What Folder Is Explorer.exe In?

The file "explorer.exe" is the executable process file for Windows Explorer, the program that manages the Microsoft Windows desktop and file browser. This file can appear in different locations depending on the version of Windows you have.

Location

• The location of explorer.exe varies between versions of Windows, though it is always located in one of the main system folders. The file can be found in C:\Windows or C:\Windows\System32\ on 32-bit versions of of the operating system, or in C:\Windows\SysWOW64\ on 64-bit versions.

Malicious Look-Alikes

• Some viruses will name their processes explorer.exe, in order to trick users into thinking it's the Windows Explorer executable. If you find explorer.exe in a different folder than one of the above-named locations, it's likely a threat.

Restarting the Process

• The Windows operating system can function without explorer.exe running for short amounts of time and will automatically restart it if the process is ended. This means that you can safely kill explorer.exe in Windows Task Manager if it seems to have crashed.