Fix: GTA Online “There Has Been An Error Joining a Session”

Grand Theft Auto Online is another famous game in the series of Grand Theft Auto titles. It is developed by Rockstar North and published by Rockstar Games. It was released in 2015 for Windows and in 2022 for PlayStations and Xbox consoles. It is an online version of the Grand Theft Auto V. This game is similar to the other previous GTA titles. The game is totally based on a map where the players have to complete the mission if they want or do whatever they think.

GTA Online has gained a lot of popularity due to the huge fan following of the GTA games. A lot of users have been playing this game and roaming in the city of San Andreas and Los Angeles or somewhere else. Due to all this, players are loving this game very much. There are some users who are reporting server issues with GTA Online game. They are reporting that they are getting the message “There has been an error joining a session” when they are trying to play the game.

The users are annoyed by this issue because they are not able to get into the online gameplay which is more interesting. It is not a big issue if you know the troubleshooting methods to fix this issue. We are here with the solution to this issue where we will list the methods through which you can fix this issue and what are the reasons for this. So, without any further ado, let’s get started.

Also Read: Fix: GTA 5 Online The Rockstar Game Services Are Unavailable Right Now Error

Why are you facing this issue in GTA Online?

The players are facing server-related issues in GTA Online when they are trying to get into the online gameplay. A lot of users have reported this issue. But in every case, there were different reasons for the cause of the issue. So we are here with all the different reasons which were reported by the players. Make sure to check them as it will be going to help you very much in resolving the issue.

• There are some server issues that are from the Rockstar game’s end.
• You are running outdated windows on your PC which is not recommended to run the game.
• You are not connected to a stable internet connection on your PC.
• Your network driver is outdated and the game is displaying this error message.
• There are some corrupted or missing files in the game.
• You have not updated the game.
• The Windows Defender Firewall might be blocking your game requests.
• Your antivirus is blocking the game’s file due to which it’s not working properly.

How To Fix GTA Online Error Issue?

We are here with the solution to this issue which will definitely help you in resolving this issue. However, we will suggest that you should make sure to implement all the steps perfectly on your device so that you will be able to fix it.

1. Restart Your Device

This issue can happen on any of the platforms for which the game has been launched. We will suggest that you should restart your device so that you will be able to resolve this issue. This method is very much beneficial in solving this type of minor bugs which are happening to the game.

Whenever anyone restarts their device, then all the system files are again loaded correctly, in case, if there were some issues in the previous boot then that will be fixed easily. This method has helped a lot of users in fixing issues. Therefore, we will suggest that you should also do this and check whether the issue has been resolved for you or not. If it is not resolved, then check for other solutions below.

2. Verify the Integrity of the Game Files

There are possibilities that the game might be facing this issue because of the corrupted or missing files. This can happen when the game is being installed and some modules of it might not have been properly installed in the game files. You can fix this easily by the Steam game store. The Steam game store comes with the feature to check and repair the game files. You can easily do this by following the steps which are given below.

• Open Start Menu.
• Type “Steam” in the search bar.
• Now, open the app and go to Library.
• Select the game and click on the three dots available there.
• After it, select Properties.
• Head over to the Local Files.
• You will see the option of “Verify Integrity of Game Files”.
• Click on it and wait for the process to get completed.
• Now, again run the game and check whether the issue is resolved or not.

3. Disable Antivirus Software 

The issue might also cause if your antivirus apps are causing conflicts with the file of the game. Many users have reported that they tried running the game by disabling the antivirus and they were able to resolve this issue.

In this case, the antivirus which is installed on your PC might be blocking the files of the game to maintain the security of the PC. It might happen if they suspect some malicious activity or response. Therefore, we will suggest that you should disable your antivirus and check whether the issue has been resolved or not.

4. Disable Windows Firewall

Windows Defender Firewall can also be a reason for the error message of the game. The work of the Windows Firewall is to block game files if they suspect any malicious activity with them. It is done in order to protect your system from malicious threats.

This issue can occur if your Windows Firewall has suspected some different response from the server of the Rockstar game and blocked it. However, you can easily fix this to run the game by disabling the Windows Defender Firewall on your PC. Follow the steps which are given below to disable the Windows Defender Firewall from your system.

• Open the Start Menu.
• Type “Windows Defender Firewall” in the search bar.
• Select Windows Defender Firewall from the search results.
• After it, click on the Turn Windows Defender Firewall on or off from the left pane.
• Select the “Turn off Windows Defender Firewall (not recommended)” option.

• You have to do this for both your Private and Public Networks.
• Now, click on OK to save changes.
• Restart the PC and check whether the game started to run properly or not.

5. Change Network DNS Settings

There are possibilities that the DNS settings that you are using might not be correct and can be causing issues in the game from requesting responses. We will suggest that you should cross-check the DNS settings or change them to resolve the issue. You can do this by following the steps which are given below.

• First of all, Press Windows + R key to open Run.
• Type “ncpa.cpl” and press Enter.
• Right-click on the Network Adapter that you are using.
• After it, select Properties.
• Double-click on the Internet Protocol Version 4.
• Copy your existing DNS server addresses properly for both the Preferred & Alternate DNS Server.
• Now, replace it with 8.8.8.8 for Preferred and 8.8.4.4 for Alternate DNS.

• Click on OK to confirm the selection and then click on OK again to save the changes.
• After it, restart your computer and check whether the issue has been resolved or not.

6. Update The Network Driver

The game might not work properly and will be showing the error message, if your network driver is not updated. As the network driver is one of the most important things to running any game. We will suggest that you should manually check for the graphics update on your PC to avoid this type of game issue.

• Open Start Menu.
• Type “Device Manager” in the search bar.
• Click on the Network Adapters option and double-click to expand it.
• Now, select your network driver and right-click on it.
• You will see the option of Update Driver, click on it.

• After it, follow the on-screen instructions that are given to complete the update.
• Now, restart your system and again try running the game.

7. Check For Windows Updates

Windows updates are also important to avoid this type of issue in the game. Users have reported that this was occurring to them when they were running the game on their outdated windows. When they have updated to the latest one, then the issue has been resolved for them. It is because the Windows updates also contain updates for the network drivers which are necessary to install. In case, if you have not updated the windows and have some pending updates on your PC then you will likely face this issue with your game. Follow the steps which are given below to check for updates on your computer.

• Press Windows + I key to open Settings on your computer.
• Click on Windows Update on the left pane of the screen.
• After it, click on Check For Updates.
• If there is an update available, then click on the Download Now button to download the available updates on your system.

• Wait for the process to get completed.
• After that, restart the PC, and check whether the black screen issue has been resolved or not.

8. Check For Optional Updates

The optional update is another important factor to run the game without any issues. This update includes important drivers update for the PC through which the apps and games run smoothly on your PC. You need to follow the steps which are given below to check for optional updates on your computer.

• First of all, press Windows + I Key to open Settings.
• Click on Windows Update on the left pane of the screen.
• Select the Advanced Option.
• Now, scroll down and look for the Optional Updates option.

• Select it and check whether there are updates available or not. If there is an update available then download it and wait for the process to get completed.
• After it, restart your PC and check whether the issue is resolved or not.

9. Check Server Outages

There are possibilities that there might be some server outage from the Rockstar games end and due to this, you are facing this issue. So, in this case, we will suggest that you should check whether all the Rockstart servers are up or not. You can check this by going to their website or through other third-party websites. As it has been reported by many users that the game was not running and when they checked about it, then they got to know that the Rockstar game servers were down at the time.

We will also suggest you check whether all the servers are up or not. If there is a problem from their end, then you need to wait as you will be not able to do anything at that time. So, wait for the official announcements and keep checking the server page. Once they have fixed the issue then you will be again able to play GTA Online without any issues on your PC or consoles.

10. Update The Game

We will suggest that you should update the game if you have not updated it for a long time. This can help in resolving the issue. As the issue can also cause by Rockstar’s game end, then there is more likely that they will push updates to fix it. We will suggest that you should check for updates on your PC or console and update to the latest version of the game. You can do this by following the methods which are given below.

• Open Start Menu.
• Type “Steam” in the search bar.
• Now, open the app and go to Library.
• Select the game and click on the three dots available there.
• Now, you will see the updates option if there are any updates available to it.
• So, in case, if the update option is available then download it.
• Wait for the process to get completed.
• Now, check whether the issue has been resolved or not.

11. Try Running The Game in Invite Only Session

If the issue is still persisting then you can try this step for fixing the issue. It has helped a lot of users in resolving the issue.

• First of all, start the GTA Online game on your PC or console.
• Now, press the menu button and go to Online mode.
• After it, select Choose Character.
• It will take some time to get into the online mode of the game.
• When you are in the game, then press the menu button and again select Online.
• After it, click on Leave GTA Online and select the OK button.
• Now, that you are on the game screen, press the menu button again.
• Go to Online and select on play GTA Online.
• Choose Invite Only Session and select the OK button.

12. Reinstall The Game

Even after implementing all the methods that are listed above does not work for you, then we will suggest that you might need to reinstall the game to fix this problem on your PC or console. It is the last method by which you can try to resolve this issue on your game. Many users have reported that they were able to fix this issue after reinstalling the game on their PC or console.

This is because when you uninstall the game then all the files and settings will be deleted from your PC. After it, when you install the game again then all the files will get installed properly on your PC by which you will be able to fix the issue. So, we will suggest that you should do this if none of the above methods worked for you. After uninstalling the game, make sure to restart your laptop/console and delete all the game files from your PC.

Conclusion

The GTA Online server issue is kind of an annoying issue to a lot of users especially when they are in the full mood to get into the online gameplay. It will ruin the whole gaming experience and the fun of the game. However, it can happen to anyone as we have already mentioned that there are a lot of reasons for the same.

But we can avoid this type of issue by regularly updating our windows, network driver, graphics driver, and optional updates. So, this was all for this guide. We hope this guide has helped you in resolving the GTA Online server issue that you were facing. So, in case, if you have any queries related to it, then feel free to ask us in the comment section below.