DWFShellExtension.dll is considered a type of Dynamic Link Library (DLL) file. Dynamic Link Library files, like DWFShellExtension.dll, are essentially a "guide book" that stores information and instructions for executable (EXE) files - like MpSigStub.exe - to follow. These files were created so that multiple programs (eg. Autodesk DWF Viewer) could share the same DWFShellExtension.dll file, saving valuable memory allocation, therefore making your computer run more efficiently.
Unfortunately, what makes DLL files so convenient and efficient, also makes them extremely vulnerable to problems. If something happens to a shared DLL file, either it goes missing or gets corrupted in some way, it can generate a "runtime" error message. Runtime is pretty self-explanatory; it means that these errors are triggered when DWFShellExtension.dll is attempted to be loaded either when Autodesk DWF Viewer is starting up, or in some cases already running. Some of the most common DWFShellExtension.dll errors include:
- Access Violation at address - DWFShellExtension.dll.
- DWFShellExtension.dll could not be found.
- Cannot find C:\Program Files (x86)\Common Files\Autodesk Shared\DWF Common\DWFShellExtension.dll.
- Cannot register DWFShellExtension.dll.
- Cannot start Autodesk DWF Viewer. A required component is missing: DWFShellExtension.dll. Please install Autodesk DWF Viewer again.
- Failed to load DWFShellExtension.dll.
- The application has failed to start because DWFShellExtension.dll was not found.
- The file DWFShellExtension.dll is missing or corrupt.
- This application failed to start because DWFShellExtension.dll was not found. Re-installing the application may fix this problem.
Your DWFShellExtension.dll file could be missing due to accidental deletion, uninstalled as a shared file of another program (shared with Autodesk DWF Viewer), or deleted by a malware infection. Furthermore, DWFShellExtension.dll file corruption could be caused from a power outage when loading Autodesk DWF Viewer, system crash while loading DWFShellExtension.dll, bad sectors on your storage media (usually your primary hard drive), or quite commonly, a malware infection. Thus, it's critical to make sure your anti-virus is kept up-to-date and scanning regularly.