How to Fix Error Code 0x80004005 on Windows 10

December 6, 2021 / Shayne Sherman

Error 0x80004005 in Windows 10 is translated as an unspecified error message. It is usually seen when users are unable to access drives, shared folders, their Microsoft accounts and many more. In addition, this unspecified error is also common when Windows Updates fails to install. Since it is an an “unspecified error” it could be attributed to a number of reasons.

The most common reason for users to experience this error is when they have a corrupt dll file or incorrect system files. In addition, this error can appear when extracting compressed files, or when there is an issue with your Windows update. But, most of the time this error code is related to Windows 10 updates and can also be due to file compression or notifications.

It can be difficult to fix this error code because it does not specify which program caused the error. Whenever the error happens, you’ll likely see a dialog box window pops up showing an error message: “An unexpected error is keeping you from renaming (or copying or deleting) the folder.”

In this article, we will show you different methods on how you can troubleshoot your computer to fix this error code.

Let’s get started.

Method 1: Run Windows Update Troubleshooter

It is best to run the Windows Update Troubleshooter if ever you experience error 0x80004005 when you were trying to update your Windows PC. This built-in utility is extremely reliable in identifying and fixing common Windows 10 update issues including an unspecified error. Follow these steps to launch Windows Update Troubleshooter:

Step 1: Press on Windows Key + I to Open Windows Settings

Step 2: On Windows Settings, Click on Update & Security

Step 3: Click Troubleshoot on the side menu

Step 4: Find Windows Update and click Run the troubleshooter

Step 5: Follow the steps on the Troubleshooter and Make sure to apply the fixes it offers

Method 2: Delete Windows Update Files

If your computer showed this error code after installing an update, chances are these updates are not installed properly or Windows encountered problems while installing the updates.

Proceed on the steps below on how to delete windows update files

Step 1: Press Windows Key + S and Search for File Explorer

Step 2: Open File Explorer

Step 3: Go to This PC

Step 4: Go to Local Disk (C:)

Step 5: Click on Windows Folder

Step 6: Find Software Distribution folder

Step 7: Delete all the contents of Software Distribution folder

Step 8: Restart your computer and see if the error code is gone

Method 3: Delete Temporary Files

If you have corrupted temporary files on your system it can also cause Windows error code 0x80004005. Deleting these files can make your computer run smoothly and eliminate the error code.

Step 1: Press on Windows Key + R and type %temp%

Step 2: Click Ok to open Temp folder

Step 3: Delete all the files inside temp folder

Step 4: Restart your computer and check if the error code is resolved

Method 4: Register jdscript and vbscript on Command Prompt

Step 1: Press on Windows Key + S and Search for Command Prompt

Step 2: Click on Run as Administrator

Step 3: On Command Prompt, type regsvr32 jscript.dll and hit Enter

Step 4: Then, type regsvr32 vbscript.dll and hit Enter

Step 5: Restart your computer and check if the error code is fixed

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Method 5: Add a Registry Key

If error messages appear when you are trying to move or copy files it may be an issue of having missing a registry key, follow the steps below to fix the issue.

Step 1: Press on Windows Key + S and Search for Registry Editor

Step 2: Click on Run as Administrator

Step 3: Click on HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE

Step 4: Click on SOFTWARE

Step 5: Under SOFTWARE, Click on Microsoft

Step 6: Under Microsoft, Click on Windows

Step 7: Under Windows, Click on CurrentVersion

Step 8: Under CurrentVersion, Click on Policies

Step 9: Under Policies, Click on System

Step 10: On System, Right click on the page and select New -> DWORD for 32Bit system and QWORD for 64bit system

Step 11: Name the file LocalAccountTokenFilterPolicy

Step 12: Right click on it and select modify

Step 13: Set the value to 1 and click Ok

Step 14: Restart your computer and see if the error code is fixed

Method 6: Use A Different Extraction Software To Extract A Zip File

Incorrect extraction of any zip file can cause the same error code. To fix the error, you can use a different extraction application to extract your zip file. For example, if you are experiencing this problem when using WinRAR, you can use 7zip to extract compressed files.

Method 7: Error 0x80004005 With Microsoft Outlook

This error occurs for some Microsoft Outlook users. Whenever new mail arrives, they get the error message: “Sending and receiving reported error “0x80004005″: The operation failed.”

The problem may be due to your antivirus software which blocks some features of Microsoft Outlook. Sometimes, it may also be due to some missing file or corrupted registry keys. There are two ways to fix this error.

Disable your antivirus’ app blocking feature. Simply follow the instructions from the manufacturer’s website.
Disable Outlook’s New Mail notifiaction. To disable, you need to locate Tools menu inside your Outlook account. Click Options and choose Preferences tab. Next, select “Email Options” option and uncheck the item “Display a notification message when new mail arrives”. Then click “OK” twice.

Method 8: Run a System File Checker Scan

A corrupted system file can also cause you to experience the error messages above. As a result, it will help if you run a system file checker scan. SFC helps repair corrupted system files.

Step 1: Press Windows Key and X and open Command Prompt (Admin) to open the Command Prompt as an administrator.

Step 2: In the prompt, input DISM.exe /Online /Cleanup-image /Restorehealth to run the Deployment Image Servicing and Management tool in Windows.

Step 3: Next, run the SFC scan by entering sfc /scannow in the Prompt and pressing Return.
The scan will take about 20-30 minutes to complete. Restart your PC once done.

Method 9: Fix Windows XP Based Computer with Error 0x80004005

Sometimes, users experience this error when they use a Windows XP operating system computer and the program file needed is missing or corrupt. Unfortunately, these files are required by Windows Product Activation (WPA)

Step 1: Setup your PC to boot from CD or DVD drive instead of XP operating system.

Step 2. Put Windows XP CD into computer and restart your computer. Just before your computer boot to system you’ll see a prompt showing “Press any key to boot from CD” and press a key to make it boot to CD. “To repair a Windows XP installation by using Recovery Console, press R.”, press R to enter Recovery Console.

Step 3: Once youll see the option “1. C:\WINDOWS”, please press 1 and you can access the primary drive installation. If you are asked to enter administrator password, then type it in then press Enter

Step 4. Next, type cd C:\WINDOWS\System32 and hit Enter. Use REN command to rename following files by typing REN File_Name.extension File_Name.old. Wpa.dbl Pidgen.dll Actshell.html Licdll.dll Regwizc.dll Licwmi.dll Wpabaln.exe

Step 5. Enter the drive letter of CD including a colon (e.g. G:) and hit Enter key. Go on tying cd i386 and press Enter. Type commands below and each command followed by pressing Enter.

expand licwmi.dl_ %systemroot%\system32
expand regwizc.dl_ %systemroot%\system32
expand licdll.dl_ %systemroot%\system32
expand wpabaln.ex_ %systemroot%\system32
expand wpa.db_ %systemroot%\system32
expand actshell.ht_ %systemroot%\system32
copy pidgen.dll %systemroot%\system32
When you finish previous steps, you can type Exit to close Recovery Console and press Enter key to restart computer.

If you find yourself still encountering the error code after following all the methods in this article. The last thing you can try is to do a full Windows reinstallation.