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If the Riot Client shows VALORANT downloading at 0.1 KB/s, do not assume your internet has completely failed. The client can briefly stop transferring data while it unpacks, verifies, or writes patch files; community reports describe normal disk activity during these pauses, although Riot does not document 0.1 KB/s as a guaranteed patching state.

First check Task Manager. If Riot Client is using disk or CPU time and the percentage occasionally moves, leave it running. If network, disk, CPU, and progress all remain unchanged—or the client is unresponsive—work through the five fixes below in order. They start with reversible checks and leave reinstalling for last.

Quick diagnosis before changing anything

  1. Open Task Manager with Ctrl + Shift + Esc.
  2. On Processes or Performance, watch Riot Client, VALORANT, and the drive where the game is installed.
  3. High disk activity, CPU use, or occasional percentage changes usually indicate local patching rather than a dead download. There is no universal waiting time: patch size, drive speed, antivirus scanning, and Riot server load vary.
  4. If all activity and progress stay flat for a prolonged period, begin the fixes below. Do not delete game files immediately.

1. Check Riot service status and allow local patching to finish

Open the Riot Games Service Status page, select your region, and check VALORANT incidents. If Riot reports an outage, repeated reinstalls will not help; wait and monitor the incident. A green status page only makes a broad platform outage less likely—it does not rule out an ISP route, DNS failure, firewall block, or a damaged local installation.

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When the status page is clear, keep the client open while Task Manager shows disk activity. The speed label may be nearly zero while files are being decompressed, verified, or written. Treat this as an observation-based possibility, not a guaranteed explanation for every 0.1 KB/s reading.

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2. Restart Riot Client, Windows, and competing downloads

Other software can compete for bandwidth or disk resources, but it is only one possible cause.

  1. Pause the VALORANT update if the client offers a pause button.
  2. Exit Riot Client from the system tray. After it closes, use Task Manager to end leftover Riot Client processes if necessary.
  3. Pause Steam, Epic Games, Microsoft Store, Battle.net, browser downloads, streaming, and OneDrive, Google Drive, Dropbox, or similar sync jobs.
  4. Close third-party game boosters or network-optimization tools.
  5. Restart Windows, reopen Riot Client, and resume the update.

Riot’s troubleshooting guidance also supports a clean startup when background services interfere. Do not make Run this program as an administrator a permanent setting; Riot’s administrator instructions apply to certain reinstall or dependency scenarios, and another Riot article says not to leave the game executable configured to always run as administrator.

3. Check firewall and antivirus permissions

A firewall or security product can block Riot Client, VALORANT, or Vanguard from reaching update services.

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  1. Open Windows Security.
  2. Choose Firewall & network protection, then Allow an app through firewall.
  3. Select Change settings and allow Riot Client on the network profiles appropriate to your setup.
  4. Resume the update.

If the problem continues and you use third-party antivirus, temporarily disable only its web or network shield as a diagnostic test. Re-enable protection immediately afterward. If the update works only while protection is disabled, configure an exception using the actual Riot/VALORANT installation location; paths differ between installations. Never leave Windows security disabled or download random “firewall fix” files.

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4. Reset the network path: VPN, proxy, router, DNS

Riot recommends checking the connection, avoiding VPN/proxy interference, trying Ethernet, renewing the IP address, flushing DNS, and—when necessary—testing public DNS.

  1. Disconnect from any VPN.
  2. Go to Settings → Network & internet → Proxy and disable a manually configured proxy.
  3. Restart the router and PC.
  4. Try wired Ethernet instead of Wi‑Fi, if available.
  5. In Command Prompt, run:
ipconfig /release
ipconfig /renew
ipconfig /flushdns

Restart Windows and test again. You can also briefly try a phone hotspot. If the hotspot works while home Wi‑Fi does not, the router, ISP route, DNS path, or network filtering is more likely than the game itself.

If needed, test public DNS:

  • Google DNS: 8.8.8.8 and 8.8.4.4
  • Cloudflare DNS: 1.1.1.1 and 1.0.0.1

DNS can resolve a routing or name-resolution problem; it cannot increase a congested Riot server’s capacity. Riot notes that some ISPs may not work well with third-party DNS, so return the adapter to automatic DNS if connectivity worsens.

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5. Reinstall VALORANT and Riot Vanguard

Use this only after the previous steps fail or the client repeatedly returns to 0.1 KB/s after every restart. Reinstalling is time-consuming and will not fix a firewall, antivirus, router, or ISP problem.

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  1. Open Windows Add or remove programs.
  2. Uninstall Riot Vanguard.
  3. Uninstall VALORANT.
  4. Confirm both entries are gone, then restart the computer.
  5. Download the installer from the official VALORANT website.
  6. Install VALORANT and allow Vanguard to install. Use Run as administrator only if Riot’s instructions for the specific dependency or anti-cheat error require it.
  7. Restart Windows if prompted and test the client before reinstalling unrelated utilities or security software.

Avoid routine registry edits, manual Vanguard-service removal, deleting random AppData or manifest files, port forwarding, or reinstalling Windows. Riot mentions cache cleanup and reinstalling for particular errors, but those actions are not universal fixes for a 0.1 KB/s display.

Symptom-to-fix guide

What you observe Best next step
Riot status page lists an incident Wait and monitor the regional status page.
Speed fluctuates and disk usage is high Allow local patching to finish; do not cancel immediately.
Every launcher and website is slow Restart the router, test Ethernet, and investigate ISP/DNS issues.
Steam downloads normally but Riot Client does not Check firewall, antivirus, Riot Client, and the Riot route.
Hotspot works but home Wi‑Fi fails Focus on router, ISP, DNS, or network filtering.
The download works only when antivirus is disabled Re-enable protection and configure a narrowly scoped exception.
Repeated restarts and network resets do nothing Perform the clean reinstall, then contact Riot.
The error mentions VAN or Vanguard Use Vanguard-specific Riot support rather than generic download fixes.

Check storage before reinstalling

Confirm free space on both the game’s installation drive and the Windows system drive. A patch may need temporary working space beyond the final update size. A slow, nearly full, or heavily used drive can make the network indicator look idle while files are being written. The available Riot guidance does not establish that an SSD is mandatory, so do not treat SSD ownership as a universal requirement.

When to contact Riot

If a clean reinstall still fails, submit a ticket through Riot Support. Include your Riot ID and region, the patch or version shown, the percentage where it stops, whether disk activity continues, whether other launchers work, results from Ethernet or a hotspot, and your VPN, firewall, and antivirus state. Riot may ask you to collect logs with the Riot Repair Tool.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Why is VALORANT stuck at 0.1 KB/s while Steam works?

Steam working makes a general internet outage less likely. Check Riot status, then investigate Riot Client permissions, antivirus or firewall filtering, DNS, and the specific route to Riot’s servers. Also check whether the VALORANT drive is busy applying the patch.

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Should I leave the update running?

Leave it running while Task Manager shows disk or CPU activity or the percentage occasionally changes. If the client, disk, network, and percentage remain completely unchanged for a prolonged period, start troubleshooting.

Will changing DNS increase VALORANT download speed?

Not usually. DNS may help name resolution or a routing-related failure, but it cannot make a congested server faster. Revert to automatic DNS if your ISP behaves worse with a public provider.

Should I delete Riot Vanguard?

Do not delete Vanguard folders manually as a first step. If ordinary fixes fail, uninstall Vanguard and VALORANT through Windows Add or remove programs, restart, and reinstall using Riot’s instructions.

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Does running Riot Client as administrator fix the problem?

Not as a general rule. Riot’s administrator procedure is for certain reinstall or dependency cases; do not permanently configure the game executable to always run as administrator.

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Do I need to reinstall the whole game?

Only after status, local patching, competing applications, firewall/antivirus, and network checks fail. Reinstalling will not solve an ISP, router, or security-product block.

What if the Riot status page is green?

A green page rules out only a declared broad incident. Regional routing, DNS, firewall, antivirus, storage, account, or installation-specific problems can still affect you.

The Bottom Line

Check disk activity before cancelling, then proceed from status and client restarts to security and network checks. Reinstall VALORANT and Vanguard only when those lower-risk steps fail; if the clean reinstall also stalls, send Riot the symptoms and diagnostic logs.

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