SmartWare & BackUp won't open in Windows 10

I use a My Passport Ultra and recently upgraded my laptop from Windows 7 to Windows 10. When trying to open WD SmartWare the following error notice appears:

WDSmartWare.exe - Application Error

The application was unable to start correctly (0xc0000e5). Click OK to close the application.

I uninstalled and installed the latest WD SmartWare from the web site and still get the same error.

Also, I installed WD Backup with the same results.

WDAppManager.exe - Application Error

The application was unable to start correctly (0xc0000e5). Click OK to close the application.

Please advise. What needs to be done to get either program working on the new Windows 10 system? Thank you.

Hi, do you have administrative privileges on that computer?

Yes, I do have administrative privileges on this computer.

Same problem different symthom … will not launch using Windows 10 Anniversary edition

We have passed along this information to WD Support.

Thank you, Trancer. I was contacted by the support department. [Deleted[ was knowledgeable and helpful. After thoroughly checking some potential Windows 10 issues, it turns out it was AVG Antivirus preventing it from starting. An exception was created in AVG for wdsmartware.exe and it starts and runs fine now.

Stephen_Slack, disable your antivirus temporarily and see if the WD program works correctly.

Hello …Stephen Slack here …I only have Windows Defender installed as antivirus … I disabled and tried again …resulting in same failure … failure to initiate

Your error sounds a bit different than mine. One other step I took though was to totally uninstall, then install by right-clicking the unzipped file in File Explorer and choosing “run as administrator”. I’m pretty sure Comodo Firewall and AVG Antivirus were both disabled for the installation. Maybe try that as well.

Any updates on this issue.
I have 2 external drives I can no longer use with WD software

I have the same problem. Running WD_SmartWare_Installer_2.4.20.48, Windows 10. Without SmartWare, there’s no way to change/control what’s being backed up and when.

I find that if I create a shorcut to SmartWare on the desktop, and then right-click it, and choose " run as administrator", it will run. This even though I am running with administrator privileges. Strange, but it’s a workable workaround! :slight_smile:

I have the same problem with one exception there is NO error message. When I start WD Smartware the Icon remains on the screen for 3 or 4 seconds and then disappears. I have reinstalled the system several times and I noticed that the problem occurred after I installed WD Utilities. Also WD smartware is not shown in Taskmanager/start-up.

My passport ultra has worked since 2017. Yesterday (11/2022) I updated the latest (Windows 10) WD Drive Utilities and WD Backup. Then just like you, when I clicked on WD Smartware, the icon came up on for a few seconds and then nothing. Have you or anyone else found a solution for that problem. Thank you.