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DLL custom actionPATCH 2026.10.18

How to Fix Windows Installer Error 1723: “A DLL Required for This Install Could Not Be Run”

By VGSources Team 9 min read

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Windows Installer error 1723 means an MSI package tried to run a DLL-based custom action and Windows Installer could not execute it. It does not identify one universal Windows DLL that you can download. The failure may be in the application’s MSI and custom-action DLL, the permissions or temporary folder used to run it, Windows Installer’s registration, Windows system files, or a missing installer-cache file.

Start by recording whether the error appears during installation, repair, update, or uninstall. Then use a fresh installer from the application vendor, verify elevation and temporary-folder access, re-register Windows Installer, run System File Checker, and collect a verbose log. If only one application fails, the vendor’s package is the leading suspect; if unrelated MSIs fail across the computer, investigate Windows Installer, permissions, and system-file health.

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What error 1723 means

The standard Windows Installer message is:

“There is a problem with this Windows Installer package. A DLL required for this install to complete could not be run. Contact your support personnel or package vendor. Action: [2], entry: [3], library: [4].”

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The bracketed fields identify the custom action, entry point, and library involved in the failure. An MSI package can call a function exported by a DLL to perform work that ordinary installer tables cannot handle. Windows Installer returns 1723 when it cannot execute that action. Microsoft’s Windows Installer documentation also notes that a custom action’s function must actually be exported, so incorrectly authored packages can produce this error even when a DLL file is present.

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That distinction matters: error 1723 is a package/custom-action error, not proof that a single, shared Windows DLL is missing. Downloading an unrelated DLL from a third-party site can make the situation worse because the package expects a particular library, exported function, and version.

Record the failure before changing anything

Write down the details while the dialog is still visible. They determine whether the repair belongs on Windows or with the application vendor.

  • Operation: installation, repair, update, or uninstall.
  • Application and version: include the edition or architecture if the vendor provides separate builds.
  • MSI filename and location: note whether it came from a local folder, removable drive, download, or network share.
  • Action, entry, and library: copy the values shown after “Action,” “entry,” and “library.”
  • Scope: check whether another unrelated MSI fails on the same computer.
  • Windows details: record the Windows version and whether the account is an administrator.

Do not delete the failed installer yet. The filename, path, and exact error text can be needed by the software vendor or support technician.

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Choose the right troubleshooting path

Use the pattern of the failure to decide where to spend time. The table separates a Windows Installer problem from a package-specific problem without assuming that either one is responsible.

Observed signal More useful first path Reason
The same MSI fails on another computer Vendor installer or package repair The repeatable failure travels with the package and its custom action.
Only one application produces 1723 Fresh installer and vendor support A single-package failure points toward that MSI/DLL pair.
Several unrelated MSIs fail Windows Installer registration, permissions, temporary-folder access, and system-file checks A system-wide pattern is more consistent with the installer service or Windows environment.
The original installer is available and the cache is intact Repair or reinstall with that package The package can be supplied again without reconstructing a missing cache entry.
The installer is on a network share Verify account access and, when permitted, test from a trusted local copy The account must be able to read and execute the package and its extracted custom-action files.
The Windows Installer cache entry is missing Application-vendor recovery instructions Cached files are product-specific and cannot safely be copied from another computer.

Manual fixes, in order

1. Obtain a complete, matching installer

Download the current installer again from the application’s own vendor. A damaged download, an incomplete transfer, or an MSI paired with the wrong DLL can cause 1723. If the vendor offers separate installers for different versions, architectures, or editions, choose the one that matches the installed product and Windows system.

Save the new package to a local folder that you can access easily, rather than running a questionable copy from a temporary download location. Keep the old MSI until the new one has been tested. Do not replace the package’s DLL with a file from a generic DLL-download site: the required exported entry point must match the MSI that calls it.

2. Run the operation with appropriate permissions

Sign in with an administrator account or use an elevated installer when your organization’s policy allows it. Right-click the installer, choose Run as administrator, and approve the User Account Control prompt. Elevation does not repair a malformed package, but it rules out a denied write or execution operation.

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If the MSI is on a network share, confirm that the account can read the share and the underlying folder and can execute files from that location. A share permission and a file-system permission can differ. If policy permits, copy the complete installer package to a trusted local folder and test it there; do not copy only the MSI if the vendor supplied companion files that the package expects.

3. Check the temporary directory used by Windows Installer

Windows Installer extracts and runs custom-action files in temporary locations. The installing account must be able to create, read, and execute files in its profile’s temporary directory.

  1. Press Win+R, enter %TEMP%, and press Enter.
  2. Create a small text file in that folder, open it, save a change, and delete it. This checks basic create, read, write, and delete access without changing security settings.
  3. If those operations fail, ask the administrator who manages the computer to correct the account’s permissions. Do not grant Everyone full control as a blanket fix.
  4. Close applications that may lock temporary files, restart Windows, and retry the vendor’s fresh installer.

Some managed environments redirect temporary folders or restrict executable files in them. If the test works for ordinary files but the installer still fails, record the policy or security-software message and include it in the vendor support case rather than weakening the policy.

4. Re-register Windows Installer

Windows Installer can become incorrectly registered even when other Windows services appear normal. Re-register it from an elevated Command Prompt:

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  1. Open Start, type Command Prompt, right-click it, and select Run as administrator.
  2. Run msiexec /unreg.
  3. Run msiexec /regserver.
  4. Restart Windows.
  5. Retry the operation with the fresh installer.

These commands reset the Windows Installer registration; they do not repair the application’s custom-action DLL. If 1723 still occurs for one package after the reset, move to the package-specific steps instead of repeating the commands.

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5. Check Windows system files with System File Checker

Microsoft support guidance recommends System File Checker when damaged Windows files may be affecting installation. In an elevated Command Prompt, run:

sfc /scannow

Let the scan reach 100 percent. Note the result, restart Windows if requested, and retry the vendor’s current installer. This is a diagnostic and repair step for protected Windows files, not a guaranteed fix for a malformed MSI.

6. Create an installer log

A verbose log preserves the action, entry point, path, and return code that the short dialog may omit. If you have a local MSI and are installing or repairing it, run it from an elevated Command Prompt with logging enabled:

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msiexec /i "C:pathpackage.msi" /L*v "%TEMP%1723.log"

Replace the example path with the actual MSI location. For an update or repair, use the operation and package supplied by the vendor; do not change product codes or properties unless the vendor instructs you to. After the failure, open the log in a text editor and search for Return value 3, the action name, the library name, and the entry point shown in the dialog.

Keep the original MSI, the log, and the exact error text together. Installer logs can contain file paths, user names, and configuration values, so review them before posting publicly. Send them through the vendor’s support channel instead.

7. Handle Windows Installer cache problems carefully

Windows Installer normally keeps cached package files in C:WindowsInstaller. Do not delete that folder or its contents to “clean up” error 1723. Cached files are used by repair, update, and uninstall operations.

If the required cache file is already missing, copying a similarly named file from another computer is unsafe because cache files are product-specific. Follow the application vendor’s recovery procedure. Depending on the product, the supported route may be to provide the original installer, reinstall the application, or use a vendor-specific repair utility. In severe cases, recovery can require rebuilding the Windows installation, so obtain a backup and support guidance before making destructive changes.

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8. Escalate a persistent package failure

Contact the application vendor when a fresh matching installer still returns 1723, especially if the same MSI fails on another computer. Include:

  • the exact error text, including action, entry, and library;
  • the application name, product version, and MSI filename;
  • the Windows version and whether the operation was install, repair, update, or uninstall;
  • the verbose installer log;
  • whether the package was run locally or from a network share;
  • the results of msiexec /unreg followed by msiexec /regserver and sfc /scannow.

The vendor may need to correct the DLL custom action, restore an exported entry point, rebuild the MSI, or provide a package-specific cache recovery method. Those are package-authoring or product-support tasks that Windows settings alone cannot reliably solve.

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When error 1723 blocks an uninstall

An uninstall is still an MSI operation, so the same custom-action failure can occur while Windows Installer is removing files or configuration. Do not respond by deleting the application folder manually; that can leave the product registration and installer cache in an inconsistent state and make a later repair harder.

  1. Confirm the application name and installed version in Settings > Apps > Installed apps (or the equivalent Apps view for your Windows edition).
  2. Record whether the uninstall dialog identifies an MSI, action, entry, or library.
  3. Locate the original installer for the same product version, or obtain the vendor’s current recovery package.
  4. Use the vendor’s documented repair or reinstall path to restore the missing custom-action files, then start the uninstall again.
  5. If the cache is missing or the vendor package cannot restore it, stop deleting files and send the vendor the error details and log. The vendor may have a supported removal procedure.

If the uninstall fails only for this application while other MSIs work, treat it as a package-specific case. If multiple products cannot be removed or installed, return to the Windows Installer registration, permission, temporary-folder, and system-file checks above.

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What not to do

  • Do not download a random DLL. A file with the same name may export different functions or belong to a different build.
  • Do not delete C:WindowsInstaller. The cache supports repair, updates, and uninstall.
  • Do not grant broad full-control permissions to temporary folders or installer directories just to make one attempt succeed.
  • Do not assume the dialog proves Windows is missing a shared DLL. The package may be calling an unexported function or an incompatible custom action.
  • Do not remove program files manually when an MSI uninstall fails; preserve the package and cache evidence for supported recovery.

How to know the next step worked

A successful test is the original operation completing without error 1723: the application installs, repairs, updates, or uninstalls fully, and the product appears in the expected Apps list. If the operation reaches a different error, record that new code rather than continuing to apply 1723-specific fixes. If the same action, entry, and library recur after a fresh package, collect the log and escalate it as a vendor package defect or cache-recovery problem.

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DLL custom actionError 1723MSI troubleshootingWindows InstallerWindows repair

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