How to close background applications to run the EA app

What are background applications?

Background applications (apps) or programs are types of software that aren’t always visible on your taskbar when they’re running. Things like your gaming mouse, graphic cards, or browser might include background applications.

How do background applications impact the EA app?

Background applications use up your computer’s resources, like its power and memory. If your computer is running lots of apps at the same time, it might slow down. Background applications can cause problems with the EA app like connection issues, crashing, and slow, laggy gameplay.

If you’re not sure what’s wrong with the EA app, check our steps for other common problems.

Troubleshoot EA app error codes
Download, installation, and loading issues
Learn how to report errors with the EA app

How to fix problems caused by background apps

If you think background applications or causing problems with the EA app, you can try:

closing or disabling the program(s)
adding the EA app and your games as exceptions to your security applications so they can run together with fewer problems. Exceptions might be called safe or allowed on your computer.

How to add the EA app and your games as exceptions

The steps to add exceptions can vary depending on the security software you use. Check with the manufacturer of your firewall and antivirus programs to see how to add the EA app as an exception. You might need administrator access to add some of these exceptions.

1
Find EADesktop.exe in C:\Program Files\Electronic Arts\EA Desktop\EA Desktop. If you installed the app in another folder on your computer, look there instead.
2
Add EALauncher.exe and EABackgroundService.exe, also found in this folder, to your exceptions, too.
3
Go to C:\Program Files\EA Games\[Game Name] to add a specific game as an exception.
Find the game’s .exe file, which is usually the game's full title or an abbreviated version.

What applications can cause issues?

If you've had issues booting up your games or using the EA app, make sure to fully close these or similar kinds of programs.

This isn’t a full list of everything that could affect your gaming experience. If you’re running a program that you’re unsure how to classify, disable, close, uninstall, troubleshoot, or search online to learn more about it. If you keep having problems after closing these programs, find the most active or processing-intensive programs, then try closing or uninstalling them, and restarting your computer.

Security applications

Antivirus, antispyware, and firewall applications can sometimes block game access as they try to protect your computer. If you keep having trouble after adding the EA app and your games as exceptions, disable or temporarily uninstall your antivirus, antispyware, or firewall to troubleshoot.

File sharing applications

File sharing programs can use up your internet bandwidth and your computer’s processing power, which can make gameplay lag. File sharing programs include:

peer to peer (P2P) programs: applications for sharing files between individual computers
file transfer protocol (FTP) programs: applications for downloading, uploading, and transferring files between computers.

Close any file sharing applications before playing and limit your downloads/uploads while you play. If you’re on a shared network, make sure no one else is torrenting while you play.

Download management applications

Download management programs can affect your game downloads or updates.Before opening the EA app, close your download management software.

Virtual Private Network (VPN) applications

Virtual Private Networks (VPNs) give users access to private networks, like business intranets. VPNs take up extra bandwidth as well as computer processing power, and may have extra security measures that can limit game playability.Disconnect from any VPN you're connected to before starting up your game.

Proxy, IP filtering, and IP masking programs

The EA app doesn’t support proxy servers.Using a proxy, IP filtering, or IP masking software can affect how your computer and your games connect. Disable these before jumping into the EA app and your games.

Programs that have visual overlays

Any program that tries to place a filter, picture, or Graphical User Interface (GUI) on top of a running program can cause problems for the EA app and your games. The EA app has its own in-game overlay feature, so multiple running at one time can cause issues.VoIP programs, like Ventrilo or Mumble, and game progress monitors, like Raptr, have these kinds of overlays. Close these programs or disable their overlay before running the EA app or your games.