BUG: VC++ Stops Responding Opening Files or Adding Files to Projects

ID: Q231655

The information in this article applies to:

Microsoft Visual C++, 32-bit Editions, versions 5.0, 6.0

SYMPTOMS

Starting the Open file dialog box in VC++ through the keyboard shortcut key or from the File menu will result in the following error:

Access Violation (0xC0000005) in DEVSHL.DLL at 0x5003eaed.
DevShl.Dll referenced memory at 0x0000000. The memory could not be read.

The same error occurs when you select Add to Project from the Files submenu from the Project menu.

CAUSE

This problem occurs when there are too many ActiveX document servers registered on the computer.

RESOLUTION

Unregister any known ActiveX document servers that are not needed on the system. In most cases, running the server executable with a /UNREGISTER switch will unregister the server.

Another solution is to use a Developer Studio Add-in to place the open and add-to-project features in Visual C++ For more information, see the following Knowledge Base article:

Q241396 FileTool.exe replaces the open and add-to-project features in VC++

STATUS

Microsoft has confirmed this to be a bug in the Microsoft products listed at the beginning of this article.

Additional query words:

Keywords : kbAutomation kbide kbVC600bug kbDevStudio kbDSupport kbGrpDSTools
Version : winnt:5.0,6.0
Platform : winnt
Issue type : kbbug