Application Error 0xc0000142 (0xc0000142)
What is this error?
The application failed to initialize properly. A DLL required by the application failed to load during startup.
Common causes
- corrupted DLL files
- incompatible software (anticheat, overlay)
- Windows system file corruption
- insufficient permissions
- conflicting background software
How to fix it
- Run as Administrator
- reinstall Visual C++ runtimes
- disable conflicting software
- verify game files
Too many steps? Crashless can diagnose this automatically — checks your drivers, temps, VRAM, and 400+ known error patterns.
Get free AI diagnosis Detailed analysis
"The application was unable to start correctly (0xc0000142)" means a DLL failed to initialize when the game tried to load it. This is a DLL initialization failure — the DLL exists but something went wrong when loading it.
Commonly affects games with anti-cheat (Valorant, Fortnite, Apex), games with overlay conflicts, or after Windows updates.
How to fix it:
- Run the game as Administrator — right-click > Run as Administrator
- Reinstall all Visual C++ Redistributables (2005 through 2022, both x86 and x64)
- Install the DirectX End-User Runtime Web Installer
- Disable overlay software temporarily — Discord, GeForce Experience, MSI Afterburner
- Temporarily disable antivirus software
- Run 'sfc /scannow' followed by 'DISM /Online /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealth'
- If the error started after a Windows update, try uninstalling the recent update
- Verify game files through your launcher
- As a last resort, create a new Windows user profile and try running the game from there — this fixes profile-specific corruption
When to seek help
If this error keeps happening after trying the fixes above, it may point to a deeper hardware or system issue. Consider professional help if:
- The crash occurs across multiple games or applications
- You see the same error after a clean Windows install
- Your PC is less than a year old (could be a warranty issue)
- You smell burning or hear unusual sounds from your PC
Or let Crashless do the deep analysis for you -- our AI checks drivers, temps, event logs, and 400+ known patterns automatically.
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