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The Radeon Software: Host Application has stopped working error arises for some users with AMD Radeon graphics cards. That error message generally appears when users play games, but there are other instances of it.
The problem was widely reported after a driver update, with AMD users across the globe reporting critical issues with it, which sometimes even led to a crash. So, let’s find out all about it.
Why did my Radeon software stop working?
Here are a few reasons you may get the radeonsettings.exe application error:
- A buggy driver update: Since the problem was widely reported by many at the same time, it’s likely a bug in the driver to blame.
- Corrupt user profile: In some cases, it was a corrupt user profile that triggered the crash, and creating a new one did the trick.
- High CPU usage: Though an after-effect of the update, the resulting high CPU usage when running the Radeon software could also lead to the error.
What can I do if Radeon Software Host Application has stopped working?
Before we start with the slightly complex changes, try these quick ones:
- Restart the PC and check whether the crash takes place again. In many cases, it was a one-time thing.
- Check the computer’s temperature and take the necessary measures to reduce overheating.
- Make sure the PC is not overclocked.
If these don’t work, move to the solutions listed next.
1. Terminate processes in the Task Manager
- Press Ctrl + Shift + Esc to open the Task Manager.
- Select the Radeon Host Application process and click End task.
- Similarly, terminate the Radeon Desktop Overlay process here.
One of the simplest ways to get things up and running when you have the Radeon Software Host application has stopped working error is to terminate both the Radeon processes in the Task Manager. You can then relaunch the program.
2. Reinstall the driver
- Press Windows + X to open the Power User menu, and select Device Manager.
- Expand the Display adapters entry, right-click on the graphics adapter, and choose Properties.
- Go to the Drivers tab, and note the value next to Driver Version.
- Now, right-click on the AMD adapter, and choose Uninstall device.
- Untick the checkbox for Attempt to remove the driver for this device and click Uninstall.
- Once done, restart the computer and again launch the Device Manager.
- Right-click on the AMD adapter, and select Properties.
- Head to the Drivers tab and check whether the previous version is now installed. If not, you may have to repeat the steps a few times.
A user suggested reinstalling the previous graphics driver version when you persistently get the Radeon Software Host application has stopped working error. Remember, it may take a couple of attempts, and make sure to restart the computer after uninstalling the current driver.
For this purpose, you can manage your PC drivers with a reliable driver updating tool that will find graphics driver and install them right away.
3. Clean install the latest Radeon Graphics Card Driver
- First, download the installer for the latest AMD graphics card driver from AMD Drivers and Support.
- Download the Display Driver Uninstaller utility to Windows.
- Press Windows + R to open Run, type services.msc, and hit Enter.
- Double-click on the Windows Update service to open its Properties.
- Select Disabled from the Startup type dropdown menu, and click the Stop button.
- Click the Apply and OK buttons.
- Press Windows + E to open File Explorer, paste the following path in the address bar, and then hit Enter:
C:\AMD - Press Ctrl + A to select all the files here and then hit Delete to clear them.
- Again, press Windows + R to open Run, type appwiz.cpl, and hit Enter.
- Select the AMD Software from the list and click Uninstall.
- Follow the on-screen instructions to complete the process.
- Similarly, remove any other AMD software listed here.
- Press Windows + R to open Run, type msconfig, and click OK.
- Navigate to the Boot tab, select Safe boot, and then choose Minimal under it.
- Click on Apply and OK.
- Click Restart in the prompt that appears.
- There shouldn’t be any third-party antivirus utilities running in Safe Mode. However, double-check that third-party antivirus utilities are disabled.
- Uninstall the Radeon Graphics Card driver with Display Driver Uninstaller, which will thoroughly remove the driver. To do that, select the AMD option on DDU’s drop-down menu, and click the Clean and restart button.
- Now, install the AMD driver you downloaded earlier using the setup.
- Finally, relaunch System Configuration, uncheck the Safe boot option, click Apply and OK, and restart the computer.
That’s it! Removing the problematic driver and installing the latest one using the DDU should get things running when you are continuously getting the Radeon Software Host application has stopped working error.
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4. Create a new user profile
- Press Windows + I to open Settings, and click on Accounts.
- Go to the Family & other users tab, and click on Add someone else to this PC on the right.
- Click on I don’t have this person’s sign-in information.
- Select the Add a user without a Microsoft account option.
- Enter the account name and password, and click Next.
- Once the account is created, choose it, and click on Change account type.
- Select Administrator from the dropdown menu, and click on OK.
If the solutions listed previously didn’t work and you still get Radeon Software Host application has stopped working message, creating a new user profile should do the trick. After creating the new account, transfer the data between the two.
Do I need Radeon Settings Host application on startup?
The Radeon Settings Host Application, though helps in optimizing the performance of the graphics card, is not an essential requirement. So, you can disable the startup app.
Disabling it won’t have any untoward effect, but the gaming performance might be slightly affected. For that, you can always check our expert tips to optimize the PC for gaming.
Also, before you leave, check some quick tricks and changes to make Windows faster.
Tell us which fix worked for you in the comments section below.
Matthew Adams
Windows Hardware Expert
Matthew is a freelancer who has produced a variety of articles on various topics related to technology. His main focus is the Windows OS and all the things surrounding it.
He is passionate about the tech world, always staying up-to-date with the latest and greatest. With an analytical view, he likes problem-solving, focusing on errors and their causes.
In his free time, he likes to read and write about history and tries to always develop new skills.
I’m also experiencing this bug.
It started after the update to 24.3.1.
The small window is not responding an Windows asks to restart, wait or end the application.
There is also an event logged:
Application Hang Event-ID 1002
Path: C:\Program Files\AMD\CNext\CNext\RadeonSoftware.exe
Type: Unknown
I’m on Windows 10 Pro 64bit
Version 22H2
Build 19045.4291
With a Radeon X6700 XT
I also cannot open the Adrenalin Edition any more on the Tab Streaming cause it freezes instantly.
‘Radeon Settings: Host Application has stopped working’ will usually show up on startup or when you are turning off the computer. The error will show up for AMD Radeon users since the error is related to the AMD control center. If you open up your Task Manager, you will also see the Cnext.exe process running in their as well. Yu might also experience screen flickering or fan speed problems.
The first thing you need to know is that cnext.exe is a part of the AMD catalyst control center program for the Radeon graphics card. If you are seeing this error then you must be using the Radeon graphics card. The reason why this crash happens isn’t quite clear but it does get solved by updating the drivers. So, it is most likely related to your graphic card’s drivers. If the problem started happening after a driver update then it might have been caused by a faulty driver or improper installation of the driver.
Method 1: Clean Install Drivers
Since the problem is related to the driver issue, updating to the latest version will solve the problem. The AMD has released a fix for this in their latest driver version and it has been known to solve these issues for the majority of users. For a lot of users, simply downloading the drivers and installing them won’t work. In order to properly install the new drivers, you will have to uninstall the previous drivers and make sure there isn’t any file left.
Note: Before trying to install the drivers, make sure your anti-virus application is disabled. These security applications are known to cause some issues with the installation process. You can simply right click your anti-virus application icon from the system tray (right bottom corner) and select Disable. If you don’t see any Disable option then simply double click the anti-virus application icon from the system tray and look for the Disable option on that panel. Almost all the major anti-virus applications have an option to disable the application temporarily.
- Click here and download the Display Driver Uninstaller Utility. This utility basically clears up the previous graphic drivers and any of their left over files. This is useful because it makes sure that the newer driver is installed properly. A lot of the times your new driver won’t be installed properly because of the previous version and its conflicting left over files.
- Once done, click here. Select the appropriate settings from the Manually Select Your Driver section and click Display results. Download the drivers suitable for your Windows version. Note: We would advise you not to use their auto detect tool for driver installation. If you want the best results, download the drivers manually.
- Now, we will empty the contents of the AMD folder found in the C drive. Hold Windows key and press R
- Type C:\AMD and press Enter
- Hold CTRL key and press A (this will select all the files)
- Press the Delete key and confirm any additional prompts
- Now, it’s time to turn off Windows updates. This is to prevent Windows from downloading and installing the graphic drivers automatically. If your Windows is set to automatic then it might automatically download the graphics drivers. Turning Windows update off for a while will prevent this from happening.
- Hold Windows key and press R
- Type services.msc and press Enter
- Locate and double click Windows Update
- Select Disabled from the drop down menu in Startup Type
- Click Stop button if the Service Status isn’t set to Stopped
- Click Apply then select Ok
- If you are a Windows 7 or 8 user, make sure your Windows are up to date. To download and install the Windows updates, follow the steps given below
- Hold Windows key and press R
- Type control panel and press Enter
- Select Small icons from the drop down menu in front of View By
- Click Windows update
- Select Check for updates
- Hold Windows key and press R
- Type appwiz.cpl and press Enter
- Locate the AMD Software and select it
- Click Uninstall and follow any additional on-screen instructions. Make sure you uninstall everything
- Now we will log in to Safe Mode to run the Display Driver Uninstaller.
- Hold Windows key and press R
- Type msconfig and press Enter
- Select Boot tab
- Check the option Safe Boot in the Boot options section
- Select the option Minimal under the Safe Boot option
- Click Ok
- Windows will ask you to restart. Click Restart
- Once the system reboots, you will be in Safe Mode. Run the Display Driver Uninstaller file
- Select AMD from the drop down menu and click the Clean and Restart (Highly Recommended)
- Let Display Driver Uninstaller do its job. When it’s done, you PC will restart.
- Run the AMD drivers (that you downloaded earlier) once the system restarts. Follow the on-screen instructions to install the drivers
- When the drivers are installed, you need to turn off the Safe Mode option. Hold Windows key and press R
- Type msconfig and press Enter
- Select Boot tab
- Uncheck the option Safe Boot in the Boot options section
- Click Ok
- Windows will ask you to restart. Click Restart
You should be good to go once the system reboots. You will have a clean installation of the new drivers.
Method 2: End Cnext.exe Process
This isn’t a solution but a workaround to the APPCRASH issue. If none of the above mentioned methods worked for you then you can use this workaround until your problem is resolved. Simply terminating the cnext.exe process from the Task Manager won’t create the APPCRASH error while turning off your system.
Here are the steps for terminating the cnext.exe
- Press and hold CTRL, SHIFT, and Esc keys (CTRL + SHIFT + Esc)
- Locate Cnext.exe and select it
- Click End Task
Once the cnext.exe is ended, turn off your computer. This will prevent the error message from popping up whenever you try to turn off your computer.
Method 3: Change Cnext.exe Properties
Making some changes in the Cnext.exe properties has helped plenty of users to get rid of this issue as well. So, here are the steps for changing the properties of Cnext.exe
- Hold Windows key and press R
- Type C:\Program Files and press Enter. Note: Replace Program Files with (or Program Files (x86)) if you cant find the folder in Program Files
- Locate and double click Cnext folder
- Right click the cnext.exe and select Properties
- Select Security Tab
- Click Edit button
- Select Users from the Group or user names: section
- Check all the boxes in the Allow column in Permission for Users section
- Repeat steps 7 and 8 for Administrators as well
- Click Apply then select Ok
Reboot and check if the problem persists.
Kevin Arrows
Kevin Arrows is a highly experienced and knowledgeable technology specialist with over a decade of industry experience. He holds a Microsoft Certified Technology Specialist (MCTS) certification and has a deep passion for staying up-to-date on the latest tech developments. Kevin has written extensively on a wide range of tech-related topics, showcasing his expertise and knowledge in areas such as software development, cybersecurity, and cloud computing. His contributions to the tech field have been widely recognized and respected by his peers, and he is highly regarded for his ability to explain complex technical concepts in a clear and concise manner.
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Hello everyone!
A week ago i bought a new graphics card: MSI RX 460 OC 4GB.
It was my first AMD card for some 10 years since ATi era (never had any trouble with nVidia drivers).
I reinstalled Windows 8.1 64bit. Installed Latest AMD Crimson Edition 16.11.4 Hotfix drivers.
Installed games: Warface and Tomb Rider Survival Mode 2013.
Games keep randomly (sometimes after few minutes, sometimes i could play for 45 minutes) crashing out to desktop with the Error: «Radeon Settings: Host Application has stopped working». I could open Task Manager and there i can see at the game: «Not Responding». So i have to re-logon/logout/restart PC to close the non responsive game.
I reinstalled Windows 8.1 64bit again with same Error after starting a game.Someone said i should try Win7 and i installed Windows 7 64bit, installed .NET Framework, graphic drivers 16.11.4 Hotfix for Win7 64 bit and… Same «Radeon Settings: Host Application has stopped working» Error.
Radeon drivers even crashed few times when just surfing on internet or plain desktop.My PC:
CPU: Intel C2D e4300 @3.0GHz
Mobo: Gigabyte GA-965P-DS3 (Rev. 3.3) with latest F14 BIOS
Graphic Card: MSI RX 460 OC 4GB
RAM: 3×1 GB DDR2 800 Transcend
HD: Hitachi Deskstar 5K3000 2 TB, 32MB Cache
Power: Chieftec CTB-650S PSUCan someone Please Help :question:
Thank You for reading this!
P.S.
Couldn’t upload screenshots from my PC here… -
Your cpu is probably a bottleneck for the 460.
The Gigabyte GA-965P-DS3 might only have PCI-E x16 1.1. The 460 might just not like running in a pci-e 1.1 (in theory it should be backward compatible but well…) .
The latest bios available for the MB is 7 years old. Doubt someone has actually tested how a GPU pci-e 3.0 is running on it. I also doubt you will see a new bios for the MB.
You can try to see if it does the same with older drivers (the drivers that came with the gpu for example).
If nothing changes. See if it does the same in another pc (a friend or something, hopefully someone with a MB that has pci-e 2.0 or 3.0). If it works fine in another pc, see if it does the same with another PSU (ask someone to lend you a psu to check). If it keep freezing in another pc also, no matter what drivers you use, you will probably have to RMA it.L.E.: What GPU you had before?
L.E. 2: Your cpu was released in ’06. 10 years is a lot of time. Ofc you can still use it but changing only the gpu will not make miracles. If you wanted to upgrade a new cpu, mb and ram would had been a better option. Depending on what your old gpu was you could had use that or the integrated gpu from you new cpu.
Last edited by a moderator: Nov 29, 2016
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1.Enter in AMD folder (on drive C) Driver name\Packages\Apps\CN\CNext\cnext64 and uninstall the Radeon settings.
Install Driver name\Packages\Apps\CN\CNext\cnext.2.If this not work enter in C:\Program Files\AMD\CNext\CNext and set Radeon Settings.exe to run as admin (in Compatibility tab).
3.Maybe your Antivirus (if you have one) block the Radeon settings app.
4.Install from Driver name\Packages\Apps\VC12RTx64\vcredist_x64
& \Packages\Apps\VC12RTx86\vcredist_x86
& \Packages\Apps\VC13RTx64\vcredist_x64 every vcredist.But first: install the vcredist x86-x64 packs.
And install from Microsoft the vcredist 2008sp1-2010 x86-x64,for better gaming.Good luck.
Last edited by a moderator: Nov 29, 2016
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@TheDukeSD!
Hello and Thank You very much for the reply!
I agree with all you said cause it’s all common sense and facts. :thumbup:To answer your question «L.E.: What GPU you had before?»:
— old graphic card was ASUS GeForce 8800GT 512MB DDR3Answer to «L.E. 2»:
— the GF8800GT has died after 9 years of use so i had to upgrade the graphic card first. Lately i got a GF8600GTS 256MB from a friend untill i buy the RX460.
Having a PC for so long probably says to you that i have very limited money and can’t upgrade as much as i would love to…
Thank You again!
:cheers: -
@Turanis
Thank You Very much for the Fast reply!
It is a bit too «technical» for my knowledge (as i am a TOTAL nOOb for AMD drivers) but i will give my best to try follow your instructions.I will humbly ask for your Help to explain to dummy me and give further instructions…
1. If i understand correctly i should first install: the «vcredist x86-x64 packs». When i type it in Google i got so many different versions as result. Should i install the latest supported Visual C++ download (or another file/version?). Still have no rights to post a link.
2. Then i install from Microsoft the «vcredist 2008sp1-2010 x86-x64»? I’m also confused cause i get many results in Google. Also i don’t know what it is to be sure what to pick especially cause i see some 2008 and 2010 Visual C++ Redistributable packages. Should i install 2008 or 2010 or both? A link would be helpfull and very appreciated if i’m not asking for too much?
Also as far as i see installed are:
Microsoft Visual C++2005 Redistributable
Microsoft Visual C++2008 Redistributable — x64 9.0.30729.6161
Microsoft Visual C++2008 Redistributable — x86 9.0.30729.6161
Microsoft Visual C++2010 x86 Redistributable — 10.0.40219
Microsoft Visual C++2012 Redistributable (x64) — 11.0.50727
Microsoft Visual C++2012 Redistributable (x86) — 11.0.50727
Microsoft Visual C++2013 Redistributable (x64) — 12.0.3051
Maybe those are what you meant?3. When i go to Enter in AMD folder (on drive C) Driver name\Packages\Apps\CN\CNext\cnext64 it doesn’t look exactly the same — I don’t have the «cnext64.
I have: C:\Program Files\AMD\CNext\CNext\there is a folder/file list but NO cnext64… I do see a «Radeon Settings.exe». So i don’t know how to «Install Driver name\Packages\Apps\CN\CNext\cnext».4. I can and did set «Run as Administator» in the «Compatibility tab» now.
5. Don’t know if ESET nOD32 is blocking the Radeon settings app. Will try to look into it.
6. I found them in «C\AMD\Non-WHQL-Win7-64Bit-Radeon-Software-Crimson-16.11.4-Nov15\Packages\Apps\» but am not sure do i still have to manually install: «Install from Driver name\Packages\Apps\VC12RTx64\vcredist_x64
& \Packages\Apps\VC12RTx86\vcredist_x86
& \Packages\Apps\VC13RTx64\vcredist_x64 every vcredist.» as i do have the Visual C++ packages (mentioned above) installed?Can You maybe, Please, make a list of in what order i have to install what on a new/fresh Windows installation?
Turanis, Thank You VERY much for your time and will to help!
P.S.
Later today i installed Batman — Arkham Origins and Need for Speed — Shift and they run Flawlessly! Another game that crashed (besides Warface) was Tomb Rider Survival Edition 2013. -
As DukeSd says you have a very old platform for gaming,especially that core 2 CPU.But if you dont have the money to change that platform,you can buy an old Quad core Q9xxx (Q9400 to Q9650) and you’ll be ready to rumble.
That RAM is not good,3×1 not good.Better find 2×2 GB DDR2800 for dual channel perf.
vcredist 2008sp1
https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=5582
https://www.microsoft.com/en-US/Download/confirmation.aspx?id=2092vcredist 2010sp1
https://www.microsoft.com/en-ca/download/details.aspx?id=8328
https://www.microsoft.com/en-ca/download/details.aspx?id=13523Install that vcredist 2012-2013 from C\AMD\Non-WHQL-Win7-64Bit-Radeon-Software-Crimson-16.11.4-Nov15\Packages\Apps\ (if they are not already installed).
Its ok if you have already «C:\Program Files\AMD\CNext\CNext\»,but its good to install better x64 version.
\non-whql-win8.1-64bit-radeon-software-crimson-16.11.4-nov15\Packages\Apps\CN\CNext\cnext64Tomb Raider 2013 will crash because you have an old core 2 CPU and you do not have enough RAM for that kind of game.
Get an Quad core Q9xxx & 4GB RAM and you’ll be fine.And install this to clean Windows logs and registry.
http://filehippo.com/download_ccleaner/Intel chipset driver (better to extract that driver with Rar or 7zip and run setup from extracted folder)
https://downloadcenter.intel.com/do…pset-Device-Software-for-Intel-Desktop-BoardsRealtek audio (if you have one)
http://filehippo.com/download_realtek_high_definition_audio_vista_64/Last edited by a moderator: Nov 30, 2016
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@Turanis,
Thank You VERY much!
I admire Your Knowlegde and appreciate the time and will to share it and help! :kind:
I have try to do as you sugested and perhaps i’m still not 100% successful but i have learned and made a (smal but signifficant ) step in the right direction — thanks to your Help.
I do have some success and Warface isn’t crashing often as before (i’m able to play/finish around 3 missions before it crashes). More and more it looks as a software/driver problem…?I see that in the meantime new AMD Crimson 16.11.5 drivers are released so i might (should?) try them out.
Do you have some recommendation/advice about the Operating System: should i change back (from Win7 x64 i’m using now and it seems to work fine) to Win 8.1 x64 or even try Windows 10? For which OS are the Drivers most STABLE? Is there a difference between the Drivers if any?Thank YOU once more Turanis! :thumbup:
:cheers:P.S.
I’m thinking about upgrading (CPU/Mobo/RAM) when AMD ZEN comes out…P.P.S.
I appologize for my poor english… :OLast edited by a moderator: Dec 1, 2016
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Memaxad
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#21
Вчера помогла установка net framework. 4.5.7 вроде (прследняя).
Подкачка не помогла, DEP не помогло, переустановка дров с DDU — отрицательно.
Memaxad
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#22
Оказалось, что не помогло. Сегодня все повторилось. Пошел в журнал событий, выявил где лежит файл radeonsetting.exe. Выставил в свойствах запуск от имени админа и совместимость на win8. Опять стало нормально. Перегружался раз 5 за день, ошибка не возникает.
ZevSua
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#23
Оказалось, что не помогло. Сегодня все повторилось. Пошел в журнал событий, выявил где лежит файл radeonsetting.exe. Выставил в свойствах запуск от имени админа и совместимость на win8. Опять стало нормально. Перегружался раз 5 за день, ошибка не возникает.
А фреймворк и не должен был помочь.. Он нужен только если автор проги (майнера) конкретно об этом заявляет. А иначе нахер.
Я бы на твоем месте винду переустановил.. ну ее нахер с такими траблами.