SMB problems/ enable

Dear J M

Welcome to Microsoft Q&A. I'm Haien from Microsoft Q&A.

May I ask if you have tried my suggestions for your case? I hope you can keep me updated on your issue in the future.

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• If you've already tried these steps and are still encountering issues, please reply to this thread with the requested details so we can investigate further and ensure your subscription is activated properly. Also, please keep me updated with anything new that you were try to each option.
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We appreciate your patience and look forward to resolving this quickly for you.

Warm regards,

Haien - MSFT | Microsoft Q&A Support Specialist

Dear J M

Thank you for reaching out. I'm Haien from Q&A Forum. Welcome to Microsoft Q&A Forum.  

Thanks for reaching out with your SMB problem. It looks like you're trying to enable the SMB2 Protocol using PowerShell, but you're running into an "Access is denied" error. That's a very common issue when trying to modify system configurations, and it usually points to insufficient administrative privileges.  

To help you further, please allow me to ask a few questions to provide to you more suitable solutions: 

• When you opened PowerShell, did you explicitly "Run as administrator"? 
• Is this a personal PC or a company-managed device? If you are using your company device, did you ask for your IT permission to access into? 
• Have you modified SMB settings before? Are you trying to enable SMB2 for a specific purpose? 
• Have you recently updated Windows or installed any new software that might have changed permissions? 

The "Access is denied" error (Windows System Error 5) when running Set-SmbServerConfiguration is almost always a permissions issue. The command you're trying to execute modifies a core Windows networking component, and Windows security protocols prevent regular user accounts from making such changes. enabling SMB2 as a server (e.g., to share files from your Home PC) is more restricted. The Set-SmbServerConfiguration command you tried requires administrative privileges and full SMB server capabilities, which are limited in Home compared to Pro/Enterprise. Home supports basic file sharing, but advanced server configurations (like manually enabling/disabling SMB2 via PowerShell) might not work as expected due to these restrictions. I can help you try some of these first, but for your convenience, I suggest you check your work PC for administrator rights or contact your company IT if you are using your company computer. 

Here are some effective ways that you can try to fix the problem: 

Solution 1: Open PowerShell as an Administrator 

• Close your current PowerShell window > Open PowerShell with Administrator Rights > Start button > Type "PowerShell" in the search bar > right-click on "Windows PowerShell" (or "PowerShell") > "Run as administrator". 
• Run the command again > press Enter 
  • Set-SmbServerConfiguration -EnableSMB2Protocol $true 
• Check if SMB2 is enabled by running 
  • Get-SmbServerConfiguration | Select EnableSMB2Protocol. 

For additional information, please visit this article to know more:  Starting Windows PowerShell - PowerShell | Microsoft Learn 

Solution 2: Check SMB Feature Availability 

• Open Control Panel > Programs > Turn Windows features on or off > Look for "SMB 1.0/CIFS File Sharing Support" or related SMB options. 
  • If SMB features are missing or grayed out, Windows 10 Home might not allow full SMB server configuration—consider upgrading to Pro. 
• Test the command again after any changes. 

Solution 3: Upgrade to Windows 10 Pro (Last Resort) 

• Go to Settings > Update & Security > Activation > Go to the Store > Purchase Windows 10 Pro (check Microsoft Store) and upgrade. 
• After upgrading, rerun the PowerShell command. 

Note/Warning: Back up all data before upgrading, as activation errors can occur with unofficial methods. Please visit this article to know how to back up your data via Tab Windows 10: Back up and restore with Windows Backup

For additional information about this topic, please visit these articles to know more about your reported problem:

• Detect, enable, and disable SMBv1, SMBv2, and SMBv3 in Windows
• Set-SmbServerConfiguration

If you've already tried these steps and are still encountering issues, please reply to this thread with the requested details so we can investigate further and ensure your subscription is activated properly. Also, please keep me updated with anything new that you were try to each option. 

If the answer is helpful, please click "Accept Answer" and kindly upvote it. If you have extra questions about this answer, please click "Comment".   

Note: Please follow the steps in our documentation to enable e-mail notifications if you want to receive the related email notification for this thread.  

We appreciate your patience and look forward to resolving this quickly for you.   

Warm regards,   

Haien - MSFT | Microsoft Q&A Support Specialist