How To Fix ‘Discord Won’t Open’ Error When You’re Stuck on Starting in Windows?

You’ve got a major problem at hand when an important app such as Discord won’t open on your Windows PC.

It can become even more troubling for you to fix this when Discord runs in the background, and yet it doesn’t show up when you try to launch it.

Why is Discord not opening on your PC? What could cause Discord to behave this way? Well, we’re going to figure out why this happens and how you can fix it. First, you’ll learn why Discord is an essential service for your Windows PC.

What is Discord?

You may not come across Discord as an app on your Windows PC and devices. But, as a core service, Discord is available on almost every Microsoft device out there.

Discord is basically a VoIP (Voice-over Internet Protocol) application-cum-service that lets you use the Internet to send and receive voice data. To make it simple, you can consider Discord as a service that lets you chat online.

Now, you’ve been using Discord, unknowingly, whenever you’ve used a messenger app to chat with friends and colleagues. Skype, Google Hangouts, Webex and many more chatting apps use Discord as a basic service.

As a service, Discord comes with great features –

• Reliable platform for server-to-client communication
• Keeping IP addresses safe
• Built-in DDoS protection
• Options to embed media (links, images) with voice-messaging
• Completely free to use

On top of that, the voice quality is pin-drop clear.

You can manage your server smoothly with Discord’s easy user interface. Its automatic server failover feature ensures you don’t get disconnected in any circumstances.

Your Windows needs Discord to offer you cool features such as chatting with connected users, having a conference video/voice call in a meeting, or syncing your voice messages while playing online games with friends.

Why Discord Won’t Open on My Windows PC?

Once you know why Discord is an essential service for Windows users, resolving discord not launching issues becomes even more important.

And, there could be a bunch of reasons why Discord isn’t opening on Windows. We know a few of them, and those are the ones that most common to trigger this error.

First, applications running in the background can stop Discord from launching. You can also face this issue when some antivirus software interferes with Discord and stops it from opening on Windows.

In some instances, syncing Discord with a game or other program can potentially disallow you from opening it. Windows 10 users may not be able to open Discord due to corrupt files, an overloaded CPU, or excess cache files.

8+ Ways to Fix Windows When Discord Won’t Start

Now, let’s get down to the different ways you can fix Windows and open Discord as usual.

You can try out the solutions presented below to find out what stopped Discord from opening in Windows.

1. Close Apps Running in Background

The first fix for launching Discord (when it doesn’t open with a double-click) – close all the background clutter.

If you open the Task Manager, you may see Discord’s executable (.exe) file running. But, even so, Discord doesn’t show up when you double-click on it.

It could be due to background apps. Some programs running in the background can stop Discord from launching. You need to manually close all apps running in the background on your Windows PC.

• Go to the Settings window (click on the gear icon in Start menu)
• Double-click on ‘ Privacy ’

• Go to ‘ Background apps ’ section

• Browse through the window and turn the switch off for Let apps run in the background option

If you choose not to close all apps, you can at least minimize their number. You can select a few apps and allow them to run in the background.

You can turn off the toggle for some background apps and keep the rest untouched. But, if you think Discord is starting due to them, you might as well close them and run other ‘un-interfering’ apps

2. Navigate to Discord Folder & Launch it directly

If the first method didn’t help, you can opt for the simplest way to open Discord. You can navigate to its default location folder and open the .exe file.

To find Discord’s executable file, follow the address below.

C:\ProgramData\%USERNAME%\Discord\

You can simply paste the address on File Explorer address bar and get access to Discord app file.

Here, double-click on the discord.exe file to launch Discord.

3. Update Your Discord Service

There have been instances when Discord wasn’t opening because it wasn’t updated.

You need to get the latest version of Discord service to ensure it launches properly. In order to update Discord, you can run all updates available for your Windows 10 computer.

However, if you prefer to categorically update Discord, download its latest version from the link below.

https://discordapp.com/api/download?platform=win

After downloading the Discord setup file, install it by following the on-screen instructions. Now, try opening the updated Discord on your Windows.

4. Kill Discord Task with Command Prompt

It could be possible that Discord is already running in the background and that’s why it’s not launching. Your computer won’t launch Discord unless you kill the background app first.

There are several ways to end tasks on Windows computer. The simplest way is using the Command Prompt.

• Hold-press ‘ Windows ’ key and hit ‘ R ’ key
• In the Run dialog box, feed “ cmd ” with your keyboard

• Click on OK
• Now, type the command –

taskkill /F /IM discord.exe

• Press the Enter key

After killing the Discord task, you can try to open it again. If it doesn’t help, you can also consider restarting your PC after executing the command.

5. Use Task Manager to End Discord Processes

Alternatively, you can also use the Task Manager to end tasks or processes linked to Discord. This method, however, doesn’t always work for all Windows users, which is why you should prefer the Command Prompt method.

• Press and hold the CTRL , SHIFT and ESC keys together
• The Task Manager window shows up
• Go to the Processes tab
• Navigate through the list and locate discord. exe

• Select the process
• Click on ‘ End Task ’ tab in the right corner

If this works for you, skip the previous way to kill Discord tasks.

6. Repair Corrupt Files (SFC Scannow)

For a few times, Discord won’t open on Windows when it encounters a corrupted system file. Try giving a shot to this method and fix the corrupted files to see if you’re able to launch Discord properly on Windows.

You can use the System File Checker (SFC) tool to detect corrupt files and repair them.

To run an SFC scan,

• Go to the Start menu
• Click on the search box and type ‘ cmd ’
• Select the Command Prompt app from the results
• Right-click on it and click on ‘ Run as administrator ’
• Now, type the following command – sfc /scannow

• Press the Enter key
• Wait for the scan to complete
• Restart your PC later

Before you restart, the Command Prompt window displays the scan results. It helps you identify the corrupted file sectors, as well as the repair that’s been done.

7. Clear Out Local AppData Folder

Excess files and caches stored in Discord’s app folder can make Discord to stuck on starting. Instead of uninstalling the app, you can first try deleting the contents of the Local AppData folder.

If it works, you don’t need to reinstall Discord or even check for updates.

To delete contents from Local AppData folder,

• Press the ‘ Windows ’ key, followed by ‘ R ’ key
• When the Run dialog box shows up, type ‘ %appdata% ’

• Click on OK or press the Enter key
• In the Local AppData folder , look for Discord’s default app folder
• Right-click on it and click on ‘ Delete ’ from the drop-down menu

• Reboot your computer thereafter

This way, you’ll flush out Discord app data and allow it to run as a newly-installed app on Windows.

8. Deselect - Use Proxy Server

For some users, changing the Network and Security settings on Windows helped in launching Discord. There are two possible ways to fix the issue.

You can either flush the DNS settings or disable your computer from using a proxy server.

First, let’s uncheck the ‘Use Proxy Server’ option to see if it helps you open Discord app.

• Open Run dialog box (Press Win + R buttons together)
• Type ‘ Control Panel ’ in the Run box and hit enter button to open Control Panel

• Go to ‘ Network and Internet ’ section

• Click on the Internet Options link

• Scroll to the Connections tab and open the LAN Settings menu

• Here, uncheck the box that says - Use a proxy server for your LAN (These settings will not apply to dial-up or VPN connections)

Now, see if you can open Discord properly or not

9. Flush DNS

Alternatively, you can reset the Domain Name System (DNS) settings on your Windows PC. You can check out the different ways to flush DNS on Windows by clicking here .

10. Delete AppData Contents & Re-install Discord

Your last option is removing the service and installing it again. Before you go ahead and uninstall Discord, delete Discord’s folder from the AppData folder (refer above).

To reinstall Discord,

• Press the ‘ Windows ’ key, followed by ‘ R ’ key
• When the Run dialog box shows up, type ‘ appwiz.cpl ’

• Click on OK or press the Enter key
• Browse through the list of Programs
• Select the Discord app
• Click on ‘ Uninstall ’

• Restart your PC
• Open your web browser
• Paste this URL - https://discordapp.com/api/download?platform=win
• Download the Discord setup file
• Open it and follow the installation instructions

How To Fix ‘Discord Won’t Open’ Error When You’re Stuck on Starting in Windows? [Video]

This surely fixes the problem. You can try opening Discord now, and you’ll certainly see it launch as an app. If you’re still having issues opening Discord, let us know your problem in the comments below.

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