Windows 11 - Fenced folders close shortly after opening

Tried all suggestions of uninstall and reinstall, delete tool, hold control while double-clicking, etc.

from Stardock Forums

Most times when I try to open a fenced folder, it opens, but several second later closes.  Immediately trying again, it opens with a simple double-click.  Occasionally, an unfenced folder on the regular desktop will do the same.  The screen blanks momentarily, and when the desktop reappears, the fences are missing, but appear in a moment.  Then the particular folder will open with a simple double-click.

I am running Windows 11 Pro on a Dell Inspiron 3501 with an 11th gen i7-1065G Intel CPU, 64GB RAM, and a 4TB M.2 NVMe SSD.  Fences is fully updated, as are W11 and all my other apps and drivers.  According to Task Manager, I don't have significant other apps running to use up CPU or RAM (5% and 9%).

I have already tried all the suggestions I could find in this forum: update, uninstall and reinstall, use delete tool, hold control while double-clicking, etc.  I am using the "don't show shortcut arrows on icons", and locking or unlocking fences makes no difference.

I have Norton 360, but completely disabling it makes no difference.

The only anomaly I can see is that the fenced icons are spaced slightly wider (horizontally) than the "snap to grid" icons on the regular unfenced desktop.

I still have 20 days left on the trial, but will reluctantly abandon Fences if this cannot be fixed.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

folders close after opening windows 11 stardock software
31,495 views 9 replies
Reply #1 from Stardock Forums Top

Hello,
Sorry to hear you are having issues. I believe you mentioned you have tried purge and reinstalled as mention here: https://forums.stardock.com/486084/fences-support-faq#reinstalling. If yes, you did it. and still have issue with it. Please try Cleanboot as mention here:  https://forums.stardock.com/486084/fences-support-faq#cleanboot. Try that and report back.

Thanks
Basj,
Stardock Community Assistant.

Reply #2 from Stardock Forums Top

Hi Basj,

I got to "Other Users" and clicked on "Add Account", but nothing happened.  I tried "Family", but couldn't add an account there either.

I have set up this laptop as an offline account, without a Microsoft Account, if that matters.

Jim T.

 

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Reply #3 from Stardock Forums Top

I tested on my system and I get the "Microsoft account" creation popup after I click on the "Add Account" button. If you don't see it. Please see if this guide could help you: https://thegeekpage.com/unable-to-add-new-user-account/

Thank you,

Basj,
Stardock Community Assistant

Reply #4 from Stardock Forums Top

Hi Basj,

THANK YOU for all your help.  The culprit appears to be "Explorer Patcher", which I had installed long before I heard about Stardock.  Removing it eliminated all the problems.

I assume "Start11" will have no conflicts with "Fences4", and will try it out shortly.

One last question.  I'm using the "Snap to grid" feature in Windows 11 on my regular, unfenced desktop, and the icons are arranged in a 20 x 8 (H x V) matrix.  But I have found that I can get only 17 icons in a full-width fence, because they are spaced farther apart horizontally than the snap-to-grid icons on the regular, unfenced desktop.  Attempting to add another icon to the fenced row results in the creation of a second row under the first row.  However, in a full-height fence, I can get 9 icons, because they are spaced closer together vertically than the snap-to-grid icons.  Is there any way to get the fenced icons to have the same 20 x 8 spacing as the regular, unfenced desktop icons?

Thanks again,

Jim T.

Reply #5 from Stardock Forums Top

Hello,

  • No Start11 should not have any conflict with Fences 4. In fact it work better together.
  • This is what I get on icons space when I put them side by side. Look not much different in space between them. Please post what you see on your PC.

  • I believe the will always some different in icons alignment between on desktop icons and inside the Fence icons, since within the Fences there will some space needed for the title bars and borders around the fence.

Thank you,

Basj,
Stardock Community Assistant

Reply #6 from Stardock Forums Top

Hi Basj,

Here is the icon spacing difference -- much greater than in your pix.  Note that the folder icons are the same size, and the longest title length is also the same: Manuscripts = membership.

This is only a minor issue, and I will accept it because of the convenience of using Fences.

Thank you,

Jim T.

Reply #7 from Stardock Forums Top

What is your Icons size setting and your Windows Monitor Scale factor? (100%, 150%, 300%)

Thank you,

Basj,
Stardock Community Assistant

Reply #8 from Stardock Forums Top

HI Basj,

Default/recommended screen settings of Medium icon size and 125% scale factor.  1920 x 1080 (native) IPS screen resolution.

No accessibility options except for a "Windows Standard (extra large) (system scheme)" touchpad-cursor arrow.

Laptop is a custom-built Dell Inspiron 3501 motherboard in a Dell Inspiron 5570 chassis.  Specs were listed in a previous post.

Jim T.

Reply #9 from Stardock Forums Top

Hello,
I have forwarded your problem/question to Stardock Support Team for their assistance. Please keep an eye on this thread for any updates. We appreciate your feedback and patience.

Basj,
Stardock Community Assistant