"could not find or load the Qt platform plugin "windows" in "",
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@HZMD said in "could not find or load the Qt platform plugin "windows" in "",:
I notice this thread - which I found searching the error msg in Google - just kind of died without coming to a resolution others could follow.
The OP's (@jrmmuller) problem was resolved. In their case, the
%QT_PLUGIN_PATH%variable was hijacked by another program so the variable had to be cleared@KKekana was a different user.
when I tried the "echo %QT_PLUGIN_PATH%" step, it just echoed "%QT_PLUGIN_PATH%" on it's own line.
This is good. It shows that the
%QT_PLUGIN_PATH%variable has not been hijacked by another program. It means the root cause of your problem is different from the OP.I'm having the same issue with several programs. I'm not sure what I installed that did the damage, but I suspect it might be drivers for a pen display.
Do all of these programs use Qt? Does the pen display driver use Qt?
Also, how did you install Krita? Does uninstalling + reinstalling it help?
The following big list is what was in the output.
2 things stood out to me:
- qwindows.dll is missing. Can you see if it's on your system somewhere? I'd expect it to be at C:\Program Files\Krita (x64)\bin\platforms\qwindows.dll (unless Krita's developers did something different)
- Krita is loading DLLs from C:\Program Files (x86)\Stardock\ -- is this expected? What happens if you temporarily rename the Stardock folder; does Krita load properly then?
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Do all of them use Qt? - I'm not sure, and I'm not sure how to find out.
How did I install Krita? - It would be non-helpful if I said "in the normal way" wouldn't it? I'm definitely not a proper programmer, though I'm "programmer adjacent" in some aspects of my work, learning enough from programmers to describe it to non-programmers in pictures. Anyway, I downloaded an executable installer from Krita.org and let it do its thing. Is that the right information?
Does uninstalling and reinstalling help? - On the others I have encountered this problem with, it has. I haven't done Krita yet, because I was hoping to find the original culprit, and thought there might be clues.
qwindows.dll is missing - Hey, I think Krita uses Qt! I found qwindows.dll in C:\Program Piles\Krita (x64)\bin\platforms
Using that newfound knowledge, I looked for it in Autodesk Sketchbook and MediBang Pro (other programs this has happened with) and found it in C:\Program Files\Autodesk\Sketchbook\platforms and C:\Program Files\Medibang\Medibang Paint Pro\platforms
I also looked for "qwindows" in the "program files" and "program files (x86) folders and found it in the folders of:
- MeshLab (Same error when I try to launch it - that means it's not the culprit, right?)
- Logitech Gaming Software (I use a gaming mouse because it has lots of assignable buttons)
- Hamstersoft ZIP Archiver (which is Russian and scary as hell, but does a really good job)
- Allgorithmic Substance painter, Substance Designer, and Substance Player
- Several Photoshop plugins by Alien Skin (iirc, that may have been the first thing that threw this error, but they've been reinstalled)
- Autodesk Mudbox
- Adobe Bridge
- Explorer actually crashed once while doing this, and it still claims to be searching the program files folder - I'll come back and edit this with any others it finds, or that it finds in Program Files (x86)
I did not find qwindows in the folder of the pen display driver / control software I suspected of having monkeyed things up. Am I right in thinking that means that driver / control software is innocent? With no more evidence than I had before, I now suspect Logitech. I'm sure this is how witch trials get started. ;)
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Logitech suffers the same error on reboot, when it's executable "LCore" can't find the windows (qwindows?) platform plugin that is, in fact, in the platform folder. So I guess they're innocent, too, right?
The other question asked - if it was expected for Krita to access Stardock - I guess so? Stardock makes Windows modification software, to change the look and behaviors of windows, menus, the desktop, icons, etc. So I guess Krita is getting instructions for things like menu animations.
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@HZMD said in "could not find or load the Qt platform plugin "windows" in "",:
Do all of them use Qt? - I'm not sure, and I'm not sure how to find out.
In general, you check for the presence of Qt DLLs (Qt5Core.dll, qwindows.dll) in the program's folders.
How did I install Krita? - It would be non-helpful if I said "in the normal way" wouldn't it? I'm definitely not a proper programmer, though I'm "programmer adjacent" in some aspects of my work, learning enough from programmers to describe it to non-programmers in pictures. Anyway, I downloaded an executable installer from Krita.org and let it do its thing. Is that the right information?
Yes, that's the right information :) Other possible ways to install Krita include "compile it from source".
Anyway, since you used the "normal way", that rules out the possibility of the error being caused by incorrect installation/compilation/deployment
Does uninstalling and reinstalling help? - On the others I have encountered this problem with, it has. I haven't done Krita yet, because I was hoping to find the original culprit, and thought there might be clues.
From the symptoms you've described and the ListDLLs output you posted, I can't see an easy way to find the root culprit, unfortunately.
The easiest thing to do might be to reinstall the affected software and move on with your life.
One other thing you could try: If you create a new user account on your PC, does that account manage to run the affected programs normally? If it does, that means something has gone wrong in your current Windows account itself. (I can't explain how though)
qwindows.dll is missing - Hey, I think Krita uses Qt! I found qwindows.dll in C:\Program Piles\Krita (x64)\bin\platforms
Using that newfound knowledge, I looked for it in...
...I'll come back and edit this with any others it finds, or that it finds in Program Files (x86)
That's OK, you don't have to give us a comprehensive list.
I asked about other Qt-based software because sometimes, problems occur when a piece of Qt-based software adds itself to the system-wide PATH (or QT_PLUGIN_PATH). This can cause other Qt-based software to load the wrong version of Qt DLLs.
However, given that you can repair individual programs by re-installing them, that probably means your problem is caused by something else.
I did not find qwindows in the folder of the pen display driver / control software I suspected of having monkeyed things up. Am I right in thinking that means that driver / control software is innocent? With no more evidence than I had before, I now suspect Logitech. I'm sure this is how witch trials get started. ;)
It is difficult to prove that someone/thing didn't do it.
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@HZMD said in "could not find or load the Qt platform plugin "windows" in "",:
I'm sure this is how witch trials get started. ;)
Double double toil and trouble...
But seriously if you want to find the culprit you have to see if it floats. So measure it against other things that float. Like ducks, wood, and tiny tiny pebbles.
(Apologies in advance for my complete disdain for seriousness in this serious topic. Far too much silliness in my post.)
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@JKSH said:
Other possible ways to install Krita include "compile it from source".
I knew that one! Or, I knew that was a thing, in an abstract, not-something-I-know-how-to-do way ;)
@JKSH said:
I can't see an easy way to find the root culprit, unfortunately.
Ah... This gives me a sad. It would be somehow satisfying to be able to say "Ah ha! It's your fault, you little..." but, alas... Moving on is, as you say, the best course of action if that's not possible.
Thank you for your help and patience. :)
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@fcarney said in "could not find or load the Qt platform plugin "windows" in "",:
So measure it against other things that float. Like ducks, wood, and tiny tiny pebbles.
This new learning amazes me... Do you know of a way sheep's bladders may be employed to prevent earthquakes?
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I solved it:
add system environment
QT_QPA_PLATFORM_PLUGIN_PATH
C:\Qt\Qt5.12.2\5.12.2\msvc2017_64\plugins\platforms
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Hi,
That's not a solution. You should not modify your system environment like that.
As already suggested by @JKSH, there might be one of your software that did some funky installation. Check that you don't have rogue .dlls in e.g. the Windows folder.
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