libprotobuf3.dll is considered a type of Dynamic Link Library (DLL) file. Dynamic Link Library files, like libprotobuf3.dll, are essentially a "guide book" that stores information and instructions for executable (EXE) files - like AppInstaller.exe - to follow. These files were created so that multiple programs (eg. MATLAB) could share the same libprotobuf3.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 libprotobuf3.dll is attempted to be loaded either when MATLAB is starting up, or in some cases already running. Some of the most common libprotobuf3.dll errors include:
- Access Violation at address - libprotobuf3.dll.
- libprotobuf3.dll could not be found.
- Cannot find C:\Program Files\MATLAB\R2019b\bin\win64\libprotobuf3.dll.
- Cannot register libprotobuf3.dll.
- Cannot start MATLAB. A required component is missing: libprotobuf3.dll. Please install MATLAB again.
- Failed to load libprotobuf3.dll.
- The application has failed to start because libprotobuf3.dll was not found.
- The file libprotobuf3.dll is missing or corrupt.
- This application failed to start because libprotobuf3.dll was not found. Re-installing the application may fix this problem.
Your libprotobuf3.dll file could be missing due to accidental deletion, uninstalled as a shared file of another program (shared with MATLAB), or deleted by a malware infection. Furthermore, libprotobuf3.dll file corruption could be caused from a power outage when loading MATLAB, system crash while loading libprotobuf3.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.