Kontakt Crashes

1. Enable Full Disk Access

On macOS, Native Instruments products and the audio software they are used with require Full Disk Access in order to function correctly.

Please grant Full Disk Access to all NI apps, NTKDaemon and other audio software (incl. your DAW):

1. Open your Mac's System Preferences and select Security & Privacy.
2. In the Privacy tab, choose Full Disk Access.
3. Click the lock icon in the bottom left of the window and enter your macOS password.
4. Ensure that your desired app appears in the list.
   If it does not appear in this list, click the + icon and add the location of the app from here:
   - Native Access and other audio software: Macintosh HD > Applications
   - Other NI apps: Macintosh HD > Applications > Native instruments
5. Once completed, click the lock icon again.
   
   

   Note: the look of the Full Disk settings can vary depending on your macOS version.

6. Restart your computer.
7. Start Kontakt as a standalone application (not in your DAW). If Kontakt still crashes, proceed with the next chapter.

2. Reinitialize the Kontakt Database

1. Hold down the alt key on your computer's keyboard and click Go in the Finder menu bar. Choose the appearing Library entry in the drop-down menu.
   
2. Navigate to Application Support > Native Instruments.
3. Depending on the Kontakt version you are using, delete the following folder:
   Kontakt 5: "Kontakt 5"
   Kontakt 6: "Kontakt"
   Kontakt 7: "Kontakt 7"
   Kontakt 8: "Kontakt 8"
4. Start Kontakt as a standalone application (not in your DAW). If Kontakt still crashes, proceed with the next chapter.

3. Delete your User Preferences

1. Hold down the alt key on your computer's keyboard and click Go in the Finder menu bar. Choose the appearing Library entry in the drop-down menu.
   
   (If the Library entry does not appear when you hold down the Option / Alt key, please use the alternative method at the end of this article.)
2. Navigate to Preferences.
3. Depending on the Kontakt version you are using, delete the following file:
   Kontakt 5: 'com.native-instruments.Kontakt 5.plist'
   Kontakt 6: 'com.native-instruments.Kontakt Application.plist'.
   Kontakt 7: 'com.native-instruments.Kontakt 7.plist'
   Kontakt 8: 'com.native-instruments.Kontakt 8.plist'
4. Restart your computer.
5. Start Kontakt as a standalone application (not in your DAW).

4. Deactivate Usage Data Tracking

1. Start Kontakt and open Options > Usage Data Tracking.
2. Select No, I don't want to contribute.
   
3. Click Close.

1. Reinitialize the Kontakt Database

1. Click the Windows start button at the bottom left of your screen.
2. Type "%localappdata%" and click the option that appears.
3. Navigate to the Native Instruments folder.
4. Then, depending on the Kontakt version you are using, delete the following folder:
   Kontakt 5: "Kontakt 5"
   Kontakt 6: "Kontakt"
   Kontakt 7: "Kontakt 7"
   Kontakt 8: "Kontakt 8"
5. Start Kontakt in standalone mode (not in your DAW). If Kontakt still crashes, proceed with the next chapter.

2. Delete the Kontakt User Registry Folder

1. Click the Windows Start button and enter "regedit" into the search field. Then select Registry Editor from the results.
2. In the Registry Editor, open the following directory:
   HKEY_CURRENT_USER > Software > Native Instruments
3. Depending on the Kontakt version you are using, delete the corresponding folder:
   Kontakt 5: "Kontakt 5"
   Kontakt 6: "Kontakt Application"
   Kontakt 7: "Kontakt 7"
   Kontakt 8: "Kontakt 8"
4. Close the Registry Editor.
5. Start Kontakt in standalone mode (not in your DAW) and select your audio interface's ASIO driver in the Audio and MIDI Settings dialog.
6. If Kontakt still crashes, proceed with the next chapter.

3. Reset Kontakt's Output Section

Please close all audio applications before following these steps.

1. Click the Windows start button at the bottom left of your screen.
2. Type "%localappdata%" and click on the option which appears.
3. Navigate to the Native Instruments.
4. Depending on the Kontakt version you are using, delete the following folder:
   Kontakt 5: "Kontakt 5"
   Kontakt 6: "Kontakt"
   Kontakt 7: "Kontakt 7"
   Kontakt 8: "Kontakt 8"
5. Rename the "default" folder to "default_OLD":
   
6. Start the Kontakt application in Standalone Mode (not as a plug-in in your DAW). This will reestablish the default output settings.
7. If Kontakt is now running correctly in standalone mode, close the application and try opening the plug-in version of Kontakt from your DAW.

4. Update Windows

1. Click the Windows Start button, type in 'windows updates' and hit the enter key.
2. Click the Check for updates button.
3. Install all available updates.
4. After all updates are installed, restart your computer.
5. Try opening Kontakt again to see if the issue has been resolved.

5. Deactivate Usage Data Tracking

1. Start Kontakt and open Options > Usage Data Tracking.
2. Select No, I don't want to contribute.
   
3. Click Close.