Windows Media Center Decoder Error

I have the latest TV tuner driver.  I never lost the ability to record TV programs with WMC, I just could not play them or watch live TV.

I decided to remove WMC and reinstall it.  I did not have any problems removing WMC.  After I restarted my computer and returned to the Windows Features Add/Remove I was unable to reinstall WMC.  I do not get an error immediately.  It appears that WMC is being installed, but I get the following error:

Based on web searches for the Error Code, this appears to be caused by a write access problem.  I have administrative rights, but I am not able to perform the actions that an Administrator should be able to perform.  The following image shows the error that I get when I go to Computer Management/Disk Management, show properties for C:, select the Sharing tab, and then select Advanced Sharing:

I had already seen that page about codecs.  I tried to follow the advice about going to WMP to see if there was any information about codecs.  The help for WMP says "This Help content has moved to a new home on the Windows website. Was this helpful?" That was not very helpful.

I may have a problem with codecs, but WMP will play the same files that WMC will not play.  The video files that I am trying to play were recorded from live TV with WMC.  Is it possible to re-install WMC without losing my license?  Will I need my code from the first installation to re-install WMC?

WMC is still recording live TV even though it will not play the files.  I am able to stream these files to my Roku, but I can not watch them on my PC with WMC.  I am also not able to watch live TV even though I am able to record it.

I upgraded to Windows 8.1 and WMC was working fine.  Shortly after the upgrade WMC stopped playing all video files and gave an error stating that it did not have the correct codec.  When this problem occurred I also lost the ability to play any audio files.

I uninstalled all of the drivers for my video card (AMD HD4600 series), restarted the computer, and then reinstalled drivers for the video card.  Now I am able to play audio files, but WMC will still not play video files.

I read a tip that said to look at Media Player to see what codecs are installed.  Although I could not find a list of codecs in WMP I did notice that it can play the same files that cannot be played in WMC.  This problem does not seem to be specific to any specific file format, WMP played every format that I tried and WMC is unable to play any video files.

Every time I try to play a video file or watch live TV I get an error that says "Decoder Error" "The video decoder is not working, is not installed, or is not supported. Try installing the codec or restarting your computer. For more information about codecs, see Windows Help."

I shall suggest you to update your tv tuner card driver as well as graphic card driver.Visit the websites of the manufacturers to download and install the latest drivers.

​Hi,

Thank you for providing the detailed information about the issue. As per the error message that you have mentioned, it is an issue with the Codec. I would suggest you to try installing Codec and check if it works for you.

Codecs: frequently asked questions:

http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/codecs-frequently-asked-questions#codecs-frequently-asked-questions=windows-8

Disclaimer: Using Third Party Software, including hardware drivers can cause serious problems that may prevent your computer from booting properly. Microsoft cannot guarantee that any problems resulting from the use of Third Party Software can be solved. Using Third Party Software is at your own risk.

Please reply with the status of the issue, so that we could help you better.