Forza Horizon 4
Crash & Freeze Recovery
A detailed troubleshooting record covering the startup crash, ProcDump evidence, Sophos Home compatibility, the successful workaround and future recovery procedures.
Executive summary
Forza Horizon 4 repeatedly crashed during startup. Reinstalling
the game did not resolve the issue. Two ProcDump captures showed
an access violation, and both contained hmpalert.dll,
a module associated with Sophos/HitmanPro.Alert protection.
After a Sophos local exclusion was added for FH4, the game progressed beyond its earlier failure and initially reached a startup-screen freeze. The user subsequently reported that the game worked.
01 / Incident facts
| Evidence | Observed result | Interpretation |
|---|---|---|
| Xbox error | 0x8027025B | Xbox app reported that the game could not start or complete the launch successfully. |
| Crash exception | 0xC0000005 | Access violation; the process attempted an invalid memory access. |
| Exception text | 40080201 | Additional exception information reported by the capture process. |
| Game version observed | 1.478.564.2 | Version reported during the investigation; updates can change this. |
| Module of interest | hmpalert.dll | Present in both dumps; associated with Sophos/HitmanPro.Alert. |
| Repair and reinstall | Crash persisted | Simple game-file corruption became less likely. |
| Sophos exclusion | Startup progressed; game later worked | Strong supporting evidence for a compatibility interaction. |
Important: a module being loaded into a process does not, by itself, prove that it caused the crash. The change in behaviour after the Sophos exclusion is the more useful diagnostic evidence.
02 / Incident timeline
FH4 crashed on startup. Event Viewer did not provide a useful root cause.
Process Monitor was used to inspect FH4 activity. Graphics-related module activity was observed but did not establish a cause.
Windows Error Reporting did not produce the required dump, so ProcDump was used instead.
FH4_Crash.dmp showed an access violation.
Repair and a complete reinstall did not resolve the original crash.
FH4_Crash_After_Reinstall.dmp showed another access violation. Both captures contained hmpalert.dll.
The game progressed further into startup, although it initially froze after a button press.
On 12 October 2026, the user reported that FH4 was working.
03 / Primary fix — Sophos Home
Step A — Preserve the successful exclusion
- Open Sophos Home.
- Navigate to the troubleshooting or local-exclusion settings supported by your installed version.
- Confirm the exclusion for the genuine FH4 executable is still present.
- Keep the exclusion enabled while the game is working.
- Restart Windows if the Sophos change has not yet been followed by a restart.
- Launch FH4 through the Xbox app or Start menu, not by forcing its packaged executable to run as administrator.
Step B — Check the executable path
The package path identified during the investigation was:
D:\WindowsApps\Microsoft.SunriseBaseGame_1.478.564.2_x64__8wekyb3d8bbwe\ForzaHorizon4.exe
This is the observed versioned path, not a guarantee that the path will remain identical after updates. If the game updates, confirm the current package location before changing an exclusion.
Step C — Keep the exclusion narrow
- Exclude only the genuine game executable where supported.
- Do not exclude the entire
D:\WindowsAppsdirectory. - Do not exclude
C:\Windows\System32. - Do not disable all Sophos protection as a permanent workaround.
- Do not rename or delete
hmpalert.dll.
04 / Verify stability
Complete these checks to establish whether the fix survives repeated launches and restarts.
Progress is kept only in this page’s current session. It is not uploaded or stored by a server.
05 / WindowsApps ownership recovery
D:\WindowsApps to TrustedInstaller.The ownership change was a separate troubleshooting action, not the identified solution for the crash. Avoid further permission changes unless there is specific evidence that they are needed.
- Do not take ownership of
D:\WindowsAppsagain. - Do not apply blanket permission changes to all child folders.
- Do not use recursive permission-reset commands as a guess.
- Do not try to launch the packaged FH4 executable with forced elevation.
Why running the executable as administrator failed
Microsoft Store/Xbox packaged applications use package activation and access controls. Launching their executable directly with RunAs can fail with Access Denied. ProcDump can capture a normally launched game without requiring you to force the game executable to run as administrator.
06 / If the game crashes again
First response — check Sophos and restart
- Check that the local exclusion remains present.
- Check Sophos notifications and logs for a block or detection.
- Restart Windows normally.
- Launch FH4 through the Xbox app.
- Record whether the game crashes before the splash screen, at the startup screen, or after pressing a button.
Second response — update Windows and Xbox components
- Open Windows Update and install appropriate available updates.
- Open Microsoft Store and check for updates to the Xbox app and relevant gaming components.
- Restart Windows and test again.
Do not change graphics drivers, security settings and game files simultaneously. One change at a time produces better diagnostic evidence.
Third response — repair the game only if necessary
- Open Settings.
- Select Apps → Installed apps.
- Find Forza Horizon 4.
- Open Advanced options if available.
- Select Repair if available.
You have already repaired and reinstalled the game. Do not repeat those steps unless a new symptom or new evidence warrants it.
Fourth response — collect another crash dump
Use ProcDump only if the game crashes again and a new dump would help distinguish the failure.
"C:\Users\armaa\Downloads\Procdump\procdump64.exe" -ma -e -w ForzaHorizon4.exe "%USERPROFILE%\Desktop\FH4_Crash_New"
- Open Command Prompt. Run it as administrator if needed for ProcDump to attach.
- Run the command above, adjusting the ProcDump path if the file has moved.
- Leave ProcDump running while you launch FH4 normally.
- Wait for the crash and confirm ProcDump reports that the dump was written.
- Keep the new dump separate from the original captures.
Fifth response — repair or reinstall only with new evidence
If the Sophos exclusion is still active and FH4 fails again, investigate the new error and dump before concluding that the game files are corrupt. Consider graphics drivers, overlays and other injected software only if the evidence points that way.
07 / Actions to avoid
- Do not: disable all security protection permanently.
- Do not: add broad exclusions for entire drives or Windows folders.
- Do not: delete or rename Sophos DLLs.
- Do not: take ownership of WindowsApps again.
- Do not: run random registry scripts or blanket permission-reset commands.
- Do not: reinstall FH4 repeatedly while the same evidence points elsewhere.
- Do not: assume a loaded DLL is automatically the cause of a crash.
08 / Evidence archive
Keep the following records if you need to contact Sophos or Xbox support.
The archive checklist is only a record of what you have retained; checking an item does not upload or verify a file.
09 / Official references
- Sophos Home — Allowing games to run alongside Sophos Home
- Xbox Support — Troubleshoot games on Windows
- Microsoft Support — Fix Microsoft Store app problems
- Microsoft Support — Repair apps and programs in Windows
- Microsoft Sysinternals — ProcDump
Online instructions and product interfaces can change. Follow the current official guidance for your installed software version.
Final diagnosis
The most convincing evidence is the combination of repeated
0xC0000005 crashes, the presence of
hmpalert.dll in both dumps, and the change in
startup behaviour after the Sophos exclusion.
The exact internal cause remains unconfirmed, but there is no reason to keep changing the system while the game works reliably.