Why is My Rockstar Games Launcher Not Working(Fixes)

When you absolutely have to get your Grand Theft Auto fix right now, the Rockstar Games launcher not working correctly is a huge roadblock that you might have some trouble steering around. Like most game launchers, it can be affected by various problems, both from issues that Rockstar has to bad interactions with something on your computer.

Luckily, you can fix most issues with the Rockstar launcher pretty quickly and then dive right back into Red Dead Redemption, Grand Theft Auto, or any of the games you want to play. 

Rockstar Launcher Problems

There are a few problems you might come across when using the Rockstar Launcher. For example:

Consider your problem before you dive into solutions. For example, if the launcher won’t come up at all, you might not be able to try running it as an administrator. Tailor your troubleshooting to match the exact issue you’re experiencing.

Before You Start

Before you start trying to fix things, check the Rockstar Games Service Status page. If the service is down, that might explain an inability to connect. Wait until the service is functional again before being concerned that something is messed up in your computer. 

Rockstar Games Launcher Not Working(Fixes)

Before you get started with troubleshooting, try putting a few suggestions into play that might solve your problem before you even start updating your drivers. Simply doing a few things can give you a better chance of successfully starting the launcher.

Restart Your Computer and Internet

This seems so obvious that it almost isn’t worth saying — except that many fans have done a lot of troubleshoots, changed settings, and even updated drivers only to find that a restart completely fixed the problem.

So try restarting your computer before you do anything else. Once it’s running, let the Rockstar Launcher be the first thing you open. 

If it still isn’t working, try restarting your internet as well. 

Run as Administrator

Run the launcher as an administrator before you try anything else. It’s a quick and straightforward solution that can take care of a lot of different problems.

While you could just right-click on the launcher and choose “Run as administrator,” it’s better to go into the program itself and change it so that it launches with administrator privileges every time.

1. Find your launcher executable.
2. Right-click on the file and click “Properties.”
3. Choose “Run this program as an administrator.”
   
4. Click “OK.”

Now try to open the Rockstar launcher again.

Update Everything

You should always keep your drivers and Windows up to date. If you aren’t positive that everything is on the correct version, take a second and check before getting into more difficult troubleshooting steps.

1. Type “Update” into the start menu search and click “Check for Updates.”
2. Press the “Check for updates” button once the page has loaded.
3. Follow the steps on the screen to update Windows, if needed. It should download the update automatically and then ask you when to install it and let you know whether you need to restart your PC. 
4. Click “Restart now” if you are so inclined. If not, click “Schedule the restart” and choose a day and time that works for you.

Remember that if you’re not ready to restart and apply updates right now, you can’t check to see whether Windows being out-of-date is the cause of your Rockstar launcher not working. Once Windows is up to date, check your drivers.

1. Type “Device Manager” into the start menu search.
2. Click “Device Manager.”
3. Right-click on the name of your PC.
4. Click “Scan for hardware changes” and follow the steps to update your drivers as needed.

It’s critical to keep graphics card drivers updated when you’re a gamer. You can also look in your GPU management program — which varies depending on what you use — and follow the steps there to update as well.

Now that you are done with all those basic solutions, let us move to a few advanced ones.

Check Your Processes

Sometimes the Rockstar Games launcher is running in the background, even if you can’t see it. To give it a chance to start correctly, you need to get rid of the currently running instance.

1. Click “Ctrl+Alt+Del” and click “Task Manager.”
2. Find the Rockstar Games launcher entry under the Processes tab.
3. Right-click the correct entry and choose “End task.”

Try to restart the launcher once the process is closed.

Delete OneDrive Files

Some people have experienced a problem with OneDrive, where it downloads many old files and prevents the Rockstar Games launcher from working. You can go into OneDrive and delete them or rename the files so that the launcher has to make new files. Another solution is to move them so you can retrieve them later.

Remember to remove these from the OneDrive folder on your computer and the cloud, so they’re entirely gone. 

People with this issue also found that deleting or disabling OneDrive would help them get the Rockstar Games launcher working again. 

If you’re having trouble deleting any files, try booting into Safe Mode before you delete them.

1. Press Windows Key + I to open Settings and click “Update & Security.”
2. Click “Recovery” and then “Open Recovery Settings.’
3. Click “Restart Now” under Advanced Startup and then choose “Troubleshoot” on the startup screen.
4. Click “Advanced options” and then choose “Startup Settings.”
5. Click “Restart.”
6. Choose option 4 when the computer restarts and gives you a menu. That starts the computer in Safe Mode.

Once you’re in Safe Mode, anything preventing you from deleting files or OneDrive should stop causing issues. When you’re done, restart your computer to log back in normally. 

Delete Rockstar Games Saves

Go to your documents folder and delete “Rockstar Games.” Keep in mind this will remove all of your progress and saved games — unless you back it up. 

You don’t have to lose all your progress because you want to delete your saved games. Instead, move them to another folder or drive without changing the names. That way, you can return them to their original location if getting rid of them doesn’t fix the problem. 

Delete the Launcher – Easy Method

If the problem isn’t too bad, sometimes deleting and reinstalling the launcher can fix the problem — without having to delete anything else.

1. Type “Add or Remove” into the system search bar and scroll down to find the entry for the Rockstar launcher.
2. Click the entry.
3. Click “Uninstall” and then “Uninstall” to confirm.

Once the program is uninstalled, download a fresh copy of the launcher installation files from Rockstar Games. 

1. Click the downloaded file and choose “Yes” to let it make changes to your computer.
2. Choose your language and click “Continue.”
3. Click “Continue” to agree to the terms and then browse to where you want Rockstar installed. It requires 1 GB of free space.
4. Click “Install.”
5. Click “Close.”

Try to sign in to your Rockstar Games account to see whether reinstalling the launcher fixed the problem.

Delete and Reinstall – Including the Registry

If a standard method of deleting and reinstalling the program doesn’t work, some players have had luck doing a more thorough deletion of any files associated with Rockstar. This means going into your registry, which you should only do if you’re comfortable modifying the registry. If you’re not, consider consulting a computer repair technician and asking for expert help.

Always back up your files — including saves, game data, and downloaded games — to another folder before deleting them. 

1. Delete the Rockstar launcher from your computer, as described above.
2. Find any extra files — including game settings in your Documents folder — and delete those as well. Anything that has any effect on a Rockstar game should be deleted.
3. Type “Regedit” into the system search bar and click on the “Registry Editor.”
4. Expand “HKey_Local_Machine” and then expand “SOFTWARE.” Look for the folder labeled “Rockstar.”
   
5. Right-click the folder and select “Delete.” Press “OK” to confirm.
6. Restart your computer and try to reinstall Rockstar. 

Remember that you will have to reinstall all of your games. You can try using the Rockstar Launcher’s scan for games function to find your games if you move them to another folder before deleting everything.

1. Click “Settings.”
2. Choose “General.”
3. Click “Scan PC for Supported Installs.”
4. Select “Scan Now.”

It may find your games and make them available to you. However, some people have found that even with their games readily available, it doesn’t locate them.

Some people had luck moving their installed games into another folder, reinstalling the launcher, and downloading a game. Once the game was partially downloaded, they’d swap the new game files with the old game files, and then Rockstar would detect the new ones. 

However, it hasn’t worked for everyone who tried it, so be sure you’re prepared to download your games again.