Several Windows 10 and 11 users have reported being encountered ‘line 0 error opening the file’. There are multiple of files that could trigger this startup error on every time the PC is started. There are different reasons that could cause the issue. These include:
Remnant autoruns – One of the most common cases where you might encounter this issue is when your PC contains one or many autoruns keys for such app that no longer exists. The easiest way to resolve the issue is to use the Autoruns utility to identify and remove the problematic autorun file.
Virus infection – malware infection could be another reason that is causing the issue under discussion. Start a security scan using your antivirus program to see it can find and remove any infections.
Third party program interference – the startup error could be a result of conflict because between the startup service or app and Windows. To check with, you should force Windows to boot only with the essential startup programs and drivers. Clean booting would help you in finding the incompatible programs that could be causing the particular issue.
System files corruption – corrupted system files can be the result of the said issue. Running DISM and SFC scans are recommended to do this case. If the case is so serious, we suggest you perform clean install or repair install.
We went over the potential culprits what could cause the issue under discussion. Now, let’s go and see the different verified fixes that the affected users should use to successfully get rid of the issue.
Possible fixes for line 0 error opening the file
Fix 1: Delete the Autorun key via Autoruns
If the start error is linked to a particular file, your security suite may have deleted the malicious file which was the component of the file infection. Another possibility is that there could be a remnant file that keeps getting called during the startup process even if the parent app is no longer present within system.
In this case, you should use Microsoft-approved software called Autoruns that will locate, group and remove all unnecessary runonce, run, startup directories and registry keys. In the particular case, you have to delete the startup items (o registry keys). Here is the tutorial how to use the tool and perform the said operation:
- On your browser, go to the Autoruns download page and from the relevant website, select Download Autoruns and Autorunsc,
- After the download is complete, unzip the file and double-click on the Autoruns executable to launch it,
- Once after the Autoruns successfully being launched, wait and let the Everything list to be filled out,
- Then, scroll down the list and go to the Autorun entries and navigate to the file specified at the conclusion of the error,
- For example, if receiving error message “AutoIt Error Line 0 file C:\Users\65875\AppData\Roaming\ServiceGet\vapihas.dat”, look for vapihas.dat by using the search functionality on the top,
- Right-click on it and select Delete from the context menu to stop the executable from being launched when the system boots,
- Restart your computer now and check if the problem still appears.
Fix 2: Remove a potential virus threat
As already mentioned, virus infection could cause line 0 error opening the file. So, the next thing you should consider is a potential malware or virus infection that has successfully made its way among your Window files.
If you are using any antivirus, perform a full system scan and check if it manages to find and remove the virus infection. As an extra security layer, run Microsoft Safety scanner in Safe Mode. This is the most potent virus removal tool from Microsoft. Here is how you can use the tool:
- Start your system or restart it if it is currently running and wait till the log-in screen appears,
- On the initial log-in window, select the power icon and choose Restart while holding Shift key to force-open PC in Safe Mode,
- Once after the restart, ‘Troubleshooting’ menu will appear, click on it and then click on Startup Settings from Advanced options,
- Hit 5 in the Startup window to start the computer in Safe Mode with Networking,
- Then, download the most recent Microsoft Safety Scanner for your Windows bit version,
- After the successful installation, launch the Scanner, and provide its admin access permission,
- Complete the remaining instructions to run the scanner scan and patiently wait till the procedure is finished,
- After the procedure is complete, restart your PC in normal mode and check if the issue is now resolved.
Fix 3: Perform a clean boot
The line 0 error opening the file can be a result of interference caused between the process of an app or service and one or more Windows startup process. You should force boot your Windows in this case to get the problem resolved. Running clean booting will help you in finding any software conflicts that may be the root cause of the specific issue. Here are the required steps to perform cleaning booting Windows and finding which third party startup item or service is to be blame for the said error:
- Press Win+ R, type msconfig and hit Enter to open System Configuration window,
- If UAC asks you to grant administrative privileges, select Yes,
- Now, go to the Services tab in the System Configuration and check the box next to Hide all Microsoft Services so that only essential operating system functions,
- Now, click on disable all button to immediately stop all remaining services,
- Click Apply and then click on Open Task Manager under Startup,
- Pick each service within the Task Manager’s startup tab separately and then click Disable option,
- Quit Task Manager now and restart your complete in Clean Boot mode,
- Check if Microsoft Store to see whether you download the program that previously failing due to the startup error.
Fix 4: Deploy SFC and DISM scans
The affected users are advised to check for faulty system files if up till now the above mentioned methods are not able to help them in resolving the problem. There could be corrupted files resulting in the underlined issue. The corruption could occur due to unidentified reasons. No matter what it could be, there are simply fixable. You can resolve it by checking your system for damaged files using Command Prompt. Run SFC and DISM one after another, restart your computer when finishes and check for the required fix:
- Open Run window, type in cmd and then press Ctrl+ Shift+ Enter to launch Command Prompt as admin,
- Once in the Command Prompt, copy and paste the below command and hit Enter:
Sfc / scannow
- Once the scanning process is complete, run the below command and hit Enter:
DISM /Online /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealth
- Once you have finished up with this process as well, close the Command Prompt, restart your device and check the next if the problem is resolved.
Fix 5: Clean Install or Reinstall Windows
If none of the methods work so far, and you still encounter line 0 error opening the file error, you obviously have a serious problem and this won’t away in usual way. You should reset all Windows components.
A clean install will delete all personal data, including the programs, games, media and documents. You may choose a repair install as a less drastic action that will allow you to update all the Windows components without harming the personal stuff.
Conclusion
That’s all! We are now rounding off this article. Hope so, the provided methods are helpful for you in getting the required fix. if the problem still appears, make sure to run full system scan using PC Repair Tool to check for PC related issues to get their automatic repair.
