Working with dynamic link libraries (DLLs). The program cannot start because the necessary dll is missing on the computer

Probably every PC user, gamer and others have seen a pop-up dll error, it was especially unpleasant when, after purchasing or installing a new game, the system throws out the treasured window when it starts with the words “dll file not found.” Most often this message looks like this:

The program cannot be launched because ****.dll is missing on the computer. Try reinstalling the program

We immediately want to break something (we are nervous, this is normal), often people run to the store where they bought the disc and start a scandal there. Nerve cells are not restored - someone said and I confirmed it. Let's remember and understand two things: all dll errors, not dll errors - this is a problem on your PC; we can get rid of windows errors on your own, but not forever; We are able to eliminate the possibility of all Windows errors popping up if we keep the system up to date.

What is a dll, a dll file, what are they for, where can I find them?

Dll (dynamic link library) - verbatim from English. A dynamic link library, in other words, is a set of instructions and libraries for performing various processes on your computer. When you launch programs and games, the necessary libraries are connected for their correct, full-fledged operation. They are located at C:WindowsSystem32. If the library is missing, it is not there at all, we get the favorite dll and . Fortunately, the operating system tells us which file or library is missing, which helps to quickly determine which dll files are missing and solve the problem.

Error when starting dll and how to fix dll errors?

In order to fix the dll error, it is important for us to know which library is missing and which component of the operating system is responsible for its presence. To correct errors, I offer a table of the most common DLL errors in the form: “error option or missing file >>> what needs to be done, downloaded, installed to fix it”

On many forums and sites they write and recommend downloading the dll file, placing it where you need it and this will fix the Dll error. I would not recommend doing this (well, except in specific cases), because a specific program, module or component of the Windows operating system is responsible for each file or dll library. By updating the required program completely, you correct the existing dll error and warn yourself against possible subsequent errors in dll libraries.

Now we know what kind of dll error this is when launching games and applications, how to fix the dll error, how to help our computer not make mistakes in the future.

Frequently Asked Questions

1. Open the zip file you downloaded from the site.
2. Extract the DLL file to any location on your computer.
   • Next, we advise you to place the file in the folder of the program that requests this file. Make sure you are using a 32-bit DLL file format for a 32-bit program and a 64-bit DLL file format for a 64-bit program, otherwise you may receive error 0xc000007b.
3. If the above steps do not solve your problem, place the file in the system folder. By default this folder is located here:
   • C:\Windows\System (Windows 95/98/Me),
     C:\WINNT\System32 (Windows NT/2000), or
     C:\Windows\System32 (Windows XP, Vista, 7, 8, 8.1, 10).
4. On 64-bit Windows, the default folder for 32-bit DLL files is located here:

C:\Windows\SysWOW64\ , and for 64-bit DLL files
C:\Windows\System32\ .

Be sure to overwrite any existing files (but keep a backup of the original file).

Restart your computer.

If this does not resolve the issue, try the following steps to add the file to the registry:

For 32-bit DLL files on 32-bit versions of Windows and for 64-bit DLL files on 64-bit Windows:

1. Open an elevated command prompt.
   • To do this, click Start, All Programs, select Accessories, right-click on Command Prompt, then click “Run as administrator.”
   • If you are asked to enter an administrator password or confirm, enter the password or click Allow.
2. Next, type regsvr32 "filename".dll and press Enter.

To add 32-bit DLL files to the registry on 64-bit Windows:

1. Open an elevated command prompt by following the steps above.
2. • cd c:\windows\syswow64\
3. Next, type the following and press Enter:
   • regsvr32 c:\windows\syswow64\"filename".dll

DLL files are dynamic libraries that are used by many programs on your PC. When you uninstall or update one of the programs from your PC, it may happen that DLL files previously installed in the operating system may be deleted by mistake. In addition to this situation, very often the system cannot detect DLLs due to viruses and unlicensed software, which certainly leave a negative mark on their presence on the computer.

Very often, DLL files disappear due to a break in the connection between the program and the operating system in cases where the user manually transfers the program from one folder to another. Only automatic and system tools for removing and installing programs on a PC can ensure the most comfortable use of your computer and operating system.

Dynamic-link library

DLL (English: Dynamic-link library) - dynamic library

DLL (English: Dynamic-link library) is a concept of the Microsoft Windows operating system, a dynamic library that allows repeated use by various software applications, a concept of the Microsoft Windows operating system. DLLs also include ActiveX controls and drivers.

The DLL file format follows the same conventions as the EXE executable file format, combining codes, tables, and resources.

Purposes of introducing DLLs

It was originally assumed that the introduction of DLLs would allow for efficient memory and disk space management using only one instance of library modules for many applications. This was especially important for early versions of Microsoft Windows with severe memory limitations.

Further, it was intended to improve the efficiency of development and use of system tools through modularity. Replacing DLL programs from one version to another should have allowed the system to be expanded independently without affecting applications. In addition, DLLs could be used by different types of applications - for example, Microsoft Office, Microsoft Visual Studio, etc.

Later, the idea of ​​modularity grew into the concept of ActiveX controls.

In fact, the full benefits of implementing DLLs were not achieved due to a phenomenon called DLL hell. DLL hell occurs when multiple applications require different versions of DLLs at the same time because they are not fully compatible, leading to serious conflicts. When the system grew to a certain size, the number of DLLs began to exceed many thousands, not all of them were fully reliable and compatible, and conflicts like DLL hell began to arise very often, sharply reducing the overall reliability of the system. Later versions of Microsoft Windows began to allow parallel use of different versions of DLLs, which negated the benefits of the original modularity principle.

It often happens that some program does not want to run, because... You are missing a certain DLL file on your computer. What to do in this case? You need to download and install this file. There are usually no problems downloading a DLL file from the Internet, but how to install it?

The first way to install a DLL file:
The easiest way is to simply place the dll file you downloaded in the folder with the program you are trying to run. This method is very simple, but does not always work.

The second way to install a DLL file:
The second method is to place the downloaded dll file in the system folders of your operating system. First, you need to find out what operating system you have. To do this, right-click on the “My Computer” icon on the desktop and go to “Properties”. The type of your operating system will be indicated there:

• Open My Computer.
• Go to the "Windows" folder.
• Find the "System32" folder there and place the downloaded DLL file in it.

• Open My Computer.
• Open your system drive (usually drive "C").
• Go to the "Windows" folder.
• Find the "SysWOW64" folder there and place the downloaded DLL file in it.
• Restart your computer for the changes to take effect.

• Go to the Start menu.
• Enter "cmd" in the search bar. And open the found program.
• In the window that opens, enter " regsvr32 dll_file_name.dll". (for example, like this: "regsvr32 test.dll")
• Restart your computer.

If any .dll library is missing or damaged on your computer, the associated program or service will not work correctly. Windows will throw an error that the DLL file is damaged or missing. To solve the problem, you need to download the required library for your version of Windows, copy it to the desired folder and register it in the system.

Regardless of what program and what the dll file is used for, installation and registration of the library will always follow the same algorithm. All versions of Windows OS follow the same rules when connecting and registering dynamic libraries.

Step by step instructions:

How and where to copy a DLL file

Errors with dynamic link libraries (DLLs) occur for various reasons: the file is damaged, incompatible with Windows or a specific program, infected with viruses, or deleted. The solution is always the same: download the correct and complete version of the library, and then register the file in the system via the command line. Usually, the whole process takes no more than 2-5 minutes.

You can place (unzip and copy) any dll libraries here, and the installed files will work:

• For Windows 95/98/Me- the file is copied to the folder C:\Windows\System
• For Windows NT/2000- the file is copied to the folder C:\WINNT\System32
• For Windows XP, Vista, 7, 8- copy to folder C:\Windows\System32
• For 64-bit Windows- copy the dll file to a folder C:\Windows\SysWOW64

Where you can download the required library:

• If this is a game or program: with a different build of the game, from another PC on which the application is running, from a disk (reinstall the program).
• If this is a system library, check the relevance of the drivers, DirectX or other component, if the system writes in which file or program the error was made. You can copy the dll from another computer with a similar bit size and version of Windows (7, 8, 10). The error may not be caused by the library itself, but also by the program that uses it.
• You can always download the desired version of the file from dll archives like dll.ru or ru.dll-files.com. Carefully check which OS version the library is intended for. You should also carefully look at what is downloaded: instead of the required library, many sites try to slip in their own paid software to fix errors with DLLs.
• Try to find an article with solutions to problems about the desired file in the section, or use the site search.

Perhaps the game or software is incompatible with the Windows version; the solution may be to launch it in compatibility mode. If files are blocked by an antivirus, you should take a closer look at the security of the application or add files to antivirus exceptions.

All changes will take effect after registering the library in the system and restarting the computer. Before this, trying to launch anything is useless - the system will not connect to the file.

To check the system capacity, you need to right-click on the icon "My computer" and select item "Properties". In the folder that opens, in the System section it will be written: “System type: 64-bit operating system, x64 processor.”

Registering a Library on Windows

The easiest way to register a DLL in Windows is through the Command Prompt or Run window. To open the command line you need to: click Start -> Run or a key combination Win+R, enter cmd.exe and press Enter. You can enter the command directly into this field without opening the Command Prompt.

To register the library you need to write the command regsvr32 filename.dll and press Enter. For example, regsvr32.exe msvcp110.dll.

In order for the changes to take effect and the library to start working, you must restart your computer. If Windows doesn't want to find the file you want, you can specify the full path: regsvr32.exe full_path_to_file.dll, for example regsvr32.exe C:/Windows/System32/msvcp110.dll.

Running a DLL does not raise absolutely any questions or problems if you are an experienced programmer and solve such issues every day, sitting at your work computer and creating the next masterpiece of computer games. You might even be surprised that such a lame topic became the subject of an entire article. However, if you are not a programmer, have not studied for 6 years at the Faculty of Applied Mathematics, and are not the author of cool computer games, then launching a DLL may be a non-trivial task for you, and this unresolved issue can easily deprive you of the opportunity to play your favorite computer game.

It is for this reason that I propose to carefully analyze the launch of DLLs in different versions of Windows, so that it does not arise and you do not have to rack your brains for ages about how to get rid of it.

DLL error when launching games

DLL error when launching games is the most common and most annoying phenomenon that occurs when the DLL does not start and our system reports an error. But let's look directly at the process of calling the DLL itself. A programmer, when designing a computer game, can turn to a third-party DLL just for the sake of a tiny function, which for some reason he does not want to implement on his own, but prefers to use a ready-made option. For example, the screenshot below shows the source code of one game, where an external DLL library is called.

In the case of this piece of code, we can state that the launch of the DLL was successful, but this does not always happen, because usually the necessary libraries are called during startup, when the game loads all the components necessary for operation into the computer’s RAM. And this is where a variety of factors can interfere with the launch of a DLL.

There are times when a computer game wants to call a function located in a third-party DLL. Everything was happening wonderfully, for a long time, but suddenly the launch did not happen and an annoying window with an error message began to appear on the screen. We began to repeat the launch of the DLL and investigate the error. It turned out that the library developer simply removed this function from the DLL source code and did not bother to include this item in the documentation. The game programmers had to urgently release a patch and update the source code of their product so that gamers could continue to play normally. Or consider another example.

Here we see that the game displays a DLL error message, which is due to the fact that it cannot find the required . ? Yes, very simple! First, it’s worth checking whether the system really has the DLL we need. If there is one, then most likely it is damaged and the game cannot launch the DLL. In this case, it would be advisable to register it in the system. We have already written how to do this, but let’s cover this point again. You need to run the regsvr32 command on the command line, which is responsible for registering or unregistering DLLs in the system.

After the registration process is completed, the game should automatically launch the DLL during its loading and, if the file meets all the game requirements (version, bitness), you will be able to enjoy the gameplay. However, we cannot call this method of launching DLLs optimal because It is unlikely that you will be able to find exactly the version of the exact library that you need. It is much safer to download the latest version of the software or game that includes this DLL file. Reinstall the entire software product along with this library. Reboot and run the DLL again.