Vulkan-1.dll is an important part of many high-end games such as those from Roboblox and Electronic Arts.
It is almost certainly safe – the main issue users report is ‘Vulkan-1.dll is Missing’ errors appearing.
The following details what the Vulkan Loader does, how to fix ‘Vulkan-1.dll Not Found’ errors and more on whether it is safe.
| Product | Vulkan Runtime |
| Description | Vulkan Loader |
| Filename | vulkan-1.dll |
| Version | 1.2.162.0 |
| MD5 | 0687e83a05c6322efced54fed5e3d4b7 |
| SHA1 | d18a95a4845e35d6f6e0bdd89d6d9a71b0043533 |
| Size | 924.7KB |
Vulkan-1.dll is a library file that plays an important role in authoring and running 3D applications.
It is a vital part of the graphics pipeline and the Vulkan Graphics API. This means it plays a key factor when you are running games, watching videos, or even work on productivity applications.
What Is Vulkan & The Vulkan Graphics API?
Vulkanโข is an open standard and cross-platform graphics API that is compatible with GCN architecture and also supports Windows and Linux.
Vulkan
Vulkan is a high-efficiency cross-platform graphics and compute API for high level games.
Itโs designed to allow your computer to communicate more effectively with modern GPUs, bringing them closer to the metal in order to take maximum advantage of rendering hardware.
In addition, Vulkan is meant for modern platforms like Windows 10 or Linux 4.13+ where multiple graphics APIs are in use simultaneously.
The API consists of two parts: a set of application programming interfaces (APIs) and an interface definition language (vk_api_validation).
Vulkan-1.dll loads the Vulkan Graphics API and so is vital for games using this platform.
Here are some of the games that use the Vulkan platform:
| Game | Developer | Publisher |
|---|---|---|
| Aerofly FS 2 | IPACS | IPACS |
| Quake | id Software | GT Interactive |
| Roblox | Roblox Corporation | Roblox Corporation |
| Dota 2 | Valve Corporation | Valve Corporation |
| GRID Autosport | Codemasters, Feral Interactive | Feral Interactive |
| The Talos Principle | Croteam | Devolver Digital |
| Vainglory | Super Evil Megacorp | Super Evil Megacorp |
| Score! Hero | First Touch Games | First Touch Games |
| Need for Speed: No Limits | Firemonkeys Studios | Electronic Arts |
| Heroes of Incredible Tales | NAT Games | Nexon |
| Dream League Soccer | First Touch Games | First Touch Games |
| Ashes of the Singularity | Oxide Games, Stardock Entertainment | Stardock Entertainment |
| Olympus Rising | Flaregames | Flaregames |
| Doom | id Software | Bethesda Softworks |
| Mad Max | Avalanche Studios, Feral Interactive | Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment, Feral Interactive |
| Galaxy on Fire 3 – Manticore | Deep Silver | Deep Silver |
| War Thunder | Gaijin Entertainment | Gaijin Entertainment |
| Ballistic Overkill | Aquiris Game Studio | Aquiris Game Studio |
| Serious Sam VR: The First Encounter | Croteam VR | Devolver Digital, Croteam |
| Serious Sam VR: The Second Encounter | Croteam VR | Devolver Digital, Croteam |
| ESSENCE | ONEVISION GAMES | ONEVISION GAMES |
| Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War III | Relic Entertainment, Feral Interactive | Sega |
| X Rebirth VR Edition | Egosoft GmbH | Egosoft GmbH |
| nGlide compatible games[26] | Zeus Software | Zeus Software |
| F1 2017 | Codemasters, Feral Interactive | Codemasters |
| Serious Sam VR: The Last Hope | Croteam VR | Devolver Digital, Croteam |
| Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus | MachineGames | Bethesda Softworks |
| Apocalypse: The Game | Harley Game Studios | Harley GW Dolton |
| Breaking Point | ALDERON GAMES | ALDERON GAMES |
| Serious Sam Fusion 2017 | Croteam | Devolver Digital |
| Rise of the Tomb Raider | Crystal Dynamics, Feral Interactive | Square Enix, Feral Interactive |
| Total War Saga: Thrones of Britannia | Creative Assembly, Feral Interactive | Sega, Feral Interactive |
| Escape From Tarkov | Battlestate Games | Battlestate Games |
| Geocore | Anarchy Interactive | Anarchy Interactive |
| Star Citizen | Cloud Imperium Games | Cloud Imperium Games |
| Quake Champions | id Software | Bethesda Softworks |
| DCS World | Eagle Dynamics | The Fighter Collection |
| Astral Crown | X-LEGEND Entertainment | X-LEGEND Entertainment |
| Doom Eternal | id Software | Bethesda Softworks |
What Is Vulkan-1.dll?
Vulkan-1.dll is a dynamic link library for Microsoft Windows.
It can be used to create interactive, three dimensional animations such as games and graphics enhancements in networked environments on the PC platform.
Despite the name, it was not designed to work with the open source Vulkan API that’s being developed for Linux, Mac OS X and other operating systems.
The main function of this dll is to communicate between the application(s) and hardware layers of graphics rendering engines like GPU.
It controls and handles the way a computer can access graphics (displaying data on the screen, according to the user). This dll basically means, no product or application of any kind can be operated without it.
Vulkan-1.dll is usually located in C:\Windows\System32 but sometimes it might be installed into C:\Windows\SysWOW64.
The time duration for which this dll runs in memory is not specified by its developers but it is assumed that it lasts until the process ends.
This dll is not needed to run all applications and must be installed in the system either by default or manually, depending on the product you install.
In order to use Vulkan-1.dll, an application must include the header file named “Vulkan-1.h” in its source code file. The application can access the components available in this library through interface functions called “Vk method”.
What happens when the user loads this dll?
The library will request the graphics driver (in Windows) to load.
Once loaded, the dll will work together with the GPU for graphic rendering. When you use display-intensive applications, this process can take significant time due to its complex structure and algorithm.
Due to that reason, users are not recommended to open multiple applications in order to render something at once. Sometimes it can even be risky to try too hard.
How To Fix Vulkan-1.dll Is Missing Or Not Found Errors
The main Vulkan-1.dll error is when a game requiring the API cannot find the file.
This is usually due to:
| Error Cause | Error Fix |
|---|---|
| The file exists but is being blocked by your Anti Virus software | You can add Vulkan-1.dll to your anti-virus software’s exclusion list. |
| An out of date graphics driver | Run the VulkanRT-Installer.exe file located inside the Display.Driver folder. |
| A broken graphics card | The broken graphics card can only be fixed by installing a new one. |
| User installs a new video card | Run the VulkanRT-Installer.exe file |
| After a Windows update | Run the VulkanRT-Installer.exe file |
Is Vulkan-1.dll Safe?
As we have seen the Vulkan Loader is an important file used by legitimate game developers.
Perhaps the only potential issue is if hackers give their malware payload the same or a similar name to hide the software.
This should, however, be picked up by anti-malware software.
Summary
The Vulkan 1 dll file is the Vulkan Loader which starts the Vulkan Graphics API. This is a graphics platform used by many high-end games.
Should there be an error with Vulkan Loader, many games will not work.
In particular users report ‘Vulkan-1.dll Is Missing’ errors which can usually be fixed by adding the file to your anti-virus software exclusion list and/or re-running the Vulkan installer.
