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Error message when you try to validate a copy of Windows: The cryptographic operation failed because of a local security option setting

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This article provides a solution to an error that occurs when you try to validate a copy of Windows.

Original KB number:   2715304

Symptoms

When you try to validate a copy of Windows, you may receive an error message that resembles the following:

Update installation failed. Error information: 0x80092026

When you try to validate Windows, Windows downloads an update 971033. However, when Windows tries to install the update, the update shows an error message that is mentioned above. Additionally, if you try to download the update KB971033 on your machine and run it manually, you may receive following error message:

Installer encountered an error: 0x80092026
The cryptographic operation failed due to a local security option setting.

Cause

This error occurs when the State value of the following registry subkey is incorrectly set. This value corresponds to the Internet Explorer security setting Check for publisher's certificate Revocation and Check for signatures on downloaded programs.

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\WinTrust\Trust Providers\Software Publishing

You can find a key with the name State. By default the value is set to 23c00.

Resolution

To resolve this problem, change the registry key to a valid setting, for example:

  • State = 0x00023e00 - Check for publisher's certificate Revocation Unchecked
  • State = 0x00023c00 - Check for publisher's certificate Revocation Checked

Use one of the following methods:

Method 1: Edit the registry

Warning

If you use Registry Editor incorrectly, you may cause serious problems that may require you to reinstall your operating system. Microsoft cannot guarantee that you can solve problems that result from using Registry Editor incorrectly. Use Registry Editor at your own risk.

  1. Start Registry Editor (Regedit.exe).
  2. Navigate to HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\WinTrust\Trust Providers\Software Publishing.
  3. On the left side pane, look for State key and double-click to open it.
  4. Change the Value data to 23c00 or 23e00 (Hexadecimal).
  5. Quit Registry Editor.

Method 2: Create a reg file

  1. Start Notepad.

  2. In Notepad, paste the following information.

    Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00
[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\WinTrust\Trust Providers\Software Publishing
"State"=dword:00023c00

  3. Save the file as a .reg file.

  4. Double-click the .reg file that you saved in step 3.

Above registry changes don't require any reboot. You can try to install the update manually.

You would be able to validate your Windows successfully.

More information

In some cases, you might be required to update the State value for following two registries as well.

  • HKEY_USERS\S-1-5-18\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\WinTrust\Trust Providers\Software Publishing
  • HKEY_USERS\.DEFAULT\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\WinTrust\Trust Providers\Software Publishing

Note

Ensure whatever value is updated for HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\WinTrust\Trust Providers\Software Publishing, should be exact for above two registry.

Data collection

If you need assistance from Microsoft support, we recommend you collect the information by following the steps mentioned in Gather information by using TSS for deployment-related issues.