0XC0000005

General System Access Violation (STATUS_ACCESS_VIOLATION) Applies to: Windows 7, Windows 10, Windows 11

What it means

A program tried to read or write memory it wasn't allowed to — usually an app bug, but can indicate corrupted files or faulty RAM if it happens across many different apps.

Also seen as: access violation

Quick fix steps

Update the specific app that crashed, or reinstall it.
Run "sfc /scannow" to check for corrupted system files.
If it happens across multiple unrelated apps, run Windows Memory Diagnostic.

For the full step-by-step walkthrough, see An App Keeps Crashing.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does ACCESS_VIOLATION mean a program is trying to do something malicious?

Not usually — it almost always indicates a bug in that specific program (trying to access memory it shouldn't), not malicious intent. It's a common software crash code, not a security alert.

Will reinstalling the affected program fix this?

Often yes, if it's isolated to one specific application — reinstalling replaces whatever corrupted or buggy files were causing the violation.

Other error codes

0X80070005 — Access Denied

A permissions problem — the current user account doesn't have rights to the file, folder, or action being attempted.

0XC0000022 — STATUS_ACCESS_DENIED

A related but technically distinct code from the more common 0x80070005 — this is the NTSTATUS-style access-denied error, most often seen when a program can't open a file, DLL, or registry key it needs at startup, or when Windows activation specifically fails because the Software Protection Service can't start.

0X8007000E — Not Enough Storage / Out of Memory

Despite the wording, this is usually about low disk space rather than RAM — an operation ran out of room to complete.

0XC000021A — STATUS_SYSTEM_PROCESS_TERMINATED

A critical system process (like winlogon.exe or csrss.exe) crashed, usually kicking you to a blue or black screen with this message.