Where Shell Dll Errors Come From and How You Should Deal With Them

“This program has performed an illegal operation and will be shut down.” Many a computer with a shell.dll error has displayed this message – often in relation to a web page that tried to play music or perform some other out-of-the-ordinary function.

This is one of the most frustrating errors that anyone can get when surfing online. Fortunately, it’s also correctable. What are the causes, and how can someone fix them?

Shell.dll errors may occur when a files has no extension.

One of the things that shell.dll does is find a file or programming object’s extension (such as.jpg or.doc) and then associates with an.EXE,.BAT,.PIF, or.COM file.

(For example, many.pls files automatically associate with winamp.exe (WinAmp Media Player) on a computer that runs WinAmp..mp3 files may play on WinAmp or Windows Media Player. Shell.dll tells these programs to run these files, just as it tells Microsoft Office to run MS Word whenever a.doc file is selected.)

A problem can occur if you try to run a file that has no extension. This is sometimes easily fixed by changing the name of the file.

– Right click on the file.

– Select “Rename” towards the bottom of the menu.

– Retype the file name, then type “.” and the extension you think the file may be. (Usually you will have been told then when you downloaded the file.)

This is by no means a cure-all, but it works in many cases. If renaming the file so that it has an extension is not something that gets results, you should consult the originator of the file, or else see if your registry maintenance program can help.

You may get shell.dll errors because of registry problems.

Sometimes you can fix this by re-downloading the program that is trying to use it. If you’re having shell.dll problems with your mp3s, for example, then you may want to re-download your mp3 player. This may properly re-install shell.dll into your registry.

Again, this is not a cure-all, but it is one of the solutions that may fix your shell.dll error.

Regular maintenance to your Windows registry can help prevent this kind of error.

Routine maintenance with a good registry cleaner will ensure that you have the proper.dll files in working order. Learn more about shell dll and other registry issues to keep your computer running smooth!