How to Fix FFMPEG.DLL Not Found Error on Windows 11/10

Recently, Windows users have reported encountering the ffmpeg.dll file missing or not found error. Basically, this error may be raised at the time of application installation, at system boot-up, or while accessing certain websites. The ffmpeg.dll error may show up when the system files are corrupted which in turn makes the DLL file undiscoverable by the system directory. This error has also been seen associated with some applications like Microsoft Teams, Skype, Discord, WhatsApp for Windows, Deezer.

The error message displayed to the user is:

The program can’t start because ffmpeg.dll is missing from your computer. Try reinstalling the program to fix this problem.

Read ahead into this article, if you are facing this error on your PC. In this article, we have discussed some solutions using Microsoft Teams as an example to help fix this error. Before moving ahead with the fixes, check the workarounds mentioned below.

 

Workarounds

 

1. Make sure that your system drivers are updated.

2. Close all other applications other than the system processes using the Task Manager.

 

 

Fix 1 – Download the DLL File Manually

 

1. Click on this link to download the ffmpeg.dll file.

2. On this page, click on the Download button to get the DLL file on your system.

 

Download Dll File Min

 

3. Go to the location where the file is downloaded.

4. Select the ffmpeg.dll file and press the Copy icon (or press Ctrl + C) at the top of the File Explorer.



 

Copy Downloaded Dll File Min

 

5. Locate your Microsoft Teams shortcut icon on the Desktop.

6. Right-click on the Teams icon and choose Open file location.

 

Teams Shortcut Open File Location Min

 

7. Here, open the folder named current.

 

Microsoft Teams Current Folder Min

 

8. Click on the Paste icon (alternatively, press Ctrl + V) to paste the copied DLL file in the current folder.

 

Paste Copied Files Into Teams Current Folder Min

 

9. Open Microsoft Teams and check if it opens without any errors.

 

Fix 2 – Reinstall the Application

 

1. Open Run using the Windows and R key combination.

2. Type ms-settings:appsfeatures to open the Apps & Features Settings page.

 

Ms Settings Apps Features Min

 

3. In the search box below the App list, type Teams to look for the application.

4. Click on the three vertical dots associated with Microsoft Teams and choose Uninstall.

 

Uninstall Teams Min

 

5. To confirm the uninstallation process, click on Uninstall again.

 

Confirm Teams Uninstall Min

 

6. Wait for the uninstallation to complete. Restart your system.

7. After startup, open Run (Windows + R) and type the path below.

%localappdata%\Microsoft\


Run Localappdata Microsoft Min

 

8. Here, select the Teams folder and tap the Delete icon at the top.

 

Delete Teams Folder Localappdata Microsoft Min

 

9. Confirm the deletion operation.

10. Tap the Windows key and type registry in the search box.

11. Right-click on Registry Editor in the result list and choose Run as administrator. Click on Yes when prompted by UAC.

 

Open Registry As Admin Min

 

12. Copy-paste the location below in the Registry’s navigation bar.

Computer\HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Office\Teams\

13. On the right-side, right-click on the PreventInstallationFromMsi registry entry and choose Delete.

 

Delete Key Related To Teams Installastion In Registry Min

 

14. Exit the Registry and restart your PC.

15. Upon startup, download the Microsoft Teams latest version for desktop.

16. Install the Teams app using the downloaded installer. Check if the issue is resolved.

 

Fix 3 – Perform an SFC Scan

 

1. Tap the Windows key and type command prompt in the Windows Search box.

2. Right-click on Command Prompt in the search result and choose Run as administrator.

 

Open Command Prompt As Admin Min

 

3. When prompted by UAC click on Yes to grant permissions.

4. Type the command and hit Enter to execute it.

sfc /scannow

5. Wait for some time until the scan completes.

 

Sfc Scan Command Prompt Min

 

6. Check if the ffmpeg.dll mission error is resolved with the application that was rasing it.

 

Fix 4 – Clear the App Cache

 

1. Press Ctrl + Shift + Esc to open the Task Manager.

2. Make sure no process related to the application giving the error is running. For example, here we end all tasks related to Microsoft Teams.

 

Task Manager End Teams Task Min

 

3. Press Windows + R to open Run.

4. Copy-paste the paths given below one at a time and delete all the files (press Ctrl + A and click on the Delete icon) present in the respective folders.

Note: If the MS Teams app keeps opening during the deletion process, end it using the Task Manager.

 

Run Teams Appdata Cache Min

 

%appdata%\Microsoft\teams\cache

%appdata%\Microsoft\teams\blob_storage

%appdata%\Microsoft\teams\databases

%appdata%\Microsoft\teams\GPUcache

%appdata%\Microsoft\teams\IndexedDB

%appdata%\Microsoft\teams\Local Storage

%appdata%\Microsoft\teams\tmp

5. Restart your computer once you have deleted the files in the above folders. Check if the ffmpeg.dll not found error is fixed.

 

Delete Appdata Teams Folder Contents Min

 

6. If the problem still persists, perform Steps 1 and 2 again.

7. Open Run (Windows + R) and type the following location

%appdata%\Microsoft\

Run Appdata Microsoft Min

 

8. In the Microsoft folder, select the Teams folder and click on the Delete icon at the top.

 

Delete Teams Folder Appdata Min

 

9. On confirmation, click on Delete to remove the Teams folder completely.

10. Restart your PC and check if the error is resolved now.

 

Fix 5 – Make a Copy of the Folder into the Installation Directory of the Application

 

It is known that while reinstalling any application if there are any folders/data of the previous installation, then there are chances that there will be duplicate folders. In such cases, it is a good idea to copy the contents of the new folder to the older one. Here, the steps have been detailed using Microsoft Teams as an example.

 

1. Open Task Manager (Ctrl + Shift + Esc) and end all processes related to Microsoft Teams.

 

Task Manager End Teams Task Min

 

2. Press Windows + R  and type the path below and hit Enter.

%localappdata%


 

Run Localappdata Min



 

3. In the File Explorer that opens up, double-click on the folder named Microsoft.

 

Open Microsoft Folder In Apdata Min

 

4. Open the Teams folder here.

5. You need to check whether there is more than one folder starting with the name current. For example, current (Teams default folder) and current-s1 folders.

6. Copy the contents from the folder without the default name to the default folder. In this case, copy from the current-s1 folder to the current folder.

Note: If you see any warnings, ignore them. Click on Yes if asked to merge folders.

 

Copy Contents Of Old Folder To New Current Folder Min

 

7. Restart your system after all the files have been copied.

8. Check if the ffmpeg.dll missing error is solved.



 

Fix 6 – Create New User Account

 

1. First, make sure to boot your computer into safe mode.

Note: You need to be using an administrator account to perform the steps below.

2. Just use the Windows and R keys together to open the Run dialog.

3. Type ms-settings:accounts and hit Enter to open the Accounts Settings page.

 

Run Ms Settings Account Min

 

4. On the right side, select Family and other users.

 

Settings Account Family Other Users Min

 

5. Under the Other users section, click on the Add account button to add other users to the system.

 

Settings Account Family Other Users Add Other User Account Min

 

6. On the Microsoft account page, click on the link I don’t have this person’s sign-in information.

 

Microsoft Account Dont Have Persons Sign In Info Min

 

7. Now, click on Add a user without a Microsoft account.

 

Microsoft Account Add User Without Microsoft Account Min

 

8. You will be seeing the Create a user for this PC page. Here, enter the username and password for the new user.

9. Click on Next.

10. Reboot your PC once the new user is created.

11. After startup, log in to the computer using the new user account.

12. Check if this helped to fix the DLL file missing error.

 

 

That’s it!

You must now be able to use the Teams or any other app without the ffmpeg.dll file is missing error. If this article helped you clear this error on your PC, then let us know the fix that worked in the comments.