The is a package of shared library files (DLLs) required to run 64-bit applications developed with Visual Studio 2015. Without these libraries, many games and professional software packages will fail to launch, often returning errors like "MSVCP140.dll is missing". Core Purpose and Functionality
Most modern software does not "carry" these files internally to keep the installation size small. Instead, they rely on the being present on the host computer. You likely have several versions installed (2010, 2013, 2015, etc.) because different programs require specific versions of these libraries to function. Key Features of the x64 Version microsoft visual c 2015 redistributable x64
The designation refers to the underlying version of the Visual C++ runtime library (version 14.0). This is crucial because runtime libraries are not always backward compatible. A program built with Visual Studio 2015 expects runtime version 14.0, not version 12.0 (from Visual Studio 2013). The is a package of shared library files
: Because it's a shared package, multiple different programs can use the same installed files, which saves disk space and system memory. Instead, they rely on the being present on the host computer