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When you start your Windows Vista computer, the Sidebar may not load although it’s configured to run at startup. When you run the file sidebar.exe manually, a busy cursor is displayed briefly and nothing happens. This happens if the file ATL.DLL is not registered correctly. Follow these steps to resolve the problem.

Fixing the Windows Vista Sidebar

Method 1: Using the Windows Sidebar Fix-It Tool

Download and run the Sidebar Fix tool (.msi file) from Microsoft Knowledgebase Article KB963010. It registers the atl.dll, sbdrop.dll and wlsrvc.dll files automatically.

Select the I Agree checkbox, and click Next. The tool creates a System Restore Protection point and attempts to register the three DLLs (after prompting for UAC elevation.)

Method 2: Registering the Sidebar Modules Manually

1. Open and elevated Command Prompt. To do so, click Start, click All Programs, click Accessories, right-click Command Prompt, and then click Run as administrator.

2. Type the following command in the Command Prompt window:

3. Press ENTER.

The above command should fix the problem in most cases. In case it doesn’t, run these commands below:

Press ENTER after running each command.

See Also

Gadgets in the Windows Vista Sidebar are not displayed correctly

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