Rider backend process unexpected crashes or stuck on “background tasks”

Problem

Rider frequently becomes stuck in "Background Tasks", or experiences backend process crashes. This issue is similar to the one detailed in this article.

It might be a common problem after installing new software or running Rider in a company-managed environment.

This article is intended to assist you in performing a self-diagnostic to determine if any issues are caused by injected external modules.

If you suspect that Rider is conflicting with any installed software or external native libraries, this article will be useful for you.

Prerequisite

For crash issues, prepare a Rider backend process crash dump by following this guide.

For hanging or unresponsive issues, you can use either postmortem dump analysis or live diagnostics, depending on your preference.

Action Plans

Postmortem dump analysis by using dotnet-dump CLI (Process crashes, all platforms):

1. Please refer to this documentation to install the dotnet-dump tool on your machine. This tool can also be used to collect Rider backend process dump files.
2. In a new terminal, run dotnet-dump analyze "your_dump_file_path" to open the dump file in an interactive session.
3. Enter lm or modules, and all native modules included in the dump will be displayed as shown below.
   
   Please carefully review the list for any suspicious modules, particularly those not located in the Rider installation path or system libraries.

Live diagnostic by using Process Explorer (Unresponsive or Hanging Process, Windows):

1. Download the Process Explorer from this link.

2. Open Process Explorer as Administrator and locate the Rider process tree in the top window. Alternatively, use the "Find Windows's Process (drag over window)" feature and drag it over Rider to locate it directly.

   

3. Click on "Rider.Backend.exe", then press Ctrl + D or click the "View DLLs" button in the toolbar. All loaded DLLs will be displayed in the lower panel.
   
   Carefully check for any suspicious modules, particularly those not provided by JetBrains or Microsoft, and not located in Rider/system paths.
   If you can't determine whether a module is causing the problem, right-click on the Rider backend process, select “Create Dump | Create Full Dump” to prepare for further investigation.

Contact Rider support

If you believe this issue could be common for users in a similar environment to yours, your feedback would be greatly appreciated. In Rider, navigate to Help | Submit Feedback.

For additional assistance or help in analyzing your issue, don't hesitate to file a new support request to us. In Rider, go to Help | Contact Support.