Here’s a quick guide to fix the error “VirtualBox Needs Microsoft Visual C++ 2019 Redistributable Package”.
Oracle’s VirtualBox is a popular virtualization software that helps you create guest virtual machines for Linux distributions in any host system.
Most dependencies are already present in major Linux distributions if you install VirtualBox in Linux.
However, if you are installing it in Windows, you need a few dependencies. One of them is the “Microsoft Visual C++ 2019 Redistributable”.
If you try installing the latest VirtualBox (version 7.0+) in Windows 10 or 11, you might have received the following error.
Table of Contents
Fixing Microsoft Visual C++ 2019 Redistributable Package Error
Why this error?
Some components of the VirtualBox are developed using Microsoft Visual C++ for Windows. Hence the Microsoft Visual C++ 2019 Redistributable Package provides the necessary runtimes to function correctly.
Unfortunately, this package and the runtimes are not part of the default Windows installation.
How to Fix
You need to download the package from the following link to fix this. Select the item under X64 (64-bit) architecture.
Sample image in the above link.
Once downloaded, install the package. This installation requires admin privileges in Windows.
Follow the onscreen instructions and complete the setup.
After the set-up is complete, restart Windows.
And you should be all set.
Closing Notes
Although this article primarily targets the VirtualBox installation, the exact fix can also be used for other use cases for this same error.
Did it solve for you? Do let me know in the comment box.
