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League of Legends error

VAN 9100: Vanguard won't run in a virtual machine

Riot VanguardLeague + VALORANT

The message

VAN 9100: Unsupported virtualized environment detected. This version of Vanguard does not allow running under virtual machines or unsupported virtualized environments.

What it means

Vanguard decided the game is running inside a virtual machine or some other virtualized setup it doesn't support, and it won't run there.

What to try first

Install the game and Vanguard on a normal Windows install on the PC itself and launch from there. Then reinstall Vanguard if it persists.

Is it you or Riot? If lots of players are hitting this at once, it's probably the servers. Check League server status before you start reinstalling things.

No setting fixes a virtual machine

If you're launching League from VirtualBox, VMware, Parallels or anything like them, VAN 9100 is working as intended. Riot doesn't support Vanguard in virtual machines at all, and there's no toggle or exception that changes that. The game and Vanguard both have to live on a regular Windows install running on the hardware.

Riot's second step, reinstalling Vanguard, is for the other case: you're sure you're on a standard Windows PC and still got told otherwise. Riot's article only asks for a ticket (logs attached) once you've confirmed a regular Windows installation and the reinstall hasn't helped.

VAN 9100 or VAN 138?

Riot gives both codes the same meaning, a game or Vanguard running under a virtual machine or unsupported virtualized environment. The difference is on screen. VAN 138 arrives as the generic VALORANT connection error, while 9100 names the virtualized environment in the message itself. Riot's fix list differs too. VAN 138 gets five steps, adding a clean boot, a firewall check and a game reinstall after the first two, and 9100 stops at two (the same two 138 opens with). Both codes turn up in VALORANT as well as League.

Riot's fix, in Riot's order

  1. Run the game on Windows itself, not inside a virtual machine

    Vanguard refuses to run inside VirtualBox, VMware, Parallels or any other virtualized setup. The game and Vanguard have to be installed on a normal Windows install on the PC itself.

  2. Uninstall Vanguard, restart, and let the game reinstall it

    1. Close the game and exit the Riot Client from the system tray.
    2. Right-click the red Vanguard icon in the tray, choose Advanced, then Uninstall Vanguard. If the icon isn't there, search Windows for Add or remove programs and uninstall Riot Vanguard from the list.
    3. Restart the PC. Vanguard is gone if its tray icon doesn't come back.
    4. Open the Riot Client and launch the game. It reinstalls Vanguard and will ask for one more restart before Play unlocks.

    Riot's guide: Uninstall Vanguard, restart, and let the game reinstall it

Other wordings of the same error

  • VAN9100
  • Error VAN 9100
  • Unsupported virtualized environment detected

Source: Riot Games Player Support, VAN 9100, updated July 16, 2026. Riot's steps are paraphrased here, not copied; checked September 25, 2026.