Fortnite runs on top of the Unreal Engine, both products of Epic Games.
While Fortnite obviously contains a lot of proprietary code, it also relies on a number of third party apps to help it function properly.
One of them is the “EasyAntiCheat” service, provided by a third-party company.
The error you are seeing is a result of the “EasyAntiCheat” service not starting properly, either because your antivirus quarantined your files, or because it was damaged or corrupted through an update.
To resolve the issue, you should be able to repair your installation and remove any corrupted files that may be causing you to display the error…
Causes
There are a number of potential causes for error 1058/20006included:
- EasyAntiCheat does not load correctly
- Windows update not installed correctly
- Fortnite does not run with the correct files
While there could be more causes, the above will resolve 95% of the cases of the problem.
The error message will usually include the following:
Launch bug (20006)
Could not start the game
Please help us by reporting this problem:
Error code 20006 (Cannot create service (StartService failed: 2))
Solution
Obviously, the main way to fix the problem is to fix the EasyAntiCheat package (although there are several other steps as well):
1. Fix EasyAntiCheat
The first step, and the one most likely to be successful, is to repair the component.
This can be done by clicking on the Fortnite folder on your hard drive and deleting any of the files it might have inside.
To do this, you can use the following steps:
- Press “Windows” + “E” keys on your keyboard (loads Windows Explorer)
- Go to “C:/Program Files/Epic Games/Fortnite/FortniteGame/Binaries/Win64/EasyAntiCheat”
- Click on “EasyAntiCheat_Setup.exe”
- It should load an installation system – click “Repair Service”
- Once complete, it will be better to restart your PC and then try to play Fortnite again
If this fixes the problem, you should be able to enjoy Fortnite to the fullest now.
If it doesn’t fix the problem, you’ll need to try to resolve any additional issues that might be causing it to display.
2. Verify Fortnite files
The following method basically allows us to “repair” the Fortnite installation without having to re-download it.
It’s especially beneficial if you’re looking to get the game working properly again:
- Go to “C:/Program Files/Epic Games/Fortnite/FortniteGame/Binaries/Win64/”
- Remove “FortniteClient-
Win64-Shipping.exe” - Click on the epic game launcher
- In “Fortnite”, select the “gear” on the “Start” button
- From the dropdown menu, select “Verify”
- This should reinstall the game as needed.
Once this is complete, reboot your system and the game *should* start working again.
3. Clean Windows installation files
Finally, if you’re still experiencing the error, it probably means there’s a deeper problem with Windows.
The best way to fix this is to run the “SFC” (System File Checker) application, which fixes any core issues with the Windows subsystem.
Using this is relatively simple:
- Press “Windows” + “S” keys on your keyboard
- Type “CMD” and press “Enter”
- When the list of results appears, right click on “Command Prompt” and select “Run as administrator”
- When the black screen loads, type the following:
- SFC /scan now
- Press “Enter”
- Reboot your system after completion
While this should work to fix the bugs you’ve been experiencing, there may be more issues preventing Fortnite from working properly.
If you are still unable to run the game, you should seek help from someone with more specific knowledge of your system.
The best (cheapest) way to do this is to go to one of the online support communities (SuperUser, Microsoft Answers) and ask for help there. If you need a more direct solution, you’d be better off talking to someone with real experience on your system, which is where local PC repair guys come in, or freelancers on Fiverr and the like.