IE tabs show the rotating arrow symbol and then display the name of the page they have retrieved, but the page is blank. 

Google Chrome browser works fine and displays pages as usual.  Windows Updates are all installed up-to-date OK.  I have tried ‘Uninstall an Update’ to go back to IE 9, but IE 9 doesn’t work either.

Tweeking.com’s Repair Option says:

Repair Internet Explorer:
This will repair Internet Explorer.
When IE is corrupt and stops working you will notice you get just a white page and nothing more when using it. Also other errors and problems. This repair tool will get IE working normally again. This doesn't replace ANY IE settings. It only repairs IE files.

On running this Option it says:

Starting Repairs...
   Start (29/07/2013 02:52:05)
Repair Internet Explorer
   Start (29/07/2013 02:52:05)
   Running Repair Under Current User Account
   Running Repair Under System Account
   Done (29/07/2013 02:52:18)
Cleaning up empty logs...
All Selected Repairs Done.
   Done (29/07/2013 02:52:18)
   Total Repair Time: 00:00:13

I used Tweaking.com because it says it fixes this problem, but it didn't.  Any ideas?

[Shane]

Have you disabled all the add ons in IE yet as well?

Shane

[johnlpemberton]

Shane, thanks for your help.

Yes, I have I have disabled all add-ons, and checked they are all disabled for Toolbars and Extensions, Search Providers, Accelerators and Tracking Protection.

In fact, I have run the Fixit at http://support.microsoft.com/mats/ie_performance_and_safety which it says fixes:

•   Defective Internet Explorer add-ons. Disables defective add-ons.
•   Phishing filter is turned off. Turns the phishing filter on.
•   Pop-up blocker is turned off. Turns the Pop-up blocker on to block pop-ups.
•   Security settings are not set to recommended settings. Resets security to recommended settings.
•   Internet Explore does not update cached pages or updates them inefficiently, causing launch to be slow. Resets the page sync policy to automatic.
•   Cache size is too small or too big, causing slow performance. Resets the cache size to be within 50-250 MB of the default range.
•   Concurrent server connections set too low or too high causing slow performance. Restore IE concurrent connection settings to defaults.
•   Pop-up blocker is turned off allowing pop screens. Turns the Pop Up Blocker on.
•   Resets Internet Explorer security settings to the default (recommended) levels.
•   Enable the Phishing Filter.
•   Enable Data Execution Prevention for Internet Explorer

I have also tried IE with Advanced/Setting  ‘Use software rendering instead of GPU rendering’ ticked and unticked, and a bunch of other stuff I gleaned from the net.

I should have mentioned, in case it matters, that my PC is running the 64-bit version of Windows 7 SP 1.

I have, since writing my email, been searching yet more on the net and wonder if there is a corruption in my Registry and if I should be re-registering IE dll’s.  From reading MSDN Internet Explorer Architecture  http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/aa741312(v=vs.85).aspx a key dll seems to be mshtml.dll which ‘renders’ html (I assume this means displays it on the screen).  Should I be re-registering this by running:

regsvr32 mshtml.dll

Am I right, and if so what other dll’s should I try to re-register?

John

[Willy2]

- Did you run "Repair System Files", "Reset registry permissions" & "Reset file permissions" as well ? perhaps running other repairs will fix the problem.
- When you run "Repair Internet Explorer" then it registers a list of files, including "mshtml.dll". But perhaps that file is missing ? I don't use IE 10 (I use IE 9 instead) so I can't tell you which files should be present in your system. Does the internet provide an answer which files should registered ?
- The word "renders" reminds of something else. Is there a file called "vgx.dll" in one of the "c:\program files\commonprogram files\" or "c:\program files(x86)\commonprogram files" subfolders ?

[Shane]

IE 8 comes default on Windows 7.

Have you tried uninstalling IE 10 and see if IE 8 works.

Let me know and we can go from there

Shane

[johnlpemberton]

Shane,

I have downgraded to IE 9 by using Windows Update ‘Uninstall an update’ screen to uninstall the IE 10 update.  However, it then does not present me in 'Uninstall and update' with the option to uninstall IE 9, so I can't get to IE 8.

With IE 9, I ran Tweaking.com (with my Microsoft Security Essentials ‘Real-time protection’ turned off) and ticked all 37 options, so none were left out.  The white page in IE still occurs. 

However with IE10, tabs display the rotating arrow symbol and then display the name of the page retrieved.  With IE 9, the rotating arrows display but then a pop-up window comes up saying ‘Internet Explorer has stopped working’  and when I click on its ‘View problem details’ it displays:

Problem Event Name:   APPCRASH
  Application Name:   iexplore.exe
  Application Version:   9.0.8112.16496
  Application Timestamp:   51a59306
  Fault Module Name:   MSHTML.dll
  Fault Module Version:   9.0.8112.16496
  Fault Module Timestamp:   51a59acb
  Exception Code:   c0000005
  Exception Offset:   0000000000171fa2
  OS Version:   6.1.7601.2.1.0.768.3
  Locale ID:   2057
  Additional Information 1:   ec15
  Additional Information 2:   ec15d256222d9bec7797ea13d9e00948
  Additional Information 3:   69b9
  Additional Information 4:   69b92008c29f6f5953c37331eb893781

I also got IE 9 at another time to display:

Problem Event Name:   APPCRASH
  Application Name:   iexplore.exe
  Application Version:   9.0.8112.16496
  Application Timestamp:   51a59306
  Fault Module Name:   DWrite.dll
  Fault Module Version:   6.2.9200.16571
  Fault Module Timestamp:   5154c202
  Exception Code:   c0000005
  Exception Offset:   00000000000b5b48
  OS Version:   6.1.7601.2.1.0.768.3
  Locale ID:   2057
  Additional Information 1:   5742
  Additional Information 2:   5742c22bb95dd5729df9d0e1fe171085
  Additional Information 3:   0de5
  Additional Information 4:   0de5b6c06a197a333abc8af7c450ef3d

Also, other program displays do not work.  For example, with Word 2010 when Help is clicked, a pop-up says ‘Microsoft Office Help Viewer has stopped working’ with ‘View problem details’:

Problem Event Name:   APPCRASH
  Application Name:   CLVIEW.EXE
  Application Version:   14.0.7010.1000
  Application Timestamp:   511d00d1
  Fault Module Name:   d2d1.dll
  Fault Module Version:   6.1.7601.17514
  Fault Module Timestamp:   4ce7b7aa
  Exception Code:   c0000005
  Exception Offset:   00043fc5
  OS Version:   6.1.7601.2.1.0.768.3
  Locale ID:   2057
  Additional Information 1:   626f
  Additional Information 2:   626f51a1fdc2126be70355ff254d2306
  Additional Information 3:   e845
  Additional Information 4:   e8457075d7f69f10b17ba7838ac0da06

Presumably this other Microsoft software uses the same routines (DLLs or whatever) as IE, and is thus encountering the same issues.

Does this allow you to identify the problem?

John

[Shane]

DWrite.dll is a directx file and I dont know what d2d2.dll belongs to but you have an older version then the one I have on my system.

Go ahead and upgrade back to IE 10 if you can.

I am wondering if the problem isnt with IE itself but something else on the system that it needs, like directx.

Which if you havent download the directx web installer and let it update your system and replace any directx files.

Shane

[johnlpemberton]

Shane,

Thanks for your suggestions, but none of them worked. This worked though:

I used Windows 7 Installation Disk to repair Windows on my laptop.  Obviously backup all your data, documents, etc before doing this.  When you run the Windows Installation you have to click on ‘Install’ initially which is scary since you are not wanting to reinstall Windows.  Later however, you must select the ‘Update’ option to repair Windows (2+ hours to run) – do not select ’Custom’ option which reinstalls Windows and wipes all program, data, documents, pictures, etc.

After this, you must laboriously run Windows Update to download and install all (84 in my case) updates that Windows requires (another 1+ hours).  Then you have to reset all your display, start menu, taskbar, sound, mouse and other such options.

To get Windows 7 Installation Disk, since my laptop came without it, I downloaded it (free) from http://best-windows.vlaurie.com/boot-disks.html#full, and burned it onto a DVD using the regular DVD burning software on my laptop.  This download site links to Microsoft’s Windows versions on the Digital River server, and allows you to select your version of Windows – in my case Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit SP1. Several webpages describe how to do this. However, at the end of the install, Windows requires you to enter your ‘Product Key’ (on a sticky label on the underside of your computer) which you paid for with the computer, so you are not actually getting anything for free.

I am writing this in full in case it is useful to any others reading this.

It also strikes me, reading all the forum postings made by people with corrupt parts of Windows, there is a real opportunity for a software developer to write an application which knows what dll’s, other files and registry entries should be present and fixes them for corrupt windows features.  The two features I needed this for were Internet Explorer and Windows Update.  The problem is that these are ‘non-installed’ features in Windows, whereas I had similar corruptions with Microsoft Security Essentials, and simply uninstalled and reinstalled it to correct the problems.  The only current solution for ‘non-installed’ features is Windows Installation ‘Update’ option, as I describe above, which is scarily techie and takes several hours to complete.

Shane, a real opportunity for you?

John

[Shane]

Sometimes a repair install is the best step. I normally point people to here to get the iso
https://sites.google.com/site/linuxlablibrary/windows-iso

But the more links the better

I have a feeling it was more than just files, but registry keys as well that needed fixed, and the repair install did that

Shane

[Willy2]

@JohnLPemberton:  Do/Did you use the 64 bit version of IE ?

[johnlpemberton]

Yes, I did use the 64-bit version of IE, certainly in the upgrade to IE 10 (which failed as well as the failure of IE 9 installed on the PC as part of Windows 7), because the 64-bit version is what Windows Update offered me.

John

[Willy2]

I have a Win 7 64 bit system and IE 9. When IE installed itself on my computer, it detected I had a 64 bit system and then it installed both the 32 bit & 64 bit version on my computer, in "Internet Explorer", a subfolder of "program files" (64 bit) & "program files (x86)" (32 bit).

But Win 7 (perhaps Vista & Win 8 as well) contains a bug (in "CMD.exe" ??) that makes WR fail when WR tries to target/access the folder "program files" (64 bit). Instead it targets "program files (x86)" (32 bit). So, WR isn't able to repair the 64 bit version of IE. That could be the reason why the repairs failed for IE (64 bit). But keep in mind, you still have the 32 bit IE version !!!

I use the 32 bit version because a number of IE plugins are 32 bit as well. If I would use the 64 bit version then I get error upon error.

@Shane: Is there a work-around for this problem ? It has to do with the systemvariables
%programfiles% & %programfiles(x86)%.