Error
Technical Issues

Game already running

August 19, 2015 /
Info
Be aware that the error number you get is important in it’s whole length. If you have different code, your issue is different from this one
List with other codes can be found here: Startup Errors
More information about loading errors can be found here: Game won't start

The Sims 4 is already running error has to do with missing rights or blocking of the user folder. The actual message is a bit misleading. In most cases the game isn’t actually already running.

Unable to start: The Sims™ 4 is already running.  

[ed35e0ea:29f00e76:00000000:18a1dd51]

The most common cause for this on Windows is the Controlled Folder Access of Windows Defender blocking the user folder. So try adding Sims 4 as an exception first. If that doesn’t help, proceed to the suggestions below.

Windows now has a lot of security measurements to make sure external programs don’t harm your computer. This can be the reason that the game doesn’t have enough rights to execute a function and it gets blocked.

You can find the files for Sims 4/Origin here

  • <Installation folder>\Game\Bin\TS4_x64.exe
  • <Installation folder>\Game\Bin_LE\TS4.exe
  • c:\programs(x86)\Origin Games\origin.exe (Path can very depending on your installation)
  • C:\Program Files\Electronic Arts\EA Desktop\EA Desktop\EADesktop.exe

If you use a symlink to have the user folder on an external drive, make sure that is plugged in correctly.

  1. Go to this folder: Documents\Electronic Arts
  2. Right click on it and choose “Properties”.
  3. Choose the tab Sharing and and press the button Sharing …
  4. In the new window, choose Everyone from the drop-down list and click Add
  5. Everyone will be added to the list below. Choose Read/write as permission level
  6. Save the changes.
  7. Try to start the game again

Make sure the game is in fact not running by checking the Task-Manager and looking at the processes. Look for The Sims 4, ts4.exe or ts4_64.exe and shot down the process.

If something is corrupt or Origin itself is giving is troubles, try the following steps