When you open the Fonts folder in Windows Explorer, the following commands may be missing from the Fonts folder menus. On the File menu:

• Open
• Print
• Install New Font

On the View menu:

• List Fonts By Similarity
• Hide Variations (Bold, Italics, Etc.)

This behavior can occur for any of the following reasons:

• The System and Read Only attributes are no longer set for the Fonts folder. The Fonts folder must have its System and Read Only attributes set to work correctly.
• The Fontext.dll file may be missing or damaged, causing the menus to contain only the commands for a generic folder.
• The Desktop.ini file may be missing or damaged. Note that you do not see the Desktop.ini file when you view the Fonts folder. To see the file, open an MS-DOS session and view the Windows\Fonts folder.

To restore the correct commands for the Fonts folder, follow these steps:

1. At a command prompt, switch to the Windows folder by typing the following command:
   cd\windows
   NOTE: If Windows is installed in a folder other than the Windows folder, adjust these instructions accordingly.
2. Type the following command:
   attrib +s +r fonts
3. Shut down and restart Windows.

NOTE: You cannot set the System attribute for the Fonts folder within the graphical user interface.

If the commands for the Fonts folder are not restored, the Fontext.dll file may be missing or damaged. To replace the Fontext.dll file, use the steps in the appropriate section below.

Windows 95/98

1. Restart Windows in MS-DOS mode.
2. Change to the Windows\System folder.
3. If the Fontext.dll file exists, rename it Fontext.old.
4. Extract a new copy of the Fontext.dll file from the original Windows disks or CD-ROM to the Windows\System folder.
   
   For information about using the Extract tool, please see the following article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:
   129605  (http://kbalertz.com/Feedback.aspx?kbNumber=129605/EN-US/ ) How to Extract Original Compressed Windows Files
5. Restart Windows normally.

If the issue persists, the Desktop.ini file may be missing or damaged. To replace the Desktop.ini file, follow these steps:

1. Restart Windows in MS-DOS mode.
2. Change to the Windows\Fonts folder.
3. If the Desktop.ini file exists, rename it Desktop.old.
4. Extract a new copy of the Desktop.ini file from the original Windows disks or CD-ROM to the Windows\Fonts folder.
   
   For information about using the Extract tool, please see the following article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:
   129605  (http://kbalertz.com/Feedback.aspx?kbNumber=129605/EN-US/ ) How to Extract Original Compressed Windows Files
5. Restart Windows normally.

Windows NT 4.0

1. At a command prompt, delete the Desktop.ini file in the Winnt\Fonts folder.
2. Delete the Fontext.dll file in the Winnt\System32 folder.
3. Expand a new Desktop.ini file from the I386 folder on your original Windows NT 4.0 CD-ROM to the Fonts folder on your hard disk.
4. Expand a new Fontext.dll file from the I386 folder on your original Windows NT 4.0 CD-ROM to the Winnt\System32 folder on your hard disk.
   
   For example, use the following command:
   expand d:\i386\fontext.dl_ c:\winnt\system32\fontext.dll
5. Restart the computer.

Windows 2000

1. Boot into Safe Mode
2. Rename the fontext.dll in the %SystemRoot%\System32 to fontext.old
3. Rename the fontext.dll in the %SystemRoot%\System32\Dllcache to fontext.old
4. Copy an extracted copy of the fontext.dll file to both folders.
5. Reboot to Normal Mode.

The resolution listed in this article may also resolve the following symptoms:

• The TrueType tab is missing when on the View menu you click Options, and then open the Fonts folder.
• Fonts that are listed in the Fonts folder are not available to be selected within programs.