Both executables rely on kernel drivers (.sys files):

In Windows, kernel drivers run in Ring 0 (most privileged). Two poorly-written drivers can corrupt each other’s memory. While modern drivers are better, legacy versions (especially older PdaNet builds from 2015–2018) are notorious for this.

| Application | Minimum recommended version | Where to check | |-------------|----------------------------|----------------| | PdaNet+ | Version 5.20 (2021 or later) | Help → About in the app | | CodeMeter Runtime | Version 7.60 (2023 or later) | CodeMeter Control Center → System |

Why this works: Modern versions of both applications use Windows’ NDIS 6.x driver model, which supports driver stacking without conflicts. Legacy versions (pre-2018) used the deprecated NDIS 5.x model, which is a common source of crashes.

This conflict arises primarily due to Network Adapter Binding and Metric Priority.