How to Fix NVIDIA Control Panel Not Opening Issue on Windows PC

Last updated on April 8th, 2024 at 10:42 pm

If you are an NVIDIA GPU user, then you know how important NVIDIA’s control panel is in adjusting settings, managing displays, and optimizing overall device performance. But what if it stops working or somehow not opening? The situation becomes really chaotic, especially if you frequently use it.

You can fix it by running it using admin rights, installing the Microsoft Visual C++ Redistributable package, or using the Windows registry option.

However, there are possibilities that you may not be familiar with how these things can be performed. Don’t worry! I’ll help you resolve the Nvidia control panel not opening an issue on your Windows 11 PC.

Contents

What is the NVIDIA Control Panel?

Basically, this is a software tool that is made for users to control the Nvidia GPUs that are installed on their Windows-based PC. This tool helps you with various configurations and settings that are related to NVIDIA graphics cards along with associated hardware components. Not just that you can also change display settings and video playback preferences using the control panel.

Why Is the NVIDIA Control Panel Not Opening?

It is always easy for you to troubleshoot the problems with your NVIDIA control panel when you know what are the main reason behind the issue. Here are some possible reasons why you are getting this issue:

Outdated GPU driver.
Background running applications.
Lack of permissions.
Faulty or missing system files.
Nvidia’s Display Container Process prevents it from launching.

Fix NVIDIA Control Panel Not Opening Issue on Windows PC

Here are some troubleshooting fixes that will help you resolve the NVIDIA Control Panel not opening or working problem on Windows 10/11 PC:

Fix 1: Disable NVIDIA Display Container Process

There are many possibilities that the main culprit behind this problem for you is NVIDIA’s other processes in the Task Manager, which you can resolve by disabling. So, to stop them, perform these steps:

Using Ctrl + Shift + Esc, open Task Manager.
Right-click the NVIDIADisplay Container process and select End Task.

Fix 2: Disable the Antivirus Temporarily

Sometimes, Windows real-time protection comes up as the main culprit behind why the Nvidia control panel is not working on your Windows 11 PC. Thus,m you must try disabling the real-time protection on your device to troubleshoot this:

In the Start menu, type security, and then click Windows Security.
Choose Virus & Threat Protection.
When you don’t have a third-party antivirus, you can now turn off Windows Defender protection. In that case, you can select the Open app option and disable your antivirus.

Fix 3: Make Sure That The Necessary Services Are Running

If there is an excess number of services running in the background and you accidentally disabled the needy one, then the chances are high that you may find that the NVIDIA Control Panel is not working on your Windows PC.

To fix this, you must have to make sure that the necessary services are running using these steps:

You can check if the NVIDIA Control Panel not opening error occurs just because it doesn’t have the necessary services running or not using the steps mentioned below:

Use the Windows key + R to open services.msc. Once you’ve done this, press Enter or click OK.
Using the Services window, right-click NVIDIADisplay Container LS and select Properties.
To start the service, set the Startup type to Automatic and click the Start button. Thereafter, to save your changes, click Apply and OK.
Ensure that NVIDIA Network Service Container is running by setting its Startup type to Automatic.

Fix 4: Run the NVIDIA Control Panel as an Administrator

Running the NVIDIA Control Panel using admin rights may also help you resolve this particular problem. To do so, simply click on the “Search” button in the Taskbar and type “NVIDIA control panel” into the search box. Click on “Run as Administrator.”

Fix 5: Start (or Restart) the NVIDIA Display Container Service

If you have disabled the NVIDIA Display Container service on your device, then I personally recommend you enable it. Many users reported that this helped them fix the NVIDIA control panel issue that was not working on the Reddit forum community. So, to make sure that these services are working, you must check the following:

From the file search box, search for Services and select to run it.
Double-click NVIDIA Display Container LS.
If you have another Startup menu setting, select Automatic.
To restart the service, select Start (in the properties window).
To save the settings, click Apply.
Click OK to exit the NVIDIA Display Container LS Properties window.
You will need to repeat steps three through seven for the NVIDIA LocalSystem and NetworkService Container services.

Fix 6: Install Missing Visual C++ Redistribute Packages

There are many reports on Reddit that when they try installing the Visual C++ redistribute packages again on their Windows PC, they are able to resolve this problem. So, depending upon your PC, you may need to update your Visual C++ Packages to solve the NVIDIA Control Panel not working issue using these steps:

Go to the Microsoft Visual C++ download page in your browser.
For Visual Studio 2015, 2017, 2019, and 2022 packs, click on the X64 link.
Once you have downloaded VC_redist.arm64.exe (Visual C++ installer), double-click it.
Install the software.

Fix 7: Clean Install NVIDIA Graphic Driver

If you are still in the same boat, then possibly your GPU driver files may be corrupted or missing, due to which you are having this problem. Thus, I would recommend you try a clean installation of your NVIDIA GPU driver. But, before that, you have to remove all traces of your old problematic driver. After that, when your old driver files are removed, you can be good to go with a fresh installation. To do this:

Fix 8: Edit the Windows Registry

The last option that I have for you to resolve this problem is to edit the Registry Editor. But before you start performing the below steps, you must make a backup of your Windows Registry to avoid any further problems.

Here are the steps you need to follow to apply this fix:

Using the Win + R keyboard shortcut, type regedit in the Run dialog and click OK to open Registry Editor.
Enter the following key location in the registry address bar and hit Return: Computer\HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\Directory\background\shellex\ContextMenuHandlers
Right-click NvCplDesktopContext and select Delete.
You must select Yes to delete NvCplDesktopContext.
Enter the following path instead of the current one: Computer\HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Directory\Background\shell
To create a new Shell, right-click the Shell and select New.
In Shell, click Key to add a new subkey.
To name the new key, type Nvidia Control Panel.
After that, right-click on the Nvidia Control Panel subkey and choose the New and Key options from the context menu.
For the subkey’s title, enter the command.
Using the command selection tool, select its (Default) string and double-click it.
In the Value data box, enter the following path: C:\Windows\System32\nvcplui.exe
To save the string value, click OK.
Select Restart now to restart your Windows 11/10 computer and check whether the NVIDIA Control panel not open error gets resolved or not.

How to Update the NVIDIA Control Panel?

You can easily update your NVIDIA Control Panel. To do so, go to the NVIDIA Control Panel and select the “Help” tab at the top to check for updates. You can select “Check for Updates” from there, and the program will automatically look for and install any updates.

Also Read:

So, that’s all we have for you on how to fix the NVIDIA Control Panel not opening problem. It’s our hope that this guide has helped you. If you need additional information, please comment below.

How to Fix NVIDIA Control Panel Not Opening Issue on Windows PC

What is the NVIDIA Control Panel?

Why Is the NVIDIA Control Panel Not Opening?

Fix NVIDIA Control Panel Not Opening Issue on Windows PC