Fix High CPU usage by IAStorDataSvc in Windows

Error 2738 - What is it?

Error 2738 is associated with the VBScript engine. VBScript is the abbreviation for Visual Basic Scripting. It is an Active Scripting programming language developed by Microsoft and modeled on Visual Basic. It is used with a fast interpreter in a large variety of Microsoft environments. Error 2738 indicates that the VBScript engine is not registered properly on your PC. It occurs when you try to install or uninstall VBScript-supported applications on your system. The error message is displayed in the following format:

"Error 2738. Could not access VBScript run time for custom action."

Solution

Error Causes

There are several reasons for the error 2738 message pop up. These include: Incorrect or corrupt registry entries on your system. These entries interfere with VBScript support in Windows thereby generating such error codes.

• Removal of McAfee Antivirus
• Windows registry values are not updated accurately during the uninstallation of McAfee Software
• The Visual Basic Script is registered in the registry under the local user instead of the local machine

No matter what the cause of the error may be, it is recommended that you resolve the issue immediately without any delay.

Further Information and Manual Repair

Here are some of the easy and proven DIY methods to repair error 2738 on your PC:

Method 1

If the error 2738 occurs because the VBScript is not registered correctly, then follow these steps to resolve.

1. Go to the start menu, open Run, and type RegEdit in the box and then press OK. This will open the Windows Registry Editor.
2. Now type KEY_LOCAL_MACHINESOFTWAREClassesCLSID{B54F3741-5B07-11cf-A4B0-00AA004A55E8}InprocServer32, if the key does not have a data value of C:\Windows\System32\vbscript.dll then simply add it.
3. Now go to the All programs option and then Accessories.
4. Here right-click on Command Prompt and then ‘Run as Administrator’.
5. Now type egsvr32 vbscript.dll then press enter. After that type regsvr32 jscript.dll and then press enter.
6. Restart your PC to activate changes.

Method 2

Sometimes error 2738 may occur when you uninstall preinstalled MacAfee antivirus software on your system. Un-installation usually leaves some trace components in the registry. These components must be removed completely otherwise error codes like 2738 may keep occurring on your computer screen. In such an event, the best way to resolve it is to download the McAfee Consumer Product Removal utility from McAfee's official website. Save this file on your desktop. Double click the file and follow the steps to remove this software completely and successfully from your PC. Proper removal of the McAfee program will resolve error 2738 right away. But if the error still persists then try other methods illustrated below.

Method 3

Download Restoro to remove incorrect and corrupt registry entries on your system that may be interfering with VBScript support. Restoro is a new and easy-to-use PC Repair Tool deployed with an intuitive interface and a powerful registry cleaner. The registry cleaner removes all entries corrupting the registry, cleans it, and resumes it to its normal state. Click here to download Restoro.

From photo editing and compositing to digital painting, animation, and graphic design you can do it all in Photoshop. Bring ideas to life across desktop and iPad. Magically transform images with the power of AI. Learn new skills and share your projects via Livestream. Started as a photo editing application, photoshop has surpassed the original ideas and designs in the following years growing with each release and including more tools and flexibility not matched in other applications. Photoshop was the first to introduce many new features and set standards for other applications. How years have passed product grew and innovation was pushed forward, it took some time but eventually, photoshop was able to set itself as the industry-standard application for pixel editing and it holds that position even today. Throughout the world artist all over the globe are using it to create digital art in various fields be that illustrations, film, photography, texturing, etc. Its vast majority of tools and possibilities as well as its extensibility with plugins, actions, brushes have cemented it in the highest place in any designer or artist toolkit. Today you can get it as a part of a creative suite for a monthly fee on the official adobe website and even if you do not need other creative suite applications photoshop is worth the fee alone. Simply you have to try it, learn it, and then harvest its power. If you would like to read more helpful articles and tips about various software and hardware visit errortools.com daily.

Windows 11 provides several different ways to make your cursor stand out and be easier to spot inside it. You can make the mouse pointer larger, invert it, or change its color.

1. Press ⊞ WINDOWS + I to open settings
2. Click on Accessibility in the sidebar
3. Select Mouse Pointer and Touch
4. Adjust mouse cursor size with size slider by clicking on circle and dragging it left or right
5. Under Mouse Pointer Style pick desired style from White, Black, Inverted, and Custom
   1. White: The cursor is white with a black outline (standard setting)
   2. Black: Cursor is black with a white outline
   3. Inverted: Cursor automatically changes color to an inverted version of the color it is currently hovering over
   4. Custom: You can pick the color for the cursor that you want.

And that is all about it, once you are done with pointer customization just close settings, all changes are saved automatically.

In case you don’t know, the Windows Registry contains a System Hive which is a core part of Windows. The Windows operating system store various settings, options, and configurations. And if you encounter a Device Manager Error 49 for a device then it means that the system hive has exceeded its size limit. Worry not for this post will provide you with possible solutions that can help you in fixing error code 49. You will see the following error message when you encounter error code 49:

“Windows cannot start new hardware devices because the system hive is too large (exceeds the Registry Size Limit), (Code 49)”

There are instances when it may so happen that the device or devices are no longer attached to the computer but they are still listed in the system hive of the registry. For instance, if you were removing hardware and application for years but they weren’t removed from the registry then the size of the system hive keeps on growing until it hits the maximum limit. As you know, making changes in the registry manually, no matter how knowledgeable you are on such things is not sage since the registry is not only important but also complex. In addition, the System Hive is also a permanent part of the Registry associated with a set of files that contain information related to the configuration of the computer on which the OS is installed. To resolve this error, you must remove or uninstall any hardware devices that are no longer in the system. In fact, the Device Manager hides them by default so you need to enable hidden or non-present devices. Follow the instructions given below to set the Devices Manager to display devices that are no longer connected to the computer. Step 1: Tap the Win + R keys to open the Run dialog box. Step 2: After that type in “cmd” and hit Enter to open the Command Prompt. Step 3: Type “set devmgr_show_nonpresent_devices=1” in the Command Prompt and hit Enter to enable the hidden devices option. Step 4: After that, exit Command Prompt and tap Win + X + M to open the Devices Manager. Step 5: After opening the Devices Manager, click on View and then select the “Show hidden devices” option. This will show you all the devices that are not connected to the computer but are still mentioned. Step 6: Next, select a non-present device and click Uninstall from the Driver tab. Step 7: After that, repeat what you’ve done on step 5 for any other device that you no longer use. Step 8: Restart your computer. You can check the device Properties dialog box in the Device Manager after you’re done removing all the useless devices, to check if the error is now fixed or not. Moreover, you can also try running the Hardware and Devices Troubleshooter as it can also help resolve hardware-related problems. To use it, refer to the steps below.

• The first thing you need to do is click on Start and then on the gear-like icon to pull up the window for Settings.
• After opening Settings, look for the Update and Security option and select it.
• From there, go to the Troubleshoot option located on the left-hand side of the list.
• Next, select Hardware and Devices from the list and open the Troubleshooter and run it. Once it is doing its job, wait for it to complete the process and then restart the system.
• After the system restarts, check if the problem’s now fixed. If not, refer to the next option given below.

Error Code C19000101 - 2000B on Windows 10– What is it?

Error Code C19000101 - 2000B is a Blue Screen of Death (BSOD) error encountered by Windows users in an attempt to upgrade their operating system from Windows 7 or Windows 8/8.1 to Windows 10. The system upgrade does not successfully finish and when the installation is resurrected, it fails then reverts back to the original operating system. More and more Windows users come across this error that may have been triggered by a few reasons to be discussed in this article.

Solution

Error Causes

Microsoft users can experience the BSOD error C19000101-2000B due to the following reasons:

• There’s an incompatibility with the drivers
• Antivirus software

Further Information and Manual Repair

In fixing error code C19000101-2000B, you can try doing it manually. Manual repair methods can offer users solutions effectively and efficiently, having to address the root causes and issues in relation to a number of Windows error codes. If properly implemented, these manual repair methods can help Windows users resolve problems at hand immediately. However, there are cases where the help of a Windows professional is necessary. In such instances, it would be best to consult a certified Windows expert or you can also try using a powerful automated tool whenever needed.

To be able to fix error code C19000101-2000B, implement the first method used in resolving error code 0xc000021a, then you can proceed with this first method:

Method One: Perform Clean-Boot

1. Prior to performing an upgrade, you need to disable your antivirus. Or, better yet, uninstall it.
2. Ensure that your PC name is simple without hyphens, periods, or dashes.
3. Restart your device several times, then try again.
4. Disable all USB devices such as a smart card reader.
5. If you are using a SCSI hard disk, be sure to have the drivers ready and available for a storage device like a thumb drive to be connected. While on the Windows 10 setup, select the Custom Advanced Option then use the Load Driver command to load the right driver for the SCSI drive. If the setup still fails, try switching to an IDE-based hard disk.
6. Launch a clean boot, restart your device, then try again.
7. If you are upgrading to Windows 10 using the .ISO file, make sure to disconnect from your internet connection during setup. If your device is connected by Wi-Fi or through LAN, you need to disable both before attempting to run a  system upgrade again.
8. Switch to a local account if you are connected to a domain.
9. Ensure that all external devices such as USB keys, external hard drives, gaming controllers, or printers are not attached to your device.

If you are upgrading to Windows 10 using Windows Update, you can perform a manual repair using the next method.

Method Two: Upgrading Via Windows Update

1. Make sure to disconnect from the Wi-Fi or LAN once the download reaches 100% before you proceed with the system upgrade.
2. Press Windows + X to open the command prompt window as an administrator.
3. Stop the Windows Update service, BITS, MSI Installer, and Cryptographic by inputting the following commands one by one, hitting Enter after every command:

Net stop wuauserv

Net stop bits Net stop msiserver Net stop cryptSvc

4. Restart both Software Distribution and Catroot2 folders. You can do this by typing Ren C: WindowsSoftwareDistribution SoftwareDistribution.old and Ren C: WindowsSystem32catroot2 Catroot2.old in the command prompt to change the names of both Software Distribution and Catroot2 files.
5. Restart the Windows Update service, BITS, MSI Installer, and Cryptographic by inputting the following commands one by one, hitting Enter after every command:

Net start wuauserv

Net start bits Net start msiserver Net start cryptSvc

6. Exit the command prompt then restart your device. You can now try to proceed with the system upgrade again.

Method Three: Disable or Uninstall Antivirus

1. If you opt to just disable your antivirus, you just have to right-click on the antivirus’ icon from your toolbar then choose Disable.
2. Press Ctrl + Alt + Del to open the Task Manager.
3. Check if all the files or services linking to your antivirus are turned off.
4. If you choose to uninstall your antivirus (which is recommended), open Control Panel.
5. Once the Control Panel window is open, select Programs then Uninstall a Program.
6. Look for your antivirus on the list, right-click it then choose Uninstall.

What is Error 0xe0434f4d?

Error 0xe0434f4d displays when a remote computer runs an instance of the SQL Server 2005 but it fails to initialize. When the plan is started, this error displays in a status window on the SQL Server. Also, when the Update-OffilineAddressBook cmdlet is started in Microsoft Exchange Server, this error can occur.

Solution

Error Causes

Error 0xe0434f4d can occur for possibly two main reasons. The first one is when the System Attendant Service is not properly running, and the second when you don’t have the permission to run the update. Other causes are when the .NET Framework 2.0 security does not allow sqlplanlaunch access to run from a shared network. Another cause is when the Offline Address Book (OAB) is not found in the Configuration Domain Controller server that the server of OAB generation uses.

Further Information and Manual Repair

In case you didn’t know, the Offline Address Book generation server is a mailbox server, and in order to resolve error 0xe0434f4d, you will have to replicate the OAB object to the Configuration Domain Controller server. In order to do so, follow steps:

• Go to start and click on All Programs, then go and click on Microsoft Exchange Server 2010. Click on Exchange Management Console
• In Exchange Management Console, go to Server Configuration and click on Mailbox
• In the details, go to mailbox server that generates Offline Address Book and right-click it, then go to Properties
• In the Properties, click on System Setting and locate the domain controller name in the box that reads Domain controller servers being used by Exchange

Make sure the OAB object is reproduced in the Configuration Domain Controller Server. Follow these steps to do that:

• Go to Start and click on Run. Type Adsiedit.msc in Open box and press Enter. Right-click on ADSI Edit and click on Connect to
• Locate a list reading Select a well-known naming context, and from there select Default naming context. In a Select or type a domain or server window, type FQDN (fully qualified domain name) of the Configuration Domain Controller server which was determined in step 1, and click OK
• Expand Configuration [dc.domain.com], expand CN=Configuration, DC=domain, DC=com, expand CN=Services, expand CN=First Organization, and expand CN=Address Lists Container
• Click on CN=Offline Address Lists and make sure the OAB object is listed on the details pane

When the OAB generation server receives this, then it will connect to the Configuration Domain Controller server and will locate the OAB object. If the OAB generation server is unable to find the OAB object, then the error will return on the cmdlet. On SQL Server, you should change the .NET permissions to allow sqlplanlaunch application access to run from shared administration. For that, follow these steps:

• On ArchiveIQ Server, open System from the Control Panel and note down the computer name
• On SQL Server, log in as administrator and open the command prompt
• On the command prompt type, ‘C:windowsmicrosoft.netframeworkv2.0.50727caspol.ece –m –ag l – url file:\[Archive IQServer Computer Name]AlQRemote$*FullTrust and Press Enter. Type yes and press Enter again to confirm the permission changes.

We are all waiting for the release of Intel’s Alder Lake series of processors and real-world results on its performance. Sadly lately it came to our attention that some games might have issues with the processor. Now before you go on the bandwagon on bashing Intel itself take note that it is not Intel’s fault at all. The issue that arises is mostly due to DRM software and how it works. As you might know or not, Alder Lake has two sets of cores, standard performance cores, and power cores, and with Intel’s Thread Director on-chip right cores will be used for the right tasks, and here lies the issue. DRM software might detect Thread Director as something suspicious and malicious, and then cut access to the game because of this. Intel, of course, has reached DRM manufacturers and places documentation about how software should be developed with this hybrid technology in mind. Of course, newer games will be updated if needed and everything will work fine, also games on GOG will work fine because of GOG’s policy of no DRM store but some older ones might be left in limbo. They could work fine but DRM might be triggered and prevent them from loading, usually, game developer itself removes DRM protection after some time but that is not really always the case and there is a chance that some games might simply just not work on Alder Lake CPU only because of DRM protection.

Conclusion

I will admit that I have not been a great fan of DRM in general, I understand that game developer want to protect themselves from piracy but how it looks they were not really successful with it. Even today single-player games get pirated on the day they are released and legally bought ones always make trouble for people that actually paid for them. I remember times when DRM was awful and you could install a game a limited number of times, luckily this was removed but it seems that many old habits still remain sadly and DRM is present even today in various forms. GOG is proof that people will buy DRM-free games and that they will support this kind of model. Maybe it is time to forget about fighting against piracy, you will not make it go away and people who do not want to buy games will not buy them, on other hand many users that do buy games, if they cannot use them they will rest to pirated version since that one will work. It is sad to see that pirated software can work better than a legal one and offer a more pleasant experience.

In 27 European countries for some time it has been considered for introducing a law that would force phones, tablets, laptops, and other mobile devices to use a single USB Type-C connector.

The European Parlament announced that a provisional agreement has been reached and that it was voted that a single charging solution is USB Type-C. The current agreement applies and covers the next devices: phones, tablets, Readers, earbuds, digital cameras, headphones, headsets, handheld consoles, and portable speakers. All currently existing devices can still be sold without issues but starting in the fall of 2024 all-new products must support USB Type-C charging.

The agreement will also hit Laptops but not on the same date, How is USB Type-C currently not enough for charging laptops, all new laptops that will have to use it are scheduled for fall of 2025.

Although the agreement is reached the EU Parliament and Council still have to formally approve everything.

Apple targeted the most

Apple has been targeted as the main target for rules since their iPhones are still using Apple's proprietary Lightning charging port. Apple sells a lot of iPhones in Europe and even though iPad Pro and iPad Air along with all MacBooks have moved to USB Type-C, iPhones are still struggling with the Lightning port.

Apple criticized the EU’s charger rules when they were first proposed in 2021, telling the BBC, “We remain concerned that strict regulation mandating just one type of connector stifles innovation rather than encouraging it, which in turn will harm consumers in Europe and around the world.” The European Union has said in response that it will update its rules as new technology arrives.

Why was this proposed?

The main problem in Europe that led to this proposition was electronic waste which reached 11 000 metric tons in 2018. European union is afraid that this will keep rising as chargers become larger and heavier in order to accommodate faster-charging speeds. More electronic waste means more hardware slowly decomposing in landfills that will contribute to climate change affecting everyone on the planet, not just the people living in Europe.

We couldn’t update system reserved partition” - What is it?

Customers will most likely encounter the “We couldn’t update system reserved partition” error when upgrading to Windows 10 from Windows 7 or Windows 8.1. This error may also come with error code 0xc1900104 or error code 0x800f0922.

Solution

Error Cause

“We couldn’t update system reserved partition” Windows 10 upgrade error is normally caused by too little space on the System Reserved Partition (SRP). The System Reserve Partition is an additional small partition created by Windows, which stores boot files. The SRP can be filled up with security apps and third-party anti-virus. Once this partition has insufficient space, the system will not be able to upgrade to Windows 10.

Further Information and Manual Repair

Caution: The following steps are complex and need to be done by experienced users especially using the command line. Once an error is made in entering commands, there’s a chance that your device can be put in a no-boot situation, or data stored on the device can possibly get lost.

To upgrade to Windows 10, your device needs to have at least 15MB free space on the System Reserved Partition. Follow the procedure below and then try upgrading again.

First, know if the System Reserved Partition is whether in GPT or MBR partition style:

1. Open the Run window by pressing the Windows key + R. Type msc in the window then press Enter.
2. Right-click on the Disk where SRP is located then select
3. Click over the Volumes
4. On the Partition Style line, you’ll see which partition style your device is using, either Master Boot Record (MBR) or GUID Partition Table (GPT)

Second, determine which method you will need:

Depending on what partition style your device has and whether you’re currently on Windows 7 or Windows 8/8.1, there are various methods you need to do.

Method 1: Windows 7 or 8/8.1 with GPT partition

1. Click on the Start button and search for cmd. In the results, right-click on Command Prompt then choose Run as administrator. The command prompt window will appear.
2. Type mountvol y: /s at the command prompt then press Enter. This command will add the Y: drive letter where you can access the System Partition.
3. Type taskkill /im explorer.exe /f then hit Enter. Afterward, restart explorer in Admin mode by typing exe and hitting Enter.

NOTE: While in Admin mode, some apps like OneNote will not run.

4. Open File Explorer then type Y:EFIMicrosoftBoot in the address bar. Hit Enter.
5. Choose the language folders you want to permanently delete. Language folders are named with four letters split with a hyphen. For instance, you want to delete the German language: choose de-DE.
6. Optional: You can also delete unused font files for more space. Type Y:EFIMicrosoftBootFonts in the address bar then press enter.
7. Once you permanently deleted the unnecessary files, reboot the device to return to explorer.exe to normal mode and remove the Y: drive letter.

Method 2: Windows 7 with MBR partition

Doing this method will make a permanent, but small increase in the free space of the device’s SRP.

1. Delete language folders

a. Open the Run window by pressing the Windows key + R. Type diskmgmt.msc then hit Enter. b. Select System Reserve partition then right-click on it.

c. Choose Change Drive Letter and Paths then select Add.

d. Type Y for the drive letter then click OK.

e. Click on the Start button and search for cmd. In the results, right-click on Command Prompt then choose Run as administrator. The command prompt window will appear.

f. Type Y: at the command prompt then press Enter.

g. Once you’ve switched to drive Y, type takeown /d y /r /f . then hit Enter.

NOTE: Ensure that the space and period after “f” is included in order for the command to work properly      

h. Type icacls Y:* /save %systemdrive%NTFSp.txt /c /t then hit Enter to back up the permission to the drive.

NOTE: Ensure that all files are marked as successful and that no files are marked as failed.

i. Type whoami then hit Enter. Record the username that appears. Afterwards, type icacls . /grant <username you got from whoami>:F /t then press Enter.

NOTE: Ensure that there’s no space between the username and “:F” or the command will not work.

j. In the File Explorer, open the SRP drive and select the Boot folder. Choose the             language folders you want to permanently delete. Language folders are named      with four letters split with a hyphen. For example: de-DE is the German language          while en-US is the U.S. English language.

2. Truncate the NTFS Log:

a. Open the Command Prompt then type chkdsk /L Y: to check the size of the NTFS Log. If the NTFS Log size is less than 5000KB, you need not truncate the file.

b. Type chkdsk /L:5000 /X /F then hit Enter to truncate the NTFS Log.

c. Return to Disk Management window. Select Action menu then select Check if the device’s SRP now has a larger amount of free space. Once there’s enough space, right click the System Reserve Partition then select Change Drive Letter and Paths. Choose Y: then select Remove.

3. If there’s still not enough available space after truncating the NTFS Log, resize the USN journal:

a. Open the command prompt then type fsutil usn queryjournal Y: to display the size in hex value. Convert the hex value to decimal then divide it by 1048576. The result you will get will be in MB. If the journal size is 30MB or more, proceed with truncating the file.

NOTE: To convert the Hex value to Decimal, open the Calculator app in Windows then choose View menu. Select Programmer then choose Hex. Type the Hex value then choose Dec.

b. Type fsutil usn deletejournal /D /N Y: then hit Enter to delete the journal. Type fsutil usn createjournal m=1500 a=1 Y: to recreate the journal having the new log size value.

4. Restore permissions

a. Type icacls Y: /restore %systemdrive%NTFSp.txt /c /t in the Command Prompt. Check if the files were successfully processed before proceeding. If you see a message saying some files failed while processing, this is normal since some of the files have already been deleted before performing a backup. However, if there are no successful files indicated, the command was not properly executed.

b. Type icacls . /grant system:f /t then hit Enter to adjust the ACL back to System. Now, you can set the owner of the drive by typing icacls Y: /setowner “SYSTEM” /t /c then press Enter.

c. Check if the device’s SRP now has enough free space by going back to Disk Management and refreshing the data. If the SRP already has sufficient space, you can now remove the drive letter. Right-click on the System Reserved Partition then choose Change Drive Letter and Paths. Select the Y: drive then choose Confirm deleting the drive letter by clicking OK.

Method 3: Windows 8/8.1 with MBR partition

This method makes a larger, but temporary, increase in the SRP free space.

1. Be sure you have an external drive having at least 250 MB free space and formatted as NFTS.

2. Open Run by pressing the Windows key + R. Type mscthen to choose the Recovery Partition. Right-click on it then choose Change Drive Letter and Paths.

3. Select Add then type Y for the drive letter, click

4. Click on the Start screen then type cmd in the search bar. In the results, right-click on Command Prompt then choose Run as administrator. The command prompt window will appear.

5. Switch to another drive by typing Y: in the command prompt. Once you’re in the drive Y, type takeown /d y /r /f .

NOTE: Ensure that space and period after “f” are included in order for the command to work properly.

6. Type whoami then hit Enter. Record the username that appears. Afterward, type icacls . /grant <username you got from whoami>:F /t then press Enter.

NOTE: Ensure that there’s no space between the username and “:F” or else the command will not work.

7. Once the command is completed, type attrib -s -r –h Y:RecoveryWindowsREwinre.wim then hit Enter.
8. Open File Explorer and check the drive letter of the external drive you’re using (In this case, let’s assume F: is the drive letter of the external drive so when you see F: for the rest of the steps, this means the drive letter of the external drive you’re using).
9. Type mkdir F:RecoveryWindowsRE in the Command Prompt then hit Enter. Afterward, type xcopy Y:RecoveryWindowsREwinre.wim F:RecoveryWindowsREwinre.wim /h
10. Type C:WindowsSystem32Reagentc /SetREImage /Path F:RecoveryWindowsRE /Target C:Windows to map the new path
11. Verify if the copy was successfully done then type del Y:RecoveryWindowsREwinre.wim /F
12. Return to Disk Management window. Click on the Action menu then hit Check if the device’s SRP now has a larger amount of available space. Once there’s enough space, you can proceed with the upgrade.
13. Upon completion of the upgrade, move back the wim file to the Recovery Partition. At this point, you can re-map now the location by:
    1. Open the Command Prompt then type xcopy F:RecoveryWindowsREwinre.wim Y:RecoveryWindowsREwinre.wim /h and press Enter.
    2. Type C:WindowsSystem32Reagentc /SetREImage /Path Y:RecoveryWindowsRE /Target C:Windows to re-map to the original path.
14. Return to the Disk Management window. Right-click on the Recovery Partition then choose Change Drive Letter and Paths. Select the Y: drive then choose Remove.

Method: Download a Powerful Automated Tool

Not inclined to go through a long and technical process (as highlighted above)? Download and install a powerful automated tool and get the job done in a jiffy.

If you are using a Windows Update Standalone Installer to install Windows Updates in your Windows 10 computer but you suddenly encounter an error saying, “Installer encountered an error: 0x80096002, The certificate for the signer of the message is invalid or not found”, read on as this post will guide you on how you can fix it. This kind of error could be due to the vendor’s certificate that might have become invalid, compromised, or pulled. Aside from that, it is also possible that the update is not targeted at your OS version. You could get this error when you try to install an incompatible update or software on your computer. This error can also appear due to misconfigured system files or when you try to install BitLocker To Go Drive Encryption or BitLocker Drive Preparation Tool. To fix this error, you can try to run the standalone installer in Compatibility mode or enable the Windows Identity Foundation or run the Windows Update troubleshooter. Make sure to check if the error was resolved after every suggestion. It will help you learn what fixed the problem.

Option 1 – Try to run the installer in Compatibility mode

• Look for the setup file.
• Once you find it, right-click on it and select Properties from the context menu.
• After that, go to the Compatibility tab and mark the checkbox for “Run this program in compatibility mode for:” and from the drop-down list, select the Windows OS version you want the installer to run on.
• You also have to check the “Run as administrator” option.
• Now click the Apply button and then click OK to save the changes made and check if it has resolved the issue or not.

Option 2 – Try to troubleshoot compatibility

This option is almost the same as the first one except it is an alternative way of fixing the error 0x80096002 in case the first one didn’t work. In this option, you will troubleshoot the compatibility issue.

• Look for the setup file.
• Then right-click on it and select the “Troubleshoot compatibility” from the context menu.
• After that, click on the “Try recommended setting” option. Once the process is done, the error message should be gone.

Option 3 – Try to enable the Windows Identity Foundation

You might also want to enable the Windows Identity Foundation as some users reported that it helped in resolving the error for them. To do so, follow these steps:

• In the Windows Start Search, type “Turn Windows features on or off” and click on the matching result.
• This will open a list of Windows Features and from there, look for the Windows Identity Foundation.
• Once you found it, click on its checkbox and click OK to enable it and save the changes made.
• Now see if it has fixed the error or not. If not, you have to disable the feature.

Option 4 – Run the Windows Update Troubleshooter

Running the built-in Windows Update troubleshooter is one of the things you can first check out as it is known to automatically resolve any Windows Update errors like error 0x80096002. To run it, go to Settings and then select Troubleshoot from the options. From there, click on Windows Update and then click the “Run the troubleshooter” button. After that, follow the next on-screen instructions and you should be good to go.