Fortnite runs on the Unreal Engine, both products from Epic Games.

While Fortnite obviously contains a great deal of proprietary code, it also relies on a number of third-party applications to help it run properly.

One of them is the “EasyAntiCheat” service, provided by an external company.

The error you are seeing is the result of the “EasyAntiCheat” service not starting properly, either because your antivirus quarantined your files or it was damaged / corrupted through an update.

To resolve the issue, you need to be able to repair your installation and remove any of the corrupted files that may be causing it to display the error …

Causes

There are a number of potential causes for Error 1058/20006, including:

• EasyAntiCheat does not load properly

• Windows update did not install correctly

• Fortnite does not run with the correct files

While there could be more causes, the above will solve 95% of the problem cases.

The error message will typically include the following:

Launch error (20006)

Could not start the game

Please help us by reporting this issue:

Error code 20006 (Cannot create service (StartService failed: 2))

Solution

Obviously, the main way to fix the problem is by fixing the EasyAntiCheat package (although there are several other steps as well):

1. Repair EasyAntiCheat

The first step, and 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 may have inside.

To do this, you can take the following steps:

• Press the “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 on “Repair Service”

• Once completed, you’d better restart your PC and then try playing Fortnite again.

If this fixes the problem, you should be able to enjoy Fortnite to your heart’s content now.

If it doesn’t fix the problem, you’ll need to try to fix any additional issues that may be causing it to show up.

2. Check Fortnite files

The following method basically allows us to “repair” the Fortnite installation without having to redownload everything.

It is especially beneficial if you want the game to work properly again:

• Go to “C: / Program Files / Epic Games / Fortnite / FortniteGame / Binaries / Win64 /”

• Remove “FortniteClient-Win64-Shipping.exe “

• Click on Epic Games Launcher

• Under “Fortnite” select the “gear” on the “Start” button

• In the drop-down 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 are still experiencing the error, it probably means that there is a deeper problem with Windows.

The best way to solve this problem is to run the “SFC” (System File Checker) application, which fixes major problems in the Windows subsystem.

Using this is relatively simple:

• Press the “Windows” + “S” keys on your keyboard

• Type “CMD” and press “Enter”

• When the list of results is displayed, right click on “Command Prompt” and select “Run as administrator”

• When the black screen loads, type the following:

• SFC / scannow

• Press “Enter”

• Reboot your system after completion

While this should work to correct the bugs you’ve experienced, there may be more issues preventing Fortnite from running properly.

If you are still unable to run the game, you should seek the support of 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 straightforward solution, you’d better speak to someone with real experience with your system, which is where local PC repair guys come in, or freelancers on Fiverr and the like.