Fix “Tor exited during startup. This might be due to an error in your torrc file, a bug in Tor”

Fix “Tor exited during startup. This might be due to an error in your torrc file, a bug in Tor”

You might have encountered  the following error during your interaction with the Tor Browser, a browser that anonymizes your traffic during browsing sessions;

Tor exited during startup. This might be due to an error in your torrc file, a bug in Tor or another program on your system, or faulty hardware. Until you fix the underlying problem and restart Tor, Tor Browser will not start

This error has several fixes depending on how the error came to be;

[Method 1:: Using Direct Options]

– Click on the “Restart Tor” button that accompanies the error above inside a floating/pop-up window.

– Close the error window and click on the “Connect” button that also accompanies the error above inside a floating/pop-up window.

[Method 2:: Restart Tor Browser]

– Close the window that holds the error and close the Tor Browser window, then open the application again.

[Method 3:: Disable “Controlled Folder Access”]

In Microsoft Windows, if you have “Controlled Folder Access” turned on, Tor might not be  accessing its dependencies. In this case, you will have to Disable “Controlled Folder Access”, then Quit and Relaunch the Tor Browser. Controlled Folder Access is a feature in Windows Security (previously Windows Defender) to block access to specified locations in a computer.

To access the feature, navigate to;

Windows Security > Virus & threat protection > Virus & threat protection settings > Manage settings > Controlled folder access > Manage Controlled folder access [toggle Off]

Evidence that this can affect can be demonstrated using the screenshot below that shows an error generated by “Controlled folder access” at work, blocking the executable “tor.exe“!

[Method 4:: Restart your Operating System]

At times, you find that a simple Restart (or complete Shutdown then Power On) of your OS will fix the issue, whether on Linux, macOS or Windows. The reason is that, it is possible that there are temporary changes or dependencies’ access problems or deadlocks on processes (or anything else) on files required by Tor Browser. When you exit all processes by doing a restart, the temporary problems no longer exist.

[Method 5:: Edit the “torrc” file]

If none of the above has worked so far, you might want to check permissions and the configuration settings of the “torrc” file, and edit as necessary. This should be among your the very last options!

NOTE:// The torrc file is a very sensitive and important file for Tor Browser. It dictates the behavior of your Tor Browser, and therefore might be the end of your Privacy and Security if MISCONFIGURED. My advice is to NOT EDIT the torrc file unless you are absolutely sure you want to do exactly that to resolve the error discussed here.

Depending on where you installed your Tor Browser in either Linux/Windows/macOS, the location here may change;

Linux:: Tor Browser/Browser/TorBrowser/Data/Tor/torrc
Linux:: /etc/tor/torrc
Linux:: /usr/local/etc/tor/torrc

macOS:: ~/Library/Application Support/TorBrowser-Data/Tor/torrc
macOS:: /opt/homebrew/etc/tor/torrc

Windows:: Tor Browser\Browser\TorBrowser\Data\Tor\torrc

[Method 6:: Uninstall && Reinstall Tor Browser]

This is the last option here, and not much of a fix to the error discussed, but rather a way to avoid the error altogether. Depending on your OS [Linux/Windows/macOS/Android], the procedure to UNINSTALL is different, and so is the procedure to INSTALL. The only common thing for all the OSes is the source (not code, but that as well) of the package. Download Tor Browser on the official Tor Project site::

https://www.torproject.org/download/
http://2gzyxa5ihm7nsggfxnu52rck2vv4rvmdlkiu3zzui5du4xyclen53wid.onion/download/

After successfully fixing the error you should land on your “About Tor” page, following a successful Tor Network connection!

Fix “Tor exited during startup. This might be due to an error in your torrc file, a bug in Tor
Forum [ Tor Browser ] | thetqweb