I've only had Vista about two weeks and everything was working fine until one night I went to load my Sims 2 game and I got the following error: "WMADMOD.DLL is either not designed to run on Windows or it contains an error. Try installing the program again using the original installation media or contact your system administrator or the software vendor for support." Now I get this error message loading even the basic games that come with Vista, like Mahjongg or the solitaire games. The strange thing is that this happened out of the blue- they were working fine one night, the next they weren't, and I hadn't installed any additional software to cause an error.

I've tried running chkdsk /f, but it was not able to fix the wmadmod.dll file. I also read about re-registering the .dll files, and I used the regsvr32 command, but I got an error message back for that, so I'm not even sure if I did it right. Thanks for any help!

There are several possible reasons for that error, and this list is by no means exhaustive:

- The DLLs really are damaged, on-disk, perhaps because the disk itself is dying. CHKDSK should at least reveal multiple errors, even if it can't fix them.

- The DLLs are damaged, but the corruption is logical, not physical. Virus infection and/or removal can sometimes produce that effect. In order to be viable as an executable, a DLL's structure must follow some very strict rules. If a virus grafts itself onto the DLL inexpertly, or if it's subsequently removed (by the AV) in a desctructive fashion, the DLL can be left in a damaged state.

- DLLs themselves are perfectly OK, but there's something running on the machine which is interfering with the loading process and making the resultant in-memory image look corrupted. This is usually more common to poorly written AV than poorly written viruses.

I'd suggest testing what happens in safe mode and doing system restores/repairs if necessary.

Also, not all DLLs require "registration" (with regsvr32), and not all of them can be registered. Regsvr32 calls an exported function in the DLL called DllRegisterServer. What happens afterwards depends on the contents of the function in any specific DLL's case. DLLs which provide COM objects use DllRegisterServer to install/register in the COM database. Other DLLs do not export DllRegisterServer, and thus using regsvr32 on them will result in a (harmless) error.

thanks for your help. The system is brand new build, so I can't imagine the disk dying. As for viruses, I only have AVG Free on there at the moment, and only had internet on there for a couple days. The only things I recall downloading were Windows & AVG updates and Open Office, and all my AV scans came back clean, except cookies, of course.

I did also run sfc /scannow, and checking the cbs.log, I find "lots of hashes for wmadmod.dll do not match actual file wmadmod.dll", "expected....", "cannot repair member file.." I also got similar messages for ufat.dll.

I'm not very familiar with SafeMode, what kind of things should I be trying/looking for? Thanks again for your help!

Originally Posted by H2SO4

There are several possible reasons for that error, and this list is by no means exhaustive:

- The DLLs really are damaged, on-disk, perhaps because the disk itself is dying. CHKDSK should at least reveal multiple errors, even if it can't fix them.

- The DLLs are damaged, but the corruption is logical, not physical. Virus infection and/or removal can sometimes produce that effect. In order to be viable as an executable, a DLL's structure must follow some very strict rules. If a virus grafts itself onto the DLL inexpertly, or if it's subsequently removed (by the AV) in a desctructive fashion, the DLL can be left in a damaged state.

- DLLs themselves are perfectly OK, but there's something running on the machine which is interfering with the loading process and making the resultant in-memory image look corrupted. This is usually more common to poorly written AV than poorly written viruses.

I'd suggest testing what happens in safe mode and doing system restores/repairs if necessary.

Also, not all DLLs require "registration" (with regsvr32), and not all of them can be registered. Regsvr32 calls an exported function in the DLL called DllRegisterServer. What happens afterwards depends on the contents of the function in any specific DLL's case. DLLs which provide COM objects use DllRegisterServer to install/register in the COM database. Other DLLs do not export DllRegisterServer, and thus using regsvr32 on them will result in a (harmless) error.

Originally Posted by shanas

thanks for your help. The system is brand new build, so I can't imagine the disk dying. As for viruses, I only have AVG Free on there at the moment, and only had internet on there for a couple days. The only things I recall downloading were Windows & AVG updates and Open Office, and all my AV scans came back clean, except cookies, of course.

I did also run sfc /scannow, and checking the cbs.log, I find "lots of hashes for wmadmod.dll do not match actual file wmadmod.dll", "expected....", "cannot repair member file.." I also got similar messages for ufat.dll.

I'm not very familiar with SafeMode, what kind of things should I be trying/looking for? Thanks again for your help!

What does running CHKDSK /R tell you about the disk? (It will take some time.)

The fact that the system is new does make hardware breakdowns less likely, but unfortunately it does not rule them out. CHKDSK /R should give you a good indication of whether there is anything to worry about on that level.

The point of safe mode is purely to test whether the same errors occur without AVG and any other security utilities - they don't normally run in safe mode.

Looking at wmadmod.dll a bit more closely, it does actually export a DllRegisterServer and a few other functions too, including DllUnregisterServer. If "regsvr32 /u wmadmod.dll" and "regsvr32 wmadmod.dll" fails in safe mode too, what are the exact error messages?

Originally Posted by H2SO4

What does running CHKDSK /R tell you about the disk? (It will take some time.)

The fact that the system is new does make hardware breakdowns less likely, but unfortunately it does not rule them out. CHKDSK /R should give you a good indication of whether there is anything to worry about on that level.

The point of safe mode is purely to test whether the same errors occur without AVG and any other security utilities - they don't normally run in safe mode.

Looking at wmadmod.dll a bit more closely, it does actually export a DllRegisterServer and a few other functions too, including DllUnregisterServer. If "regsvr32 /u wmadmod.dll" and "regsvr32 wmadmod.dll" fails in safe mode too, what are the exact error messages?

Running CHKDSK in Safe Mode doesn't come back with any problems- 0 bad files processed. "regsvr32 /u wmadmod.dll" and "regsvr32 wmadmod..dll" return the same error "The module "wmadmod.dll" may not compatible with the version of Windows that you're running. Check if the module is compatible with an x86 (32-bit) or x64 (64-bit) version of regsvr32.exe."

If I run both commands in the syswow64 folder "C:\Windows\SysWOW64>regsvr32 c:\windows\system32\wmadmod.dll" then they both succeed, but it doesn't help. If I try to run the games that come with vista, like Mahjong or solitaire, I still get the error message I printed in my first post. It will give the same error message repeatadly, load the program, then it crashes. My Sims game will go through the entire load sequence, then crash- before I got the same error message, now I get no message, just a crash.

Originally Posted by shanas

Running CHKDSK in Safe Mode doesn't come back with any problems- 0 bad files processed. "regsvr32 /u wmadmod.dll" and "regsvr32 wmadmod..dll" return the same error "The module "wmadmod.dll" may not compatible with the version of Windows that you're running. Check if the module is compatible with an x86 (32-bit) or x64 (64-bit) version of regsvr32.exe."

If I run both commands in the syswow64 folder "C:\Windows\SysWOW64>regsvr32 c:\windows\system32\wmadmod.dll" then they both succeed, but it doesn't help. If I try to run the games that come with vista, like Mahjong or solitaire, I still get the error message I printed in my first post. It will give the same error message repeatadly, load the program, then it crashes. My Sims game will go through the entire load sequence, then crash- before I got the same error message, now I get no message, just a crash.

OK, so the 64-bit version of wmadmod.dll is damaged on your machine, but the 32-bit one is fine. Since Solitaire and Mahjong are 64-bit processes (on 64-bit Vista), they rely on 64-bit DLLs.

Wmadmod.dll is updated by SP1, so you could try reapplying SP1 to fix the corruption issue. Alternatively, you could EXPAND it off the Vista CD (run EXPAND /? to see the syntax), but then you'd have to reapply SP1 anyway.

Originally Posted by H2SO4

OK, so the 64-bit version of wmadmod.dll is damaged on your machine, but the 32-bit one is fine. Since Solitaire and Mahjong are 64-bit processes (on 64-bit Vista), they rely on 64-bit DLLs.

Wmadmod.dll is updated by SP1, so you could try reapplying SP1 to fix the corruption issue. Alternatively, you could EXPAND it off the Vista CD (run EXPAND /? to see the syntax), but then you'd have to reapply SP1 anyway.

Ok, I know from the system information in the control panel that I am running service pack 1, yet when I check the Installed Updates, I don't see SP1 listed- just a long list of updates installed individually (thru Windows Update). Am I wrong thinking that I have to uninstall SP1 before I reapply it? I downloaded it from microsoft and tried to run it, but I only get the UAC warning, then I click Allow and nothing further happens, so I assumed I had to uninstall first, then reinstall the pack. I have *no* idea what it even means to expand off the Vista CD, so I'd like to try to figure out this way first before making a go of the CD.

PS- I'm sorry if I'm being dense, I'm trying to solve this while juggling finals, work and kids so not much sleep and I'm getting a little bit more easily confused than normal.

You have to extract wmadmod.dll from Vista DVD and replace currupted file by using WAIK

Access Vista Install DVD Files

or just simply:use 7-zip to unpack Install.wim and extract required file.

I have *no* idea what it even means to expand off the Vista CD

I also don't understand this.All files are in Install.wim image.EXPAND command is for only MS *.cab files and in Vista (unlike in XP) is almost unuseful for users.Only systems components for example Windows Update requires this tool.

Originally Posted by Flavius

You have to extract wmadmod.dll from Vista DVD and replace currupted file by using WAIK

Access Vista Install DVD Files

or just simply:use 7-zip to unpack Install.wim and extract required file.

I have *no* idea what it even means to expand off the Vista CD

I also don't understand this.All files are in Install.wim image.EXPAND command is for only MS *.cab files and in Vista (unlike in XP) is almost unuseful for users.Only systems components for example Windows Update requires this tool.

The last time I expanded a file off a Windows CD was in the late 90s

To the OP: what Flavius said. The aim is to end up with a fresh copy of 64-bit wmadmod.dll on your hard drive. Also, you don't need to uninstall SP1 in order to reapply it, but the fact that it's failing to apply is worrying.

Originally Posted by Flavius

You have to extract wmadmod.dll from Vista DVD and replace currupted file by using WAIK

Access Vista Install DVD Files

or just simply:use 7-zip to unpack Install.wim and extract required file.

That seems to have done the trick! The Microsoft games play without any problem, but the Sims wouldn't play until I ran as Administrator for whatever reason. Thanks very much to both of you for all your help.