Internet Explorer is the resident internet browser for all versions of the Windows Operating System that came before Windows 10. Internet Explorer is the browser that came with Windows computers out of the box until it was replaced with Microsoft Edge when Windows 10 hit the shelves. While IE may have been replaced by Microsoft Edge, it is still a sufficiently competent browser and continues to be used by tons of people all over the globe. The latest version of Internet Explorer, and its last version, is Internet Explorer 11. Internet Explorer 11 supports both Windows 7 and Windows 8/8.1, is a major improvement over its predecessor and is, all in all, a pretty decent internet browser.
However, Internet Explorer 11 is not at all perfect – it is far from it, actually. Like most other Windows applications, Internet Explorer has a tendency to stop responding altogether, producing an error message stating “Internet Explorer has stopped working” shortly after, at which time the only option a user affected by this problem has is to close Internet Explorer 11. As scary as it might be, it is not at all uncommon for IE 11 to stop responding and crash abruptly – in fact, in most cases, this can be remedied by simply restarting IE 11 and it will function as it is supposed to.
However, some users may be affected by an issue where Internet Explorer 11 stops responding on them more often than it should. There are plenty of different things that can cause IE 11 to stop responding and crash frequently, and that being the case, there are a lot of potential solutions for the problem. The following are some of the most effective solutions that you can try if Internet Explorer 11 stops responding on you regularly:
Solution 1: Install any and all available Windows updates
Stability updates and bug fixes for IE 11 come with Windows updates, meaning that if IE 11 is constantly crashing on you because of vulnerabilities, out of date files or obsolete drivers, installing the latest Windows updates might fix the problem.
Open the Start Menu.
Search for “updates”.
Click on the search result titled Check for updates.
When you see the Windows Update window, click on Check for updates and wait for your computer to look for available updates.
Once your computer is done, download and install any and all updates that are available for your computer.
Solution 2: Run the Internet Explorer troubleshooter
Running the Internet Explorer troubleshooter can help with a lot of IE-related issues, including this one. To run the Internet Explorer troubleshooter, you need to:
Open the Start Menu.
Search for “troubleshooting”.
Click on the search result titled Troubleshooting.
Click on View all in the Troubleshooting
Click on Internet Explorer Performance.Follow the instructions in the troubleshooting wizard and see it through to the end, and it may be able to fix this problem for you.
Solution 3: Run a few anti-malware and antivirus scans
Internet Explorer 11 may be crashing on your on a regular basis because your computer has been infected with malware or a virus or another harmful element. Just to rule an infection out as a cause, it would be a good idea for you to run a few anti-malware and antivirus scans. Some of the fan-favorite programs for running anti-malware and antivirus scans include Malwarebytes and Avast! Free Antivirus. Remember – the more programs you run scans with, the more you will be able to trust the results as every malware/virus screening program does not look for the same harmful elements.
Solution 4: Delete your Temporary Internet Files
A buildup of Temporary Internet Files, along with a corruption of Temporary Internet Files, does not only take up a significant amount of space on your computer’s hard drive but can also give rise to problems with Internet Explorer 11, including IE 11 frequently crashing on its user. It is definitely a good idea to get rid of all of your computer’s Temporary Internet Files and see if that fixes this issue for you.
Open the Start Menu.
Search for “internet options”.
Click on the search result titled Internet Options.
Under Browsing history in the General tab, click on Delete…
Make sure that the Temporary internet files and website files option is selected and then click on Delete.
Wait for your Temporary internet files to be deleted, and once they have been deleted, launch IE 11 and see whether or not the problem has been fixed.
Solution 5: Disable hardware acceleration in IE 11
Hardware acceleration is a feature in IE 11 that utilizes a computer’s GPU to speed-up graphics-heavy tasks such as video-streaming and online gaming. While hardware acceleration is designed to improve the overall user experience, it may sometimes cause IE 11 to frequently stop responding. Another potential solution to this issue for you is to disable hardware acceleration in IE 11. In order to do so, you need to:
Open the Start Menu.
Search for “internet options”.
Click on the search result titled Internet Options.
Navigate to the Advanced
Enable the Use software rendering instead of GPU rendering option by selecting it.
Click on Apply.
Click on OK.
Close the Internet Options
Launch Internet Explorer 11 and check to see whether or not the problem has been fixed.
Solution 6: Disable IE add-ons
Add-ons are basically little applets that internet browsers use to communicate with various parts of the internet in order to serve different purposes for users. While add-ons are created for good, they can sometimes do more harm than good. Some add-ons, especially incompatible or out of date ones, have been known to cause Internet Explorer 11 to stop responding frequently. If a harmful add-on or two are what’s causing this issue in your case, you can fix the problem by determining which add-on is causing the problem and then disabling it. To do so, you need to:
Launch Internet Explorer 11.
Click on the Tools icon in the top right side of the window (the icon is depicted by a gear). Press ALT key on keyboard if you don’t see Tools.
Click on Manage add-ons in the contextual menu.
Click on All add-ons under Show.
One by one, select all of the add-ons you have and then click on Disable for each one.
Check to see if the problem persists. If the problem has been fixed, an add-on you disabled was the cause of the problem.
One by one, re-enable all of your add-ons until you start experiencing the problem again – the add-on you enabled just before the problem came back is your culprit.
Re-enable all of your add-ons, but make sure to keep the culprit add-on disabled for good.
Solution 7: Reset Internet Explorer
Resetting Internet Explorer 11 is another possible solution to this issue, but you should know that resetting IE 11 will make all of your custom settings and preferences go back to their defaults, which means that you are going to have to start from scratch. To reset IE 11, you need to:
Open the Start Menu.
Search for “internet options”.
Click on the search result titled Internet Options.
Navigate to the Advanced
Click on Reset… under the Reset Internet Explorer settings
In the resulting popup, enable the Delete personal settings option.
Click on Reset.
Restart your computer, and once it boots up, launch IE 11 and see whether or not the problem has been resolved.
Solution 8: Turn off and then turn on Internet Explorer 11
If none of the solutions listed and described above have managed to resolve this issue for you, fret not as there is still one more solution that you can try – turning Internet Explorer 11 off and then turning it on. Seeing that IE 11 is a built-in Windows program, it, in most cases, cannot be uninstalled and then reinstalled. That being the case, the simplest alternative is to disable and then re-enable it. Although this solution may sound like a long shot, it has managed to fix this issue for quite a lot of people.
Open the Start Menu.
Search for “windows features”.
Click on the search result titled Turn Windows features on or off.
In the list of Windows features, locate and clear the checkbox beside Internet Explorer 11 to turn it off.
Click on Yes in the resulting popup to confirm the action.
Restart your computer.
Repeat steps 1-3 once your computer boots up.
In the list of Windows features, locate and fill the checkbox beside Internet Explorer 11 to turn it on. Confirm the action if required to do so in a resulting popup.
Restart your computer and, once it boots up, check to see if the problem has been fixed.
