Blank or Empty Device Manager in Windows XP - A Compilation of Solutions
Thursday, December 8, 2005 at 6:23 pm
Windows XP Annoyances Discussion Forum
Posted by jcw
(5097 messages posted)
The following has been distilled from various sources, notably messages posted in
a lengthy thread in this forum spanning well over two years at:
» http://www.annoyances.org/exec/forum/winxp/1051715405
Credit is to be given to those who provided these solutions, and those who endured
the trial and error in remedying a blank or empty Device Manager and took the time
to post their results.
Readers are encouraged to "book-mark" this web-page for future reference for users
experiencing a blank or empty Device Manager in Windows XP.
Begin with the first potential solution below, and proceed with each subsequent
solution, after each opening Device Manager to see if it properly displays devices.
Some solutions may not apply to your situation, e.g. the first and second solutions
that apply if you are getting the error messages there described.
To undertake these procedures, be logged-in with full administrative powers.
1) If Device Manager is blank and there is an error message that the Device
Manager Snap-in failed to initialize, re-register the devmgr.dll file as follows:
• Close all open programs.
• Start --> Run, and type: REGSVR32 DEVMGR.DLL and hit Enter or
OK.
• You should get this message: "DllRegisterServer in devmgr.dll succeeded."
Click OK.
2) If Device Manager is blank and there is an "Action Cancelled" message
stating:
"Internet Explorer was unable to link to the Web page you requested. The page
might be temporarily unavailable.", re-register the dmocx.dll file as follows:
• Close all open programs.
• Start --> Run, and type: REGSVR32 DMOCX.DLL and hit Enter or
OK.
• You should get this message: "DllRegisterServer in dmocx.dll succeeded."
Click OK.
3) A totally blank Device Manager (not showing even the computer icon and
name) can occur if the Plug and Play service is not started. Open the Services window
and check the Status and Startup Type of that service. To open the Services window:
Start --> Run, type: SERVICES.MSC and hit Enter or OK.
If that service is not started or if its Startup Type is not set to automatic,
follow the instructions in
MS KB Art. 311504.
4) Review the Status and Startup Type of all of the Windows services in the
Services window. You may find that many of the services that should be started,
are not. If so, start those services and set their Startup Type to automatic or
manual as appropriate. To open the Services window:
Start --> Run, type: SERVICES.MSC and hit Enter or OK.
If you find a service that should be started, but is not:
• Double-click on the service to be started.
• On the General tab, in the Startup Type drop-down list, click on either Automatic
or Manual as appropriate (if in doubt, click on Automatic).
• Click on the Start button.
• Click OK.
When finished, close the Services window. You may need to restart the computer
to effect the changes you have made to the services. Once it appears that the computer
is operating properly, you may want to review the Windows services to see if there
are any that do not need to be started or whose Startup Type can be set to Manual
or Disabled without adversely affecting the computer's operation.
5) In Control Panel --> Add/Remove Programs, check if Microsoft Windows Update
905749 is installed, and if so, uninstall it. (That Security Update was released
10-11-05 to resolve a vulnerability in Plug and Play for Windows XP and 2000.)
Restart the computer.
6) If Device Manager shows the computer icon and name but no devices, check
that the security permissions for this registry key:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Enum
meet these requirements:
• the group "Everyone" should be listed and have only "Read" permissions.
• the user "SYSTEM" should be listed and have "Full Control" and "Read" permissions.
To do this, open the registry editor (Start --> Run, type: REGEDIT
and hit Enter or OK).
Go to the above registry key, and right-click on the Enum key, and in the context
menu click on Permissions.
On the Security tab, review the listed group or user names and the permissions
checked for each in the "Allow" column to determine if they comply with the above
requirements. If not, use the following instructions, or such of them as needed,
to have the listed names and their permissions meet those
requirements.
To add those names to the Security tab:
• Click on the Add button.
• Add the group "Everyone" and the user "SYSTEM."
To set the required permissions for those names on the Security tab:
• Select "Everyone" and check "Read" (only) under "Allow."
• Select "SYSTEM" and check "Full Control" under "Allow" (which also should
check "Read").
• Make sure there is nothing checked under "Deny" for either "SYSTEM" or "Everyone."
Then:
• Click on the Advanced button, and on the Permissions tab in the Advanced box
check "Replace permission entries on all child objects with . . . ."
• Click OK, and on any warning box click "Yes".
When finished, close the registry editor.
Note: If at any time you get a message to the effect that the registry
editor cannot set or change security permissions in the selected key or its sub-keys,
go to the next step.
7) In Control Panel --> Add/Remove Programs, check if Context Plus
or Ad Channel or POP or Apropos Client, or any combination of
those names, is installed. If so, uninstall it or them. (That item does not enjoy
a good reputation.) Then review the discussion for possible additional removal
procedures (including a downloadable removal tool) at:
http://www.norton.com/avcenter/venc/data/spyware.apropos.html
When done, restart the computer.
8) Apropos malware may be on the system, causing the blank or empty Device
Manager. If so:
• Download and save to the desktop AproposFix.exe at:
http://swandog46.geekstogo.com/aproposfix.exe
• Reboot into safe mode (logging into the account in which you saved the downloaded
file).
• Double or single click (whichever you use to open or run an item) on AproposFix.exe
on the desktop, which will place on the desktop an AproposFix folder.
• Open the AproposFix folder, and double or single click on RunThis.bat
to run it.
• Follow the on-screen prompts. When finished, reboot into normal mode.
• The AproposFix folder now will have a log.txt file showing the actions
that AproposFix has taken, which should be reviewed, and saved until it is
clear that the Apropos malware has been entirely removed.
You then should use proper procedures to scan for and remove any remaining elements
of Apropos, which is discussed at various web-sites, such as:
http://securityresponse.symantec.com/avcenter/venc/data/spyware.apropos.c.html
9) One or more sub-keys under the Enum registry key may be corrupt, causing
the blank or empty Device Manager. To check for and remedy corrupt sub-keys:
• Open the registry editor (Start --> Run, type: REGEDIT and hit
Enter or OK) and go to:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Enum
• Expand the Enum key, and examine each sub-key under it for a name that is
a seemingly random, disorderly combination of characters and symbols, e.g.: $%^&*()24031
(or longer), with little resemblance to the other sub-keys, and perhaps having
no values in the right-hand pane. There may be under the Enum key consecutive sub-keys
with such garbled names, each one being longer than the prior one. These corrupt
sub-keys should be deleted.
Note: before deleting any registry keys or sub-keys, first back-up the
entire Enum key by right-clicking on it, then click on Export, select where to save
it, and click on Save. In addition, similarly back-up each sub-key that you intend
to delete.
If upon trying to delete a corrupt sub-key, you get a message that the deletion
cannot be accomplished for lack of permission, increase the permissions for the corrupt
sub-key before deleting it, as follows:
• Right-click on the corrupt sub-key and in the context menu click on Permissions.
• On the Security tab, select "Everyone" and check "Full Control" under "Allow."
If "Everyone" is not there listed, click on the Add button and add the group "Everyone,"
and then select it and check "Full Control" under "Allow." If "Everyone" cannot
be added, add the group "Administrators" for whom check "Full Control" under "Allow."
• Make sure there is nothing checked under "Deny" for "Everyone" or "Administrators."
• Click on the Advanced button, and on the Permissions tab in the Advanced box
check "Replace permission entries on all child objects with . . . ."
• Click OK, and on any warning box click "Yes"
• Then delete the corrupt sub-key.
When finished, close the registry editor.
As corruption of the registry might have been caused by a virus or malware, you
should use proper procedures to scan for and remove vires and malware from the system.
- Written in response to:
- device manager (emmanuel: Thursday, December 8, 2005 at 3:38 pm)
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 |  | Blank or Empty Device Manager in Windows XP - A Compilation of Solutions (jcw: Thu, Dec 8, 2005, 6:23 pm) |
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