Nvidia Control Panel Keeps Closing? 6 Simple Ways to Fix It

You will not be able to access various NVIDIA driver’s features if the NVIDIA Control Panel keeps closing. These features include managing 3D settings, PhysX, refresh rate, G-sync, adjusting desktop color settings, and much more. 

Although you can access some of these settings through Windows Settings, most are only accessible through the NVIDIA control panel.

Usually, an outdated version of the application or the graphics driver may cause the NVIDIA control panel to malfunction. However, multiple other things contribute to a crashing NVIDIA Control Panel, which we have listed further below in this article, along with solutions to fix the issue.

Why Does the Nvidia Control Panel Keeps Closing?

How to Fix a Crashing Nvidia Control Panel

First, check if the application runs in the background when it closes. You can do this by opening the Task Manager. If it is running, the corrupted application files may cause malfunction, resulting the application to run in the background. 

End NVIDIA Control Panel process from the task manager to see if it fixes the issue. If it does not work, try the solutions listed below.

Delete Nvdrsdb0 and Nvdrsdb1 Binary Files

NVIDIA Control Panel holds its global and program-specific settings inside nvdrsdb0.bin and nvdrsdb1.bin, respectively. However, any corruption to these files may cause the entire application to crash.

Deleting these files should remove any corruption. The PC will automatically restore these files once you reopen the application. However, deleting these files will remove all the changes in the settings you have made to the NVIDIA Control Panel. 

1. Press the Windows + E to open File Explorer.
2. Navigate to C:\ProgramData\NVIDIA Corporation\Drs 
3. Delete nvdrsdb0.bin and nvdrsdb1.bin
   
4. Open NVIDIA Control Panel to check if the application runs without crashing.

Run NVIDIA Control Panel as Administrator

If deleting the binary files does not work, try running the application as an administrator. When you run an application as an admin, the OS will set its process to high priority and prioritize all the system resources for this application.

When an application runs on high priority, the OS ignores any conflicts with other processes causing the application to crash.

1. Open File Explorer.
2. The NVIDIA Control Panel can be located on one of these locations if you have not changed the install location during installation, C:\Program Files\NVIDIA Corporation\Control Panel Client or C:\Program Files (x86)\NVIDIA Corporation\Control Panel Client.
3. Right-click on nvcplui.exe and select Run as Administrator.
   
4. If the application runs without crashing, you can adjust the settings so that it always runs as administrator.
5. Right-click on nvcplui.exe and select Properties.
6. Go to the Compatibility tab.
7. Under Settings, select Run this program as an administrator.
   
8. Select Apply and then OK.

Remove Conflicting Application

An application using the same resources as the NVIDIA Control Panel may cause memory management issues. This can primarily occur when you have an application that manages 3D settings, or software that monitors the graphics card resources. 

These include applications like Opera Browser, OCAT, or graphics card companion applications such as EVGA Precision X1, and ASUS GPU Tweak III. Moreover, if you start facing the issue after installing an application, this might be causing the NVIDIA Control Panel to crash.

Uninstall such an application to check if the application runs without crashing.

1. Press the Windows + R key to open Run. 
2. Type appwiz.cpl and press Enter to open Program and Features.
3. Click on the application that may be causing the application to crash and select Uninstall.
   
4. Restart your PC and run the NVIDIA Control Panel.

Update Graphics Driver

You cannot run the NVIDIA Control Panel if you do not have an NVIDIA graphics card and its driver. If this driver is outdated, the NVIDIA Control Panel and the graphics driver may face communication issues, causing the control panel to crash every time you open it.

Try updating your NVIDIA display driver to the latest one to see if it fixes the control panel crash issue.

1. Go to the Official NVIDIA Download Center.
2. Under NVIDIA Driver Downloads, select the correct product type, series, OS, and language.
   
3. Click on Search.
4. Now, click on DOWNLOAD.
5. Extract the downloaded file and install it.
6. Restart your PC once the installation process completes.

Update Windows

Another reason the NVIDIA Control Panel is crashing may also be due to an outdated version of Windows. An out-of-date version of Windows may not be able to communicate with its driver more efficiently, causing the device itself to malfunction. This, in turn, may cause the NVIDIA Control Panel to malfunction.

Try updating the Windows to the latest version to fix the issue.

1. Press the Windows + I key to open Settings.
2. Go to Windows Update (or Security & Update > Windows update for Windows 10).
3. Click on Check for updates or Install Updates.
   
4. Once the process completes, restart your computer to install the downloaded updates.

Uninstall and Reinstall NVIDIA Control Panel

If none of the above solutions work, uninstall the NVIDIA Control Panel and reinstall it. The entire NVIDIA Control Panel application files may be corrupted. This may occur when the application suffers from interrupted installation or some malware application. 

If that’s the case, you need to uninstall the NVIDIA control panel and reinstall it.

1. Press the Windows + I key to open Settings.
2. Go to Apps > Apps and Features.
3. Click on three vertical dots on NVIDIA Control Panel and select Uninstall.
   
4. Once the uninstallation process is completed, go to Microsoft Store to download the NVIDIA Control Panel.
5. Run the application to check if it crashes again.