Method 1: Solving the DLL Error by Copying the Ctl3d.dll File to the Windows System Folder 

1. The file you downloaded is a compressed file with the ".zip" extension. In order to install it, first, double-click the ".zip" file and open the file. You will see the file named "Ctl3d.dll" in the window that opens up. This is the file you need to install. Drag this file to the desktop with your mouse's left button.

   

2. Copy the "Ctl3d.dll" file you extracted and paste it into the "C:\Windows\System32" folder.

   

3. If your system is 64 Bit, copy the "Ctl3d.dll" file and paste it into "C:\Windows\sysWOW64" folder.

   NOTE! On 64 Bit systems, you must copy the dll file to both the "sysWOW64" and "System32" folders. In other words, both folders need the "Ctl3d.dll" file.

   

4. First, we must run the Windows Command Prompt as an administrator.

   NOTE! We ran the Command Prompt on Windows 10. If you are using Windows 8.1, Windows 8, Windows 7, Windows Vista or Windows XP, you can use the same methods to run the Command Prompt as an administrator.

   1. Open the Start Menu and type in "cmd", but don't press Enter. Doing this, you will have run a search of your computer through the Start Menu. In other words, typing in "cmd" we did a search for the Command Prompt.
   2. When you see the "Command Prompt" option among the search results, push the "CTRL" + "SHIFT" + "ENTER
   " keys on your keyboard.
   3. A verification window will pop up asking, "Do you want to run the Command Prompt as with administrative permission?" Approve this action by saying, "Yes".

   

5. Paste the command below into the Command Line window that opens and hit the Enter key on your keyboard. This command will delete the Ctl3d.dll file's damaged registry (It will not delete the file you pasted into the System32 folder, but will delete the registry in Regedit. The file you pasted in the System32 folder will not be damaged in any way).

   %windir%\System32\regsvr32.exe /u Ctl3d.dll

   

6. If the Windows you use has 64 Bit architecture, after running the command above, you must run the command below. This command will clean the broken registry of the Ctl3d.dll file from the 64 Bit architecture (The Cleaning process is only with registries in the Windows Registry Editor. In other words, the dll file that we pasted into the SysWoW64 folder will stay as it is).

   %windir%\SysWoW64\regsvr32.exe /u Ctl3d.dll

   

7. We need to make a clean registry for the dll file's registry that we deleted from Regedit (Windows Registry Editor). In order to accomplish this, copy and paste the command below into the Command Line and press Enter key.

   %windir%\System32\regsvr32.exe /i Ctl3d.dll

   

8. If the Windows version you use has 64 Bit architecture, after running the command above, you must run the command below. With this command, you will create a clean registry for the problematic registry of the Ctl3d.dll file that we deleted.

   %windir%\SysWoW64\regsvr32.exe /i Ctl3d.dll

   

9. You may see certain error messages when running the commands from the command line. These errors will not prevent the installation of the Ctl3d.dll file. In other words, the installation will finish, but it may give some errors because of certain incompatibilities. After restarting your computer, to see if the installation was successful or not, try running the software that was giving the dll error again. If you continue to get the errors when running the software after the installation, you can try the 2nd Method as an alternative.

Method 2: Copying The Ctl3d.dll File Into The Software File Folder 

1. First, you need to find the file folder for the software you are receiving the "Ctl3d.dll not found", "Ctl3d.dll is missing" or other similar dll errors. In order to do this, right-click on the shortcut for the software and click the Properties option from the options that come up.

   

2. Open the software's file folder by clicking on the Open File Location button in the Properties window that comes up.

   

3. Copy the Ctl3d.dll file.
4. Paste the dll file you copied into the software's file folder that we just opened.

   

5. When the dll file is moved to the software file folder, it means that the process is completed. Check to see if the problem was solved by running the software giving the error message again. If you are still receiving the error message, you can complete the 3rd Method as an alternative.

Method 3: Uninstalling and Reinstalling the Software that Gives You the Ctl3d.dll Error 

1. Open the Run window by pressing the "Windows" + "R" keys on your keyboard at the same time. Type in the command below into the Run window and push Enter to run it. This command will open the "Programs and Features" window.

   appwiz.cpl

   

2. The Programs and Features window will open up. Find the software that is giving you the dll error in this window that lists all the softwares on your computer and "Right-Click > Uninstall" on this software.

   

3. Uninstall the software from your computer by following the steps that come up and restart your computer.

   

4. 4. After restarting your computer, reinstall the software that was giving you the error.
5. You can solve the error you are expericing with this method. If the dll error is continuing in spite of the solution methods you are using, the source of the problem is the Windows operating system. In order to solve dll errors in Windows you will need to complete the 4th Method and the 5th Method in the list.

Method 4: Solving the Ctl3d.dll Error Using the Windows System File Checker 

1. First, we must run the Windows Command Prompt as an administrator.

   NOTE! We ran the Command Prompt on Windows 10. If you are using Windows 8.1, Windows 8, Windows 7, Windows Vista or Windows XP, you can use the same methods to run the Command Prompt as an administrator.

   1. Open the Start Menu and type in "cmd", but don't press Enter. Doing this, you will have run a search of your computer through the Start Menu. In other words, typing in "cmd" we did a search for the Command Prompt.
   2. When you see the "Command Prompt" option among the search results, push the "CTRL" + "SHIFT" + "ENTER
   " keys on your keyboard.
   3. A verification window will pop up asking, "Do you want to run the Command Prompt as with administrative permission?" Approve this action by saying, "Yes".

   

2. Type the command below into the Command Line page that comes up and run it by pressing Enter on your keyboard.

   sfc /scannow

   

3. The process can take some time depending on your computer and the condition of the errors in the system. Before the process is finished, don't close the command line! When the process is finished, try restarting the software that you are experiencing the errors in after closing the command line.

Method 5: Fixing the Ctl3d.dll Error by Manually Updating Windows 

Some softwares require updated dll files from the operating system. If your operating system is not updated, this requirement is not met and you will receive dll errors. Because of this, updating your operating system may solve the dll errors you are experiencing.

Most of the time, operating systems are automatically updated. However, in some situations, the automatic updates may not work. For situations like this, you may need to check for updates manually.

For every Windows version, the process of manually checking for updates is different. Because of this, we prepared a special guide for each Windows version. You can get our guides to manually check for updates based on the Windows version you use through the links below.

Guides to Manually Update for All Windows Versions 

1. Guide to Manually Update Windows 10
2. Guide to Manually Update Windows 8.1 and Windows 8
3. Guide to Manually Update Windows 7 and Windows Vista
4. Guide to Manually Update Windows XP