This article was originally published in issue 55 of The Crypt Mag

After updating Internet Explorer on my Windows Vista computer from version 7 to version 8 everything seemed to be fine, at least until the next time I booted up the computer where I was greeted with a message stating that “Windows Sidebar has stopped working”.

After some investigating it turns out that the internet security suite that I use, Kaspersky Internet Security, blocks part of the Internet Explorer 8 installation from completing successfully. In order to correct this problem the following steps need to be performed:

1. Unplug the computer’s network cable or turn off its wi-fi (highly advisable since the next step will disable the firewall)
2. Disable Kaspersky Internet Security by right-clicking on the Kaspersky icon in the Systray and selecting ‘Exit’
3. Open up the command prompt by clicking on the Start bar -> All Programs -> Accessories -> Command Prompt
4. Type in regsvr32 jscript.dll in the command prompt window and press Enter
5. Start the internet security program again
6. Reconnect the network cable if it was removed or switch the wi-fi back on

You can start the Windows Sidebar by clicking on the Start Bar -> All Programs -> Accessories -> Windows Sidebar. All going well the Sidebar should now be working again.

Article copyright © 2008, 2010 Francis G. Loch