How to fix Genshin Impact Error Code 4206, 4201, and other issues
If only it were as easy as the click of a button.
Got a problem with Genshin Impact? The popular gacha RPG might work just fine one day before blocking you out the next. These unexpected mishaps have players at a loss, especially when the good ol’ “off and on” trick with your laptop doesn’t work. Genshin has a couple of reoccurring errors that pop up every few weeks or so, leading to mass searches for fixing these offenders. The good news? Players tend to have solutions to them, too.
Here’s an explanation for the most common Genshin Impact error codes — namely 4206, 4201, and 9908 — and how to go about troubleshooting them.
How to fix Genshin Impact Error Code 4206
Downdetector shows a spike at 3:00 a.m. on June 21, 2022, which is probably why I’m writing this article. It was probably a server thing.
No platform can escape the infamous Error Code: 4206. It’s Genshin Impact’s most common error, followed by its cousin, Error Code 4201. Both have to do with server connection issues.
- Unable to connect to the server, please check your network settings. Error Code: 4206.
- Failed to connect to the server. Error Code: 4201.
These errors typically pop up in the middle of a game if your internet connection quality dips. Also, if on mobile, it might pop up if you’re moving between too many applications with too weak of a connection. Other times, the server might just be down altogether.
Check your internet connection with web browsing and other applications to see if the connection is affecting anything outside of your game. If it is, then you need to connect to a more stable source like ethernet or reset your router/modem to see if that strengthens your signal. Restarting your device might also work.
If it really is just your game that doesn’t work, check server outage detectors to see if others are experiencing the same problem. If DownDetector spikes are high, then it’s probably a server-wide issue and not just you. Unfortunately, in that case, all there’s left to do is wait until the server recovers.
Some players claim that switching your server region can solve the issue. That means America to Europe, Europe to Asia, etc. However, switching servers to a faraway region will likely increase lag because of how far the physical location is from you.
How to fix Genshin Impact Error Code 9908
Genshin Impact also has error codes for missing files and network-related problems. Error codes 9908 and 9107, which apparently differ depending on the server, hint at an installation issue.
- Failed to download resource files or network error. Please try again. Code: -9908.
- Failed to download resource files or network error. Please try again. Code: -9107.
One person pointed out that these codes could pop up during maintenance, in which case all you would have to do is wait until maintenance ends. HoYoverse releases these schedules weeks in advance and updates players on start and end times with its social media accounts.
No maintenance? You might have to reinstall the game. First, go through the baseline troubleshooting steps like restarting your device and router. If that doesn’t work, reinstall Genshin Impact. It’s just redownloading the files needed to run the game in case you’ve somehow corrupted or misplaced one.
Run appwiz.cpl, which should open a control panel of all your programs. Right-click the Genshin Impact icon and formally uninstall it from the panel instead of searching for the files through Finder. Then, re-download Genshin Impact from the official website and follow the instructions to reinstall.
Genshin Impact keeps crashing on startup [PC]
Sometimes, Genshin Impact gets into a phase where it keeps quitting before the game starts. It looks like it’s just about to load the login screen before it shuts down the program. These cases are a bit finicky (and it took me forever to fix when it happened to me), but the best way to fix them is through reinstalling the game. Make sure you uninstall completely before reinstalling, though.
Follow the same instructions listed in the Genshin Impact Error 9908 and 9107 section. Open appwiz.cpl and uninstall Genshin Impact from there before reinstalling again. This makes sure that you’re completely uninstalling the files before attempting to download them again. You might have to try a couple of times to make it work.
Which Genshin Impact platform should I use?
As mentioned in Inverse’s last Genshin Impact troubleshooting guide, PC tends to have the most issues because of internet connection and how well the PC can run the game. Mobile can have the same issues, plus an additional storage problem because of the size of the device. In that case, it would make the most sense to play Genshin Impact on PlayStation 4. However, not everybody likes the feeling of a controller for their Genshin Impact experience.
The best platform is the one you like using. However, if you have problems on a PC but also have a PlayStation 4, you can just play on the PS4 and vice versa.
Genshin Impact is available for PC, PlayStation 4, iOS, and Android. It’s also in development for Nintendo Switch.
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