How to Fix the EA App Not Working: Troubleshooting Guide

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Troubleshoot the EA launcher so you can play the games you paid for
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Does the EA app do nothing when you click to launch it? Fortunately, there is usually a fix. Here are some troubleshooting steps you can take to get the EA app working so you can play EA games like Sims 4. We'll also explain common EA app error codes and provide helpful fixes.

Quickly Fix the EA App Not Working

If the EA app doesn't launch or shows a blank screen, run the "EADesktop.exe" in Windows as an admin or in compatibility mode. Make sure your client and your Windows or macOS software are updated.

Section 1 of 2:

Common Fixes

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  1. Outdated software will cause the EA app not to work. Newer Macs especially suffer from outdated software. Your EA client will automatically download updates it detects, but you can also go to https://www.ea.com/ea-app and download the most recent version of the app.
    • In some cases [1] , users need to update their macOS in order for the EA app to work.
    • For some users [2] , you can run the updater inside the EA folder on your computer. It might be located in "C:\Program Files\Electronic Arts\EA Desktop\EA Desktop as "EAUpdater.exe."
  2. Your current installation can contain corrupted or damaged data. This corrupted or damaged data will prevent the app from working on your computer. To repair your installed files:
    • Go to https://www.ea.com/ea-app to download the appropriate launcher for your computer (Windows or Mac) and run the installed file.
    • Click Repair .
    • The program will take a minute to repair any corrupted, damaged, or missing files, then launch the EA app.
    • Alternatively, follow these steps that have worked for some people [3] : Drag the EA icon to the Trash (you're not uninstalling it), and re-download the launcher from EA. In the pop-up that says you already have the launcher installed, click Repair .
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  3. Closing this background process may work. Open Task Manager (Windows) or Activity Monitor (Mac) and find "EA Background." Select it, then click End Task .
  4. Double-clicking the icon in the Start menu or taskbar icon opens the Launcher instead. Since the launcher is experiencing issues, skip it by finding the "EADesktop.exe" file. To do that:
    • Right-click the Launcher icon or EA shortcut on your desktop.
    • Select Properties > Open File Location .
    • With the file location open, you will find "EADesktop.exe" and can right-click it and select Run as administrator .
      • If you do that, your game in EA will run. However, you'll need to repeat this process every time you want to play an EA game.
    • To change this permanently, right-click the "EADesktop.exe" icon and select Properties > Compatibility > Run this program as an administrator . Click Apply and OK to close the "Properties" window.
      • Right-click the icon again and click "Create Shortcut" to add an icon for this file on your desktop. That way, you can quickly access the EA app.
  5. Compatibility Mode might help EA run. Once you've completed the previous troubleshooting step, the "EADesktop.exe" app icon is on your desktop so you can easily right-click it and select Properties > Compatibility > Run this program in compatibility mode for > Windows 7 .
  6. The cache can get corrupted and prevent the app from running. There are three different ways you can clear the cache:
    • The EA App: Click the three lines in the top left corner of the app, then select Help > App recovery > Clear cache. Do this if you can open the EA app on Windows or Mac.
    • Windows 10/11: Open the EA folder and navigate to the App Recovery directory, then click Clear Cache . [4]
    • Alternative Windows option: Press Win + R , enter %localappdata% , then click OK . Delete the folders called "EADesktop" and "Electronic Arts". If you encounter an error, open Task Manager (Press Ctrl + Shift + Esc) and make sure all "EA" services are stopped, including "EA Background Service."
  7. This might be the reason the EA app will not launch. Your antivirus software might delete benign files, thinking they are malicious, or prevent apps on your computer from communicating with the internet.
    • For Windows Defender, which is usually the culprit, open "Windows Security," and click Virus & Threat Protection > Protection History .
      • To open Windows Security, press Win + I to open Settings, then click Privacy & security > Windows Security . [5]
    • Look for any EA-related files in this history, click it, then click Restore .
    • For other antivirus software, go to the "Quarantined Files" section and restore any EA app or Launcher files.
  8. Frosty Mod Manager modifies this file. You need to delete this file if you're having trouble launching the EA app. To do this:
    • Press Win and search environment variables . Press Enter to search for that term.
    • Open "Edit the system environment variables" and click Environment Variables…" in the Advanced tab.
    • Click the "GAME_DATA_DIR" variable and delete it.
    • Click OK to close the window and reboot your computer.
  9. Uninstalling the app with the uninstaller won't remove all EA's files. So, you want to do this manually to ensure you get rid of everything before reinstalling the app.
    • Open File Explorer, go to your installation of the EA App, then click View and enable "Hidden Items."
    • Open "ProgramData" in that folder and search EA in the search bar.
    • Right-click the "EAapp" file that has a bunch of numbers after it and click Uninstall .
    • Confirm the uninstall, and the app will be completely uninstalled from your computer.
    • Go to https://www.ea.com/ea-app to install the launcher again.
  10. Your computer may not have this enabled, but it is in the EA app. Since these two are conflicting, the app will not run properly. This fix works for Windows 10 & 11:
    • Press Win + R , enter intl.cpl , and click OK .
    • Click the Administrative tab and click Change system locale .
    • Check the box next to "Beta: Use Unicode UTF-8 for worldwide language support."
    • Click OK on the two boxes to close them, then reboot your computer .
  11. As a last resort, you can seek further help from EA. The launcher not working occasionally is a pretty common issue, but you should still report it and get help . You can also create posts with bug reports to help developers figure out why the app isn't working for you.
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Section 2 of 2:

EA App Error Codes

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    Error Meaning How to Fix INST-18-4103 - Incorrect hash value The installer might have downloaded incorrectly. Redownload and reinstall the EA app. INST-14-1603 - Unknown fatal error Something went wrong during your installation. Manually install missing Microsoft Visual C++ Redistributables (Windows), restart your computer, then download and reinstall. INST-3-1920 - Failed to start background service

    The game management service was successfully installed, but it wasn't able to start.

    Try reinstalling the EA app. INST-14-1460 - Local operation timeout There was an error trying to install the Microsoft Visual C++ Redistributables (PC). Manually install any missing Microsoft Visual C++ Redistributables from the official Microsoft website. If you’re not sure which Redistributables are missing, you can try installing all Redistributable packages under Visual Studio 2015, 2017, 2019, and 2022. You’ll get a notification if a package has already been installed. Restart your PC, download the installer, then reinstall. INST-21-1152 - Installer already running The EA app installer is already running. If you get a prompt requesting permission for the EA app to make changes to your device, select Yes . On Mac, you might have to enter your password before selecting OK or Allow. INST-14-12002 - Network timeout or INST-14-12029 - Connection failed There’s a network connection issue. Download the EA installer again, then reboot. If that doesn't work, try again later. INST-14-1601 - Windows Installer Service missing The service may be unavailable and there may be a problem with your system configuration. Contact Microsoft Support for help. INST-21-577 - Signature validation error There’s an issue with the EA app installer's self-integrity check. This could be because of tampering or a file write error. Download the EA installer again, restart your computer, and reinstall. INST 14-5 - Access denied A problem with your system configuration may be blocking some of the steps in the installation process. PC

    In File Explorer, go to C:\ProgramData\Package Cache. Right-click the folder and go to Properties > Security > Advanced and set the owner to Administrators .

    Mac: Go to System Settings > Privacy & Security . If there is a notification under "Allow applications downloaded from," click Open Anyway .

    INST-14-1612 - Installation source missing There was an issue when trying to install the Microsoft Visual C++ Redistributables. Manually install any missing Microsoft Visual C++ Redistributables packages from the official Microsoft website. If you’re not sure which Redistributables are missing, you can try installing all Redistributable packages under Visual Studio 2015, 2017, 2019, and 2022. Restart your PC, re-download the EA app, and reinstall. EC:10701 - Communication error This usually means that the EA app couldn’t run on port 3216, the computer port that allows the EA app to launch. PC

    First, restart your PC and try relaunching the EA app. If that doesn’t work, go to Control Panel > Network & Internet > Show available networks . Disable all your virtual network adapters (e.g., Hyper-V, TAP-Windows, VMware) and VPN.

    Mac First, restart your Mac and try relaunching the EA app. If that doesn’t work, close Origin, go to System Settings > Network , and disable all your virtual network adapters and VPN. Restart the EA app. If you still have issues, run the command “sudo lsof -i -P | grep LISTEN | grep :3216” in a terminal and see if another app is running on port 3216. If it is, close it.

    EC:20:403 - Origin error code Origin is no longer available for Windows. Install the EA app to play games on PC. EC: 10000 - EA Account issue Your EA Account can’t be authenticated. Make sure your internet connection is stable. If you’re having issues, troubleshoot your connection. Check that your login details are correct. EC: 109 - App files are corrupted The EA app can’t launch because some files are corrupt or have been deleted. Delete the EA app and redownload it from ea.com. [6]

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      References

      1. ↑ https://answers.ea.com/t5/Technical-Issues-Mac/Mac-EA-app-quot-The-app-crashed-unexpectedly-quot-or-quot/td-p/13725926/page/4
      2. ↑ https://www.reddit.com/r/thesims/comments/1b5oet6/ea_app_wont_launch/?captcha=1
      3. ↑ https://www.reddit.com/r/thesims/comments/1b5oet6/ea_app_wont_launch/?captcha=1
      4. ↑ https://help.ea.com/en/help/faq/clear-cache-to-fix-problems-with-your-games/
      5. ↑ https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/stay-protected-with-windows-security-2ae0363d-0ada-c064-8b56-6a39afb6a963
      6. ↑ https://help.ea.com/en/help/ea/ea-app/error-codes/

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