Kernel32.dll is a dynamic link library used by the windows operating system to handle input, output, interrupts and memory management. That means that this file contains all of the programming code that controls your input and out put operations such as reading the input from your keyboard or mouse and writing that output to the screen or a printer, etc. Interrupts are how hardware devices let the CPU know that they want it to do something. For example, every time you press a key on the keyboard, a voltage is placed on an interrupt line that a CPU module monitors waiting for requests. Each device has its own interrupt line. When the CPU sees the request from the keyboard it starts collecting the input, processes it and sends it to the monitor to display.

Memory management involves taking data not being used at the moment from RAM and writing it to the page file located on the hard drive and then taking requested data from the hard drive and putting into RAM where an application can use it.  Obviously, your computer can not function properly if something happens to the kernel32.dll file. Each version of windows uses its own version of the file and they cannot use one designed for another version of windows.

Kernel32.dll Errors

There are several common causes of kernel32.dll errors such as:

Memory

When windows starts, one of the first things it does is load the kernel32,dll file into a protected memory location so it will be available to both the operating system and applications. If a memory module is damaged and the CPU cannot load the file into a protected part of the memory, you will receive a page fault error. A temporary solution is to swap memory modules if you have more than one of them since most protected memory locations are in the first MB of RAM which is always located on the chip inserted in slot 0. If that fixes the problem, you have damaged blocks on the other module. You should replace the damaged memory chip.

Swap File

If your swap file is too small, non-existent, or located on an area of the hard drive with bad blocks, it can cause an error. The solution is to run a utility to mark bad blocks on the hard drive so that the operating system does not use them. Put the swap file on a different partition or replace the hard drive.

Video drivers

Although any bad hardware driver can cause errors, the most common drivers that cause kernel32.dll problems are video drivers. This usually only happens when new drivers are installed or the old file becomes corrupted. Boot the computer in Safe mode which causes it to use VGA display settings and update or replace the video drivers. If you can’t boot to safe mode, use the repair console to replace the driver file.

Over clocking

If you have over clocked your system, consult your motherboard manual and reset the BIOS setting back to the default and see if that fixes the problem. It is possible that a newly installed application cannot use the higher clock speed.

Overheating

Most CPUs have safety features that will shut down the CPU if it reaches a critical temperature to prevent it from getting fried. However, the operating system can experience failures such as a kerner32.dll error when the system is running hot. Check you CPU and case cooling fans and make sure they are clean and working properly. Dust tends to accumulate on the fan blades which slows them down and prevents proper cooling.

Graphic Accelerators

Check the manual for your graphics accelerator to see what settings are appropriate and how to trouble shoot it or visit the manufacturer’s website. If it was working properly, there may be a hardware problem. If so, you should replace the graphic accelerator.

Active Desktop

Active desktop can cause all sorts of annoying problems. Most of the time, the operating system will shut it down if there is a problem. I’m sure everybody has seen the white screen with the big triangle asking if you want to restore your active desktop. You can see if this is the problem by disabling all of the features and then re enabling them one at a time to see if one of them is causing the problem.

Registry entries

Corrupted data in the registry can cause the problem. Run a good registry cleaner to correct any problems.  You should run anti virus and anti spyware programs as well since viruses and malware are what frequently causes the registry problems.

Summary

If none of these step work, you may need to reinstall the windows operating system. Just remember to backup all of the files you have created because most of them will be overwritten during the reinstallation.