Our computers are practically unusable without an operating system, but the same applies when our OS stops working as intended and we run into problems.
In the following guide, we’ll talk about a known error that many Windows users have encountered while using their computer, also known as the VCRUNTIME140.dll not found error.
If you’ve ever encountered this problem, or you’re dealing with it at the moment, feel free to continue reading as we’ll be showing you how to fix it using multiple, tested, and proven working methods that are easy to apply by anyone.
Without further ado, let’s get into it.
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The Problem Explained
The MSVCP140.dll error seems to show up when the user tries to open installed programs on their computer but is unable to because of the problem.
Users reported seeing this problem when trying to start many of the popular programs nowadays, such as Skype, Spotify, Adobe’s Creative Cloud, and many more.
Additionally, some users reported that the problem started after installing specific files on their system, stating that everything was working as intended before that, but then after reversing the process and removing the recently-installed files, the issue was still not gone.
This is an odd problem, and the error message is also quite vague, leaving users confused about what their next steps should be after seeing it on their screen.
Someone who is not a computer specialist will probably not know what to do when a program fails to begin with the VCRUNTIME140 dll is absent error message, but we are about to demonstrate all the straightforward approaches for resolving this problem in only a couple of minutes.
Let’s take a look.
Fix 1: Install The Latest Version Of Visual Studio Redistributables
When you encounter the VCRUNTIME140.dll error on your PC, it means that you tried opening an app that requires that particular file installed on your system, but you currently don’t have it.
Although every computer program requiring these files should come packed with them, for some, that’s not the case.
But, even then, there’s still a way for you to fix the problem easily, and that’s by manually downloading and installing the Visual Studio Redistributables set of library files.
You can download the files from this Microsoft page as well.
Note: These are all official files that won’t harm your computer in any way, but if you still feel uneasy about installing them, take a look at the informative video below, which should help you get a better understanding of what these files are and whether you need them on your system.
Restarting your PC is not mandatory upon installing the files, but we recommend doing it either way. After your PC boots up again, you should now be able to run the apps you previously couldn’t, as your system can now provide them the files they require to start properly.
If, for some reason, this method didn’t help you solve the problem, take a look at the next section down below, where we cover the System File Checker Tool as a potential fix.
Fix 2: Run The System File Checker Tool
Often, when the program can’t start because vcruntime140.dll is missing from your computer, the problem can be fixed using the built-in System File Checker Tool.
Note: This tool is also recognized as SFC, so when you hear the term “run an SFC scan,” it should remind you of this method because it’s the same thing.
With that said, let’s take a look at how you can use the SFC to fix your vcruntime140 dll not found windows 10 error.
- Click on the windows search icon located in the bottom-left corner of your taskbar.
- Type in Command Prompt, then right-click it and select Run as Administrator.
This will launch the command prompt in a so-called “elevated” mode, or as we commonly know it, Administrator mode.
Inside the Command Prompt, type in DISM.exe /Online /Cleanup-image /Restorehealth, and press Enter on your keyboard.
Remark: This command will employ the Windows Update service to “retrieve” the files necessary to resolve any system corruption. However, there are a couple of things you need to know about before starting it.
- Since it uses the Windows Update Service, you’ll need an active internet connection.
- It will take a few minutes to complete, based on your system’s performance.
- It won’t work if the Windows Update client is already broken.
Having said that, if everything goes smoothly and the process finishes without any disruptions, you can proceed to utilize the System File Scanner command.
To do this, simply continue typing in the already-opened, elevated Command Prompt window.
- Type in sfc /scannow and press Enter on your keyboard.
- Wait until the process completes (you can track the progress in the same window).
If you get a returning message saying, “Windows Resource Protection did not find any integrity violations,” then you have nothing to worry about.
However, if the returning message is “Windows Resource Protection could not perform the requested operation,” then you have to repair the corrupted files manually.
Microsoft’s support team has an exceptional and easy-to-follow guide for this, and you can find it here.
This should help you fix the vcruntime140d.dll is missing windows 10 error, as it helped many users.
Fix 3: Run The Windows Update Service
If you recently installed Windows on your system, and you did it manually, chances are it’s missing some mandatory files and libraries which you either skipped or weren’t included in the installation.
This is why we recommend running the Windows Update Service right away and allowing your OS to download all the required files from the official database.
The VCRUNTIME140.dll file should also be included in the packs from one of the updates, which will solve your problem immediately.
To initiate a Windows 10 update, follow the steps below:
- Press Windows + I on your keyboard at the same time.
- Click on the Update & Security section to open it.
- If you don’t have a pending update, click Check for updates, and if you do have a pending or installed update, click Install now or Restart now, as shown in the image below.
Once the installation completes, if it included the Microsoft Visual Studio Redistributables, you will no longer experience the VCRUNTIME140.dll error when trying to open an app that requires the files to run properly.
Fix 4: Reinstall The App You Tried Opening
Another easy solution for the problem would be to reinstall the app you couldn’t open due to the missing files.
The reason this method works is because most users often manually choose the files they wish to install when running a setup, often disabling some packages, out of which one may be the Redistributables Pack.
As stated above, most programs that require files, such as the VCRUNTIME140.dll to run usually come packed with them, but the user can choose not to install them during the setup.
If you remember doing something like this, whether to save storage space on your PC or you thought that you don’t need the files and they aren’t mandatory, we recommend reinstalling the app and then re-running the setup.
This time, make sure not to disable anything and let the packs install.
Conclusion
If you were wondering how to reinstall vcruntime140 dll, or what is vcruntime140 dll not found problem on Windows, now you know more about it.
Using the methods listed in the guide above, you can easily solve the problem without having any expertise and computer knowledge.
If, despite all the attempts to fix this problem, your apps still fail when you try to open them, it’s a good idea to contact Microsoft’s official support team for further assistance, as the problem may be oddly specific and linked to your device or OS version only.
