Surely we have ever encountered an error message in Windows that prevents us from opening a program because we are missing a necessary file. This message appears when, for various reasons, a program cannot load the parts of code, stored in separate files, necessary to function. Although there are several ways to try to repair these problems, one of the fastest and easiest is to manually search for these libraries and copy them directly to the installation directory of the program so that it can access them. And this is how we will be able to solve any DLL error in Windows 10.
What are Windows DLLs?
DLL is an acronym for “dynamic-link library , ” or dynamic link library in Spanish. These files contain pieces of code and data necessary for many programs to function. That all the programs on our computer include all these files would only generate redundancy and unnecessary use of disk space. Therefore, to optimize space and make the task easier for programmers, these libraries include code that is generally used by all programs (for example, MSVCP, instructions necessary to control windows, DirectX, .NET framework, etc.) so that Instead of all programs using their own libraries, they are accessed from a common directory. DLLs in a Windows program are roughly the same as software dependencies in a Linux operating system.
The main advantages of using shared DLL libraries are:
- Smaller size of executable files.
- Ease of sharing code with other programs, even other developers.
- Greater dynamism implies greater ease when solving problems. And it allows updating the program by components.
- Improves and facilitates resource management and allows better use of system memory.
Why can they fail
Windows has its own DLL libraries. And, initially, these should not fail. However, there are many reasons why these files can disappear and lead to all kinds of problems. For example, one of the most common is the replacement of a file with a new version of the same library. Although there should be some backward compatibility between versions, there may be programs that, due to poor design, only work with a specific version of a library. Therefore, if we update them, we will have problems.
Another reason why we can have these types of errors is because we have accidentally deleted these DLL files. And even because they have been modified by a virus and therefore do not have the correct integrity. It can also be due to a failure in the hard disk itself that has corrupted these files, or problems with the drivers.
Fix errors with DLLs
If we have isolated problems with these files (for example, that only affect a specific program), then the best way to solve them is to look for the file in question in one of the web pages that we will see later, and copy it to the folder of the program that is not giving problems. We can even copy them to the C: / Windows / System32 or C: / Windows / SysWOW64 folders (32 and 64 bits respectively) so that all programs can access these libraries. We must remember that, if we do not use Windows 10, we must register the library with the command “regsvr32 / u name.dll.” from CMD once copied to the above directories so that programs can use it.
But, first of all, we can try other little tricks that can help us solve these problems. For example, it is possible that the problem is due to the library being locked, and therefore a simple reboot can help us get it working again. We can also try to uninstall and reinstall the program that gives us problems so that the installation wizard copies the necessary dependencies again.
We can even try to scan the system for corrupted parts and repair all integrity problems that may be on the PC. We can also do this from a CMD window, with Administrator permissions, executing the command “sfc / scannow”.
Finally, we can also try to reinstall the most common Windows library packages . Among e, we can highlight Microsoft Visual C ++ Redistributable, .NET Framework or DirectX.
Best websites to download DLL for free
In Google we can find hundreds of web pages that allow us to find and download all kinds of DLL files for free. But the truth is that we must be careful with all these pages. Some of them are full of advertising and seek to trick us into downloading fake installers that, instead of helping us to solve problems, cause us new ones. Others, in addition, can distribute obsolete or modified files that endanger our PC. And, of course, there are those that do not allow us to download anything if we do not pay for a program.
For this reason, if we want to avoid problems, we recommend using reliable and secure websites such as the following.
Wiki-DLL
This is one of the simplest, cleanest and safest websites to find all kinds of DLL files. On this page we will be able to find any bookstore both by name, using its search engine, and by searching by initial. We will also be able to see the new libraries that have been registered on the platform and find the most popular libraries that users usually download the most, such as vcruntime140.dll, msvcp140.dll, D3DCompiler_43.dll or xlive.dll, among others.
We can access this web page from here .
DLL-Files
This website is also one of the best known, veteran and reliable ones for finding all kinds of DLL files. This website has a search engine, to find the dependency of the specific name that we indicate, in addition to easily searching by the letter it begins with. DLL-Files has one of the most complete databases that we can find because it allows users to request, and upload, their own dynamic libraries to have the largest possible number of them.
We can access this website to download the libraries from this link .
DLLme
This is another of the reliable websites to download DLLs that we can find on the net. Its home page is very clear and easy to understand, finding a search box in which to enter the name of the library we need and finding all the related results at the moment. In addition, it also has a system to request libraries that are missing in its database and another to send our own libraries.
We can access this page from here .
DLLdownloader
This website is, broadly speaking, similar to the previous ones. But its main feature is that, in addition to allowing us to easily search for any dynamic library for Windows 10, it also has specific sections for other versions of the operating system. Thus, from this page we will be able to find and download any library that we may need from Windows XP to the latest version of Windows 10, both 32-bit and 64-bit.
We can access this website from this link .
