Windows Installer service not running 0x80070641

[Vistaar]

I never heard of malware targeting Windows Installer, but it might be interesting to know what antivirus (if any) is installed on this Vista system? Options for Vista are extremely limited now, and Microsoft Safety Scanner (msert) does not support Vista.

I agree with wither 3 that Malwarebytes Free 2.2.1 was a good scanner for Vista. During installation, you can deselect the free trial of Premium. (3.5.1 had no such option, which is one reason I wouldn’t recommend it.) Immediately after installation, you should look for Update Settings and deselect “Check for program updates when checking for database updates.” Only then should you attempt to update definitions and scan for malware.

 

[Teknoskillz]

Ok I ran MBAM 221 and it found alot of PUP's but no malware. Database could not be updated, I guess because Vista is not supported in later versions. I previously had a free trial, so this new install did not give me another trial.

Most of the PUP's were ASC related (Advanced system care) - which is the set of utilities I run to keep the system clean of hijacks, and its got a free malware/ AV utility with updates that I run checks with often. An infection has never been detected since I have used them, and I imagine the
virus writers have mostly focused on infections for new Windows versions, and do not have many floating around on random webpages, unless you click on a link or a unverified file.

Some others items found seemed adware related , so I removed / quarantined them. This seems to have fixed an issue with some Browsers that use a chrome module, where a Window would show up saying "your preferences cannot be saved" and speedlaunch url's were always wiped out. So MBAM helped out a little there, thanks.

 

[lmacri]

Ok I ran MBAM 221 and it found alot of PUP's but no malware. Database could not be updated, I guess because Vista is not supported in later versions. I previously had a free trial, so this new install did not give me another trial.

Most of the PUP's were ASC related (Advanced system care) - which is the set of utilities I run to keep the system clean of hijacks...

Hi Teknoskillz:

Just an FYI that you can download Malwarebyte v3.5.1 (the current legacy version for Win XP and Vista that still receives updates for the malware database) from https://downloads.malwarebytes.com/file/mb3_legacy. See the section titled "Malwarebytes Support for Legacy Windows XP and Vista Operating Systems" in the Malwarebytes FAQ posted <here> in the Malwarebytes for Windows forum for more information. As long as your CPU supports the SSE2 instruction set (e.g., Pentium 4 and higher) you should be able to use this version of Malwarebytes on your Vista machine. Note that many free utilities like Piriform's Speccy will list the instruction sets your CPU supports.

If you already have an antivirus or some other security program running in real-time protection mode and are worried about a potential conflict you can simply disable the 14-day trial version of the Premium real-time protection features at Settings | Account | Deactivate Premium Trial and start using Malwarebytes Free as an on-demand scanner. Start with a Threat Scan and if nothing is detected then move on to a Custom Scan of your entire hard drive. I have Settings | Protection | Potential Threat Protection set to Warn User for both PUPs and PUMs so I'm always notified before any lower-risk threats (e.g., like your Advanced System Care) are removed.



I don't think you should have any difficulty declining the 14-day trial version of Premium features for Malwarebytes v3.5.1, even during installation. If I recall correctly, the extra prompt asking users to provide a valid email address to try the 14-day trial was only added to installers for newer versions of Malwarebytes v3.x for Win 7 SP1 and higher (e.g., Malwarebytes v3.8.3) and those installers have been obsolete since Malwarebytes v4.x for Win 7 SP1 and higher was released in Nov 2019.
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32-bit Vista Home Premium SP2 * Firefox ESR v52.9.0 * Malwarebytes Premium v3.5.1.2522-1.0.365 * Speccy Portable v1.32.740
HP Pavilion dv6835ca, Intel Core2Duo T5550 @ 1.83 GHz, WD Scorpio 256 GB SATA HDD, 3 GB RAM, NVIDIA GeForce 8400M GS

 

[Vistaar]

Just an FYI that you can download Malwarebyte v3.5.1 (the current legacy version for Win XP and Vista that still receives updates for the malware database)....See the section titled "Malwarebytes Support for Legacy Windows XP and Vista Operating Systems" in the Malwarebytes FAQ....
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* Malwarebytes Premium v3.5.1.2522-1.0.365 *

Malwarebytes v3.5.1.2522-1.0.365 was released on May 8, 2018, so your use of the adjective “current” seems peculiar to me. Are we expecting another legacy version to be released? (The company’s misuse of the noun “support” is troubling in that it seems to offer false hopes of an upgrade to XP and Vista diehards.)

Malwarebytes 2.2.1 was only about a year older, and I was not the only Vista user who preferred it to the early 3.x versions: There was also @ilikefree at this forum and devilus at Bleeping Computer (who reports that he is still receiving definition updates for it).

It almost goes without saying that Malwarebytes cannot be expected to fix the OP’s long-standing SFC issue or his Windows Installer issue, but he could try as many versions as he wants to. Also, I don’t think there are any Vista x64 systems with processors that don’t support SSE2.

 

[lmacri]

...If I run msiexec from the run cmd, the splash screen for the one I removed shows up: Windows ® Installer. V 4.5.6002.19424 and I tried the UNREGISTER command, but that screen still will appear. No installer entry in the services.msc display readout.

Hi Teknoskillz:

Can you give an example (name and version) of an .msi installer you run that throws one of these 0x80070641 errors?

Just an FYI that my Vista SP2 OS was patched to the end of extended support (11-Apr-2017) and if I go to Start | Run and enter "msiexec" it shows I have Windows Installer v4.5.6002.19424. I can also see the Windows Installer service in my Windows Services. Please note that it's normal for the Windows Installer service to be stopped after each boot-up because the default Startup Type is Manual - the service should start automatically if your Windows operating system needs to install a .MSI installer.





If you still can't see the Windows Installer service listed in your Windows Services, you might find some helpful hints in the TechWalla article MSI Won't Install (e.g., make sure you right-click and choose "Run as Administrator" when you run the .MSI installer). You mentioned you unregistered the Windows Installer service MSIExec, but be sure you re-register it per the instructions in Step # 5 of that TechWalla article.

.... Investigating that, I found a reference to download a malware scanner from MS 365, which I did, but it returns this error:

View attachment 30923

Please note that Microsoft deactivated their Windows Update servers for Win XP and Vista on 03-Aug-2020 - see the Microsoft support article Windows Update SHA-1 Based Endpoints Discontinued for Older Windows Devices about errors you will now see if you try to run Windows Update on Vista SP2 computers that do not support SHA-2 code signing after that date.

Microsoft malware scanners have been using malware definitions signed exclusively with SHA-2 digital certificates since 19-Oct-2019, and given that Vista SP2 machines patched to end of support on 11-Apr-2017 do not support SHA-2 code signing that might explain why you saw the msert.exe error you posted in post # 17 regarding the digital certificate. For example, if I download the latest 32-bit virus definition set posted at Security Intelligence Updates for Microsoft Defender Antivirus and Other Microsoft Antimalware under the heading "Windows Defender in Windows 7 and Windows Vista" (mpas-fe.exe, v1.347.68.0, created 19-Aug-2021) the properties show that this update package is uniquely signed with a SHA-2 digital signature and will fail to run on Vista machines.

At some point I downloaded Windows6.1-KB2699779-v2-x86.msu and windows6.0-kb3196726-x64_fcdcbfc31843bb8f8c2fa016a90d2d4b131e08b0.msu thinking those installers would take, but they didnt. It returns a 0x8007042...:

...Update: After starting the Windows update service, that update did install.

Am I correct that you downloaded the 32-bit (x86) or 64-bit standalone .msu installer for KB3196726 from the Microsoft Update Catalog at https://www.catalog.update.microsoft.com/Search.aspx?q=KB3196726 Vista, and that when you double-clicked to start the installer it would throw an 0x80070422 error? Have all these 0x80070422 errors stopped since you started the Windows Update service?

Keeps fixing corruptions, and the corruptions keep recurring. I think theres a log to read on its findings. I have sent it in the past to some
Windows support websites, but they dont believe its able to be addressed.

The scan logs for System File Checker (sfc /scannow) are stored in C:\Windows\Logs\CBS\CBS.log and are tagged with the string "[SR]". If you run the command findstr /c:"[SR]" %windir%\logs\cbs\cbs.log >%userprofile%\Desktop\SFCdetails.txt in an elevated command prompt with Administrator Rights as shown below this will extract the details of your SFC scan from CBS.log and save it to a file called SFCdetails.txt on your desktop. Instead of re-typing this long command you can copy and paste it into your command prompt.



I'm not trained to diagnose CBS.log files so I likely won't be of much help if SFC is unable to repair your corrupted system files, but the MS support article Analyze the Log File Entries That SFC.exe Generates in Windows has some basic information on interpreting the output.
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32-bit Vista Home Premium SP2 * Firefox ESR v52.9.0 * Malwarebytes Premium v3.5.1.2522-1.0.365 * Speccy Portable v1.32.740
HP Pavilion dv6835ca, Intel Core2Duo T5550 @ 1.83 GHz, WD Scorpio 256 GB SATA HDD, 3 GB RAM, NVIDIA GeForce 8400M GS

 

[lmacri]

Hi Teknoskillz:

Further to my previous post, what is the make and model of your computer? You started this thread in the Crashes and Debugging board of this forum, but have you actually seen any BSODs on this computer in recent months? Other than your issue installing .MSI files, are you having any other problems with this machine?

Your msinfo32 log has lots of information about your hardware components but doesn't say much about your installed software or the current state of your OS, other than the fact that you have a Vista Ultimate SP2 OS. At this point I'm not even sure if your OS is 32-bit or 64-bit, what antivirus you use, or whether your OS was patched to end of support on 11-Apr-2017.

It would be helpful if you could publish a Speccy diagnostic of your system. Speccy doesn't do a deep dive like the Farbar Recovery Scan Tool (FRST) to look for errors logged by Event Viewer, etc., but Speccy will give us some basic information about the services running on your system and the current state of your OS. To publish a Speccy snapshot:

1. Download Speccy Portable (spsetup132.zip) <here> from the Softpedia site and save to a USB thumb drive (or any other location you prefer).
2. Unzip spsetup132.zip and double-click the .exe executable (Speccy.exe for a 32-bit OS; Speccy64.exe for a 64-bit OS) to launch the program. Wait for Speccy to collect system information and populate the interface.
3. Go to File | Publish Snapshot and then copy and paste the URL this generates (e.g., http: // speccy.piriform.com/results/xxx... ) in your next post (see the support article Publishing a Speccy Profile to the Web for further details).

___________________________________

If you're curious what information the Farbar Recovery Scan Tool (FRST) can collect about your system then instructions are posted in I'm Infected - What Do I Do Now? that is pinned at the top of Malwarebytes' Windows Malware Removal Help & Support board. You're welcome to attach your FRST.txt and Addition.txt logs in this VistaForums thread - I'm not trained to interpret the output in these detailed FRST logs but I'd be happy to take a quick look for any obvious problems it finds.
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32-bit Vista Home Premium SP2 * Firefox ESR v52.9.0 * Malwarebytes Premium v3.5.1.2522-1.0.365 * Speccy Portable v1.32.740
HP Pavilion dv6835ca, Intel Core2Duo T5550 @ 1.83 GHz, WD Scorpio 256 GB SATA HDD, 3 GB RAM, NVIDIA GeForce 8400M GS

 

[Vistaar]

....At this point I'm not even sure if your OS is 32-bit or 64-bit, what antivirus you use, or whether your OS was patched to end of support on 11-Apr-2017....

Well you could always look at his “My Computer” information for starters. Granted, he also had a 32-bit laptop in February 2016, but it was the 64-bit machine that already had the issue with sfc. I already asked about antivirus, and apparently he is relying on a product by IObit. KB3196726 was created in December 2016, so there is no reason to think that he is lacking large numbers of official security updates for Windows Vista (not that they have much value in 2021). After another page or two, I think you will agree with me that he needs a clean install.

 

[Teknoskillz]

Very good replies , thanks.

Id have to dig up my Vista Ultimate install CD, its here somewhere. Would a repair-install work? Something that does not erase emails, documents and settings. I guess at some point I have to bite the bullet and make a BU image just to be safe.

 

[Teknoskillz]

Also I found references online for the message that comes up when you run a .msi file -
"Windows Installer Service Could Not Be Accessed "

This link refers to W10, but I imagine there is a DLL file I could merely try swapping with a known good one?

Top 4 Ways to Windows Installer Service Could Not Be Accessed - MiniTool

Troubled by the issue Windows Installer service could not be accessed? Here, try these 4 ways to fix Windows Installer error.

www.minitool.com

 

[Vistaar]

I found references online for the message that comes up when you run a .msi file - "Windows Installer Service Could Not Be Accessed”

Another approach would be to google 0x80070641.

...its not showing anywhere in the services menu system...

That might simply mean that MSIExec was successfully unregistered (according to this Technet post), in which case congratulations are in order!

I tried the UNREGISTER command, but that screen still will appear. No installer entry in the services.msc display readout.

No entry is no surprise - but have you tried re-registering with MSIExec /regserver ? (Imacri may have mentioned that already, but I’m short on time to look for it.)

Interestingly, this issue appears to plague gamers. If a game requires e.g. Windows 7, it may also require Windows Installer 5, in which case tinkering with 4.5 might be futile to say the least.

 

[ilikefree]

Malwarebytes v3.5.1.2522-1.0.365 was released on May 8, 2018, so your use of the adjective “current” seems peculiar to me. Are we expecting another legacy version to be released? (The company’s misuse of the noun “support” is troubling in that it seems to offer false hopes of an upgrade to XP and Vista diehards.)

Malwarebytes 2.2.1 was only about a year older, and I was not the only Vista user who preferred it to the early 3.x versions: There was also @ilikefree at this forum and devilus at Bleeping Computer (who reports that he is still receiving definition updates for it).

It almost goes without saying that Malwarebytes cannot be expected to fix the OP’s long-standing SFC issue or his Windows Installer issue, but he could try as many versions as he wants to. Also, I don’t think there are any Vista x64 systems with processors that don’t support SSE2.

I still use 2.2.1 and get definiton updates for it but they take a while to get if I leave my Private Firewall running during the updates

 

[Teknoskillz]

Another interesting thing is there is a dll file for the installer in both windows/system and the wow64 folder. I believe they are the same size and version. Could this be a conflict?

 

[Vistaar]

Another interesting thing is there is a dll file for the installer in both windows/system and the wow64 folder. I believe they are the same size and version. Could this be a conflict?

Never used Vista x64 myself (and neither did Imacri), so I’ll have to let you and @wither 3 puzzle over wow64. Chances are the file isn’t there by accident. So you have already tried re-registering MSIExec then? Perhaps your registry is fouled up.

 

[wither 3]

I don't have the msi.dll or any other msi related files in Windows\System
It and 14 other msi files, including the msiexec.exe file, are in both Windows\System32 and \SysWOW64.

Another thing I noticed is that he was unable to run a .msu. To run one, I suggest he go to Windows Update, Change Settings and then set Important Updates to "Never check for Updates" and reboot before running a .msu.

 

[Vistaar]

Another thing I noticed is that he was unable to run a .msu.

I think he solved that in post #18.

 

[wither 3]

Thanks.

 

[Teknoskillz]

@wither 3

Well a search in the Windows folder shows I have (22) instances of msi.dll , with various file sizes....as per the screenshot shown. So I believe there could be a conflict )

 

[wither 3]

I didn't do a search for the .dll and it's fully expected to see those other locations. I simply wanted to mention that I don't have the msi.dll files in Windows\System, which you mentioned. It's not shown there in your attachment. I don't think there's any conflict in regards to the locations. I don't know if this will help you-

The 'Program Files (x86)' and 'SysWOW64' folders explained / Windows 64-bit (Technical Article)

Technical Article: Explains the 'Program Files (x86)' and 'SysWOW64' folders in 64-bit Windows.

www.samlogic.net

The msi.dll files and msidcr130 files you have in the two folders are the same version as mine. There are additional msi type files in the folders which don't show in the attachment you provided-

 

[wither 3]

Where did you go?

 

[Teknoskillz]

Still thinking about what to do with all those extra msi.dll files coming up not in the sys32 and wow folder. Also as you say the others with the msi
in their name could be linked as required libraries for them.