Error 0xc0000017, The application was unable to start correctly

If every time you launch an application such as Task Manager, Registry Editor, you receive an error saying—The application was unable to start correctly (0xc0000017), then this post will help you resolve the problem. The problem occurs even when you have an admin account.

Why does this problem occur?

The problem occurs when you don’t have enough physical or virtual memory for the application to work. Every time you launch an application, it will need a minimum amount of memory to work. If the computer fails to allocate it, you will receive this error.

The problem has also been reported to occur after a Windows Update, and it’s possible because of memory locations that have been marked as bad.

The application was unable to start correctly (0xc0000017)

While there are tons of suggestions asking you to do unrelated things, there are only two possible solutions for this— Remove bad memory or Repair Windows.

Before you begin, remember to create a system restore point first.

Remove bad memory

Boot your computer into Windows.
Right-click the Start button and select Command Prompt (Admin).
Type bcdedit /enum all and press Enter.
The list will show all the memory locations deemed ‘bad’. This list can be cleared.
Type bcdedit /deletevalue {badmemory} badmemorylist and press Enter
Close the Command Prompt window and restart your computer.

Repair Windows 11/10

Windows Bootable media can be used to repair Windows 10. While you can follow this detailed repair guide, here are the major steps you need to follow:

Download Windows ISO
Create Bootable USB or DVD drive
Boot from the media and choose “Repair your computer.”
Under Advanced troubleshooting, choose Startup Repair.

If both of these cannot resolve the problem, you need to replace the physical RAM module with a new one. Make sure to get a new set of RAM that the motherboard supports or the same as installed on the computer.

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