Quick Info
  • Running the EA App as an administrator is the simplest solution you can try if the app is not launching.
  • Other solutions include enabling Unicode 8 language support, deleting the app cache, and checking that your antivirus is not blocking the app.
  • You can also try deleting the game data variable, disabling virtual network adapters, installing missing C++ redistributables, and ensuring you are using the right user account configuration.

Fix 1: Run the EA app as an Administrator

Sometimes, opening the EA app from the Start menu or desktop causes it to launch the EALauncher.exe while it should launch EADesktop.exe. This may happen when the launcher cannot locate and open the desktop executable. To fix this,

  1. Right-click on the EA app on your desktop or Start menu and click on 'Open file location'.
  1. This will take you to where the shortcut is located. Right-click on the shortcut and again click on 'Open file location'.
  1. When the installation directory opens, look for EADesktop.exe. Right-click on it and click on 'Run as administrator'.
  1. If the solution works, you can set it to always 'Run as administrator' by opening the Properties menu and going to the Compatibility tab from the Properties menu.
  1. Finally, right-click on the app again and click on 'Create shortcut' to create a desktop shortcut so you can launch it directly from your desktop.
Note: If launching the EA App as administrator does not work, try opening it in compatibility mode for Windows 7. You can do so by right-clicking on the app, going to the properties, and then selecting Windows 7 from the dropdown menu.

Fix 2: Turn on support for Unicode UTF-8 languages

When support for Unicode UTF-8 languages is enabled, Windows can display characters from different languages correctly. It may also fix issues with the EA app.

  1. Use the Win + R shortcut to open the 'Run' dialog box, then type intl.cpl and press Enter.
  1. In the dialog box that opens up, click on the 'Administrative' tab at the top and then on the 'Change system locale' button.
  1. Click on the checkbox next to the option 'Beta: Use Unicode UTF-8 for worldwide language support'. Then restart your PC and try opening the EA app again.

Fix 3: Delete the EA app cache

Clearing the app cache is another possible solution you can try when the EA app is not opening.

  1. Open the Run dialog using the Win + R shortcut, type %localappdata% and press Enter.
  1. In the window that opens, select the 'Electronic Arts' and 'EADesktop' folders and delete them. Make sure to close the apps and end all related running processes from the Task Manager before deleting the folders.
  1. Once you've deleted the folders, restart your computer and try opening the EA App again.

Fix 4: Check your antivirus

Antivirus programs can often block applications from running, resulting in various issues. You can check Windows Defender or any other third-party antivirus you have installed and see whether it is blocking the app. It may have quarantined a file needed by the app, which is preventing it from running.

  1. Depending on which antivirus program you are using, you will have to open it up and navigate to a section called 'Blocked and Allowed apps' or something similar.
  1. Make sure the EA app is not present under blocked apps. Then go to the 'Quarantine' section and perform a similar check. If you find any file related to the EA app, you can restore it from here and then try opening the app again.

Fix 5: Delete the GAME_DATA_DIR variable

If you installed mods using the Frosty Mod Manager for games running on the Frostbite engine, try deleting the GAME_DATA_DIR variable.

  1. Open the Start menu, type environment variables and click on 'Edit the system environment variables'.
  1. Click on the 'Environment variable' button in the dialog box.
  1. In the window that opens, check whether the GAME_DATA_DIR variable is present. If it is, select it and click on the 'Delete' button to remove it. Then reboot your system and launch the EA app again.

Fix 6: Install missing Microsoft Visual C++ Redistributables 

Your EA app may not start if your PC is missing certain Visual C++ Redistributables needed by it. You can download and install them to fix the problem.

  1. Visit Microsoft's official website and click on the download link for your respective system.
  1. Once the download is complete, open it and click on the checkbox to agree to the terms and conditions. Then click on the 'Install' button.
  1. Once it is installed, restart your PC and then reinstall the EA app before trying to launch it again.

Fix 7: Ensure correct account system configuration

You need to ensure that the system configuration for the account you are using to launch the EA app is correct.

  1. Open Windows Explorer and navigate to C:\ProgramData\Package Cache.
  1. Right-click on the folder and click on 'Properties'.
  1. In the Properties window, click on the 'Security' tab and then on the 'Advanced' button.
  1. Check that the owner is set to 'Administrators'. If it is not, click on the 'Change' button and then type Administrators before clicking on OK.

Fix 8: Disable virtual network adapters

If the EA app cannot run on port 3216, you will need to disable your virtual network adapters before opening the app again.

  1. Right-click on the Start button and click on 'Device Manager' to open it.
  1. Next, click on 'Network Adapters' to view all the network adapters available.
  1. Now, simply right-click on a virtual network adapter and click on 'Disable device' to turn it off. Do this for all virtual network adapters.

Fix 9: Reinstall the EA app

Finally, you should consider removing the EA app and reinstalling it. When reinstalling the EA app, it is a good idea to download a fresh installer as sometimes the installer may get corrupted, causing the problem.

Things to know

  • The EA app requires a stable internet connection to run properly, so make sure there are no issues with your connection when launching the app.
  • For solutions that require restarting the EA App, make sure to close all background processes related to it before restarting it.
  • There are third-party apps that claim to help you resolve the EA App not opening error, but you should try out safer methods first before relying on them.
  • An extreme measure that might help is to disable secure boot on your PC, though that can make it vulnerable to threats. Before you do that, you should reach out to EA Support and seek their assistance.