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In this guest post, James Ricketts explores steps to solve common DLL errors. Learn more about James at the conclusion of this post.

When something goes missing you can either look for it randomly or go about your search in a systematic, step-wise manner. Obviously, in the second case, the efforts involved will be much less and the chances of success higher. What if you are asked to search something you have never seen or heard about? In such a case you should first take some time to gather some basic information about the missing item that will help you ascertain its origin and why it could have gone missing.

So, before you go ahead and start searching for a file that may have gone missing on your computer without any prior warning, it is of utmost importance that you begin by understanding a few basic facts. These include knowing the purpose of this file, and usual reasons for a file to go missing. This article will make you aware of DLL files, causes for their disappearance and finally steps to solve such problems.

DLL files are an extremely important type of file. They are present in almost all computer applications today. They are files which can be called upon by programs and applications to do certain general tasks. Without them, an application may have problems in running and performing desired tasks, therefore it is vital that the missing file be found in order to restore the normal functioning of the computer.

Some examples of missing DLL file error messages that can trouble you are:

  • Msvcr80.dll Not Found
  • windows_root\System32\hal.dll missing or corrupt: Please re-install a copy of the above file.
  • The %SYSTEMROOT%\System32\Wbem\framedyn.dll file is either missing or corrupt.

Causes of Missing DLL Files

DLL files can disappear due to many reasons. They can be accidentally deleted by you. Some of the programs have shared libraries and when you uninstall one of them, DLL files shared with multiple programs may also get removed. Sometimes, a missing DLL file is a result of a malware infection. The file is present but the virus or spyware blocks its access.

Fixing Missing DLL file Errors

  1. You should begin by reinstalling the application whose DLL file has gone missing. When you reinstall, you will usually reinstate any missing file or component which is causing the error.
  2. If you have uninstalled any application, try reinstalling it. The uninstaller of that application may have deleted the file that is missing and created the problem for you.
  3. If your operating system is Windows XP, ME or Vista, you should use the built-in System Restore utility, which will restore your system back to the day before the missing DLL error occurred.
  4. If you find that the file is present on your computer and your system is unable to detect it, then you need to sweep your system for malware which is causing the error.
  5. You can search for the file on the Internet and download it from the website that is genuine and secured. You will then need to restore the file in its appropriate location.
  6. Finally, you must clean your Windows registry from time to time and especially after a missing DLL error occurred. You can use the services of an automatic registry cleaning application that can be downloaded from the Internet to do the scanning and repair tasks.

James Ricketts is a writer whose work can be seen at Instant-Registry-Fixes.org. To find out more about his work or to contact him, please visit Instant-Registry-Fixes.org.



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Comments

  • SpaceOdyssey42

    Thanks for this article! Very helpful!

  • gdusing

    I used to stumble upon a common problem, I got a “missing xxx.dll file” error. After reading the online documentation I found a little tool called dll lookup that spared me the trouble of finding buggy dlls myself.

  • neilfabri

    Or you can simply have a look at the PC Health Advisor software and use the trial version to get an idea of its capabilities. It provides registries scans, files and folders integrity scans and malware/adware and other kind of undesired script.

  • Anonymous

    Can missing files cause PC problem?

  • Anonymous

    You can also open another tab, go to Google and you’ll find a stack of places where you can simply download it. I’ve had this problem when installing old versions of software, rarely does it happen with recent versions.


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