If Windows 8 shows an error written as 0X800700422, check the digits carefully: Microsoft documents the relevant Windows code as 0x80070422. It is classified as ERROR_SERVICE_DISABLED, which usually means a required service—most commonly Windows Update—is disabled or not running. The standard repair is to open services.msc, set Windows Update to Automatic, start it, apply the change, restart the computer, and try the operation again. The word “denied” does not by itself make this a file-permission error; code 0x80070005 is the separate Microsoft code associated with a different access-denied condition.
Confirm the code before changing anything
Windows error text is easy to mistype or misread. The code supported by Microsoft documentation is 0x80070422, not 0x800700422. The documented description is ERROR_SERVICE_DISABLED. Microsoft says the condition occurs when the Windows Update service stops working or is not running.
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Windows may display the fuller message: “The service cannot be started, either because it is disabled or because it has no enabled devices associated with it.” That wording points to a service-state problem. It does not prove that your user account lacks permission to a file or folder.
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Before following the repair, write down the exact code and the action that produced it. Windows 8 can show the same code while updating, changing firewall settings, using the Store, or running an installer. The first repair depends on which subsystem generated the message.
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What 0x80070422 means in practice
A disabled service
A service is a background Windows component that performs work for the operating system or an application. If its startup setting is Disabled, Windows is prevented from starting it normally. A feature that depends on that service can then return 0x80070422.
A stopped service
A service can have a startup type that permits it to run but still be stopped at the moment you need it. In that case, changing the startup type alone may not be enough; the service must also be started and the computer restarted before you retry the original operation.
A service that keeps reverting
If Windows refuses the change, the Start control is unavailable, or the service becomes disabled again immediately, the basic repair has not resolved the underlying configuration. Do not compensate by making random registry edits. Record the operation, the exact message, and the service state, then move to Microsoft’s Windows Update component-reset guidance when Windows Update is the affected feature.
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Quick diagnosis in Windows 8
- Identify the trigger. Was the message shown by Windows Update, Windows Firewall, the Store, or an application installer? Note the window title and the setting you were changing.
- Verify the characters. Confirm that the code is
0x80070422. If the final digits are different, use the exact code when looking up a remedy; do not assume this procedure applies. - Use an administrator account. Changing a system service requires administrative permission. If you are signed in with a standard account, sign in with an administrator account or provide approved administrator credentials when Windows asks.
- Close the operation temporarily. Cancel the failed update, firewall dialog, Store action, or installer so you can change the service without another process repeatedly retrying it.
- Open the Services console. The Windows Update repair path starts with the built-in Services management tool.
Windows Update fix: enable and start the service
Use these steps when 0x80070422 appears while checking for, downloading, or installing Windows updates. They are the documented Windows 8 sequence.
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- Press Win + R to open the Run dialog.
- Type
services.mscand press Enter. Windows opens the Services console. - Scroll through the list and locate Windows Update. Select it once so you are working on the correct entry, not a similarly named service.
- Open the service’s Properties. You can do this by opening the entry from the list and choosing its Properties command.
- Find Startup type and set it to Automatic. This allows Windows to start the service as part of normal operation instead of leaving it disabled.
- Check the service status. If it is stopped, select Start. Wait for Windows to report that the service has started.
- Select Apply, then OK to save the setting and close the properties window.
- Restart the computer. A restart ensures that the new service configuration is loaded cleanly and that an earlier failed update attempt is no longer holding the operation open.
- After Windows 8 starts again, open Windows Update and repeat the action that failed. Keep the original error details available in case the same code returns.
Do not change unrelated services while you are in the console. The objective is to restore the service named by the failed operation, not to disable other background components in an attempt to make the error disappear.
What to do if the Windows Update change does not work
The service cannot be started
If Start produces an error, first confirm that you selected Windows Update and that the Services console was opened with administrative rights. Record the wording of the failure. A second attempt with a different service selected will not repair the original problem.
The startup type cannot be changed
When Windows will not let you change the setting, treat that as a permissions or configuration failure rather than an invitation to edit the registry at random. Verify the administrator account, note the current startup type and status, and preserve the exact 0x80070422 message. Microsoft lists resetting Windows Update components as an escalation measure for cases where the basic service repair fails.
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This behavior indicates that the service configuration is being overridden or that another Windows Update component is damaged. Write down whether the service was initially disabled, whether Start succeeded, and when it reverted. Then follow Microsoft’s Windows Update component-reset guidance for Windows 8. Component reset is a later recovery step; it should not replace the simple enable-and-start procedure when that procedure is available.
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The same code appears after a restart
Check the service state again before repeating the update. If Windows Update is still set to Automatic and is running, the trigger may not be Windows Update at all. Return to the window that displayed the code and identify the subsystem named there. A firewall or installer operation can produce the same numeric code for its own disabled service.
When 0x80070422 comes from Firewall, Store, or an installer
Microsoft-hosted Windows 8 support material includes a firewall-setting case using 0x80070422. That confirms the code is not exclusive to Windows Update. The common thread is a required service that is disabled, stopped, or unavailable to the feature making the request.
Firewall settings
If the message appears while enabling or changing Windows Firewall, return to that firewall dialog and note the service or feature it names. Inspect the corresponding entry in services.msc rather than changing Windows Update by assumption. The correct remedy is to enable and start the service required by the firewall operation, using the same administrator and Apply/OK workflow.
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If a Store download or installation reports the code, record the app action and any service name shown in the message. Inspect that named service in Services. Do not infer that an update failure occurred merely because the number is familiar; the trigger determines which dependency needs attention.
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Application installers
An installer may call a Windows service and receive 0x80070422 when that service is disabled. Close the installer, identify the service mentioned by its error text, and check that service’s startup type and status with an administrator account. Restart Windows after making a change, then run the installer again. If the installer still fails, retain its full message for the application publisher or Microsoft support instead of altering unrelated system services.
Choose the recovery level by trigger and service state
| What you observed | Most appropriate next action | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Windows Update reports 0x80070422 and Windows Update is disabled | Set Windows Update to Automatic, start it, Apply, OK, restart, and retry | This directly addresses the documented ERROR_SERVICE_DISABLED condition. |
| Windows Update service is stopped but not disabled | Start the service, save the properties, restart, and retry | A stopped service can block the operation even when its startup type permits it to run. |
| Service change is refused or immediately undone | Record the exact state and use Microsoft’s Windows Update component-reset guidance when Update is the trigger | The basic service change did not persist, so a deeper component-recovery path is appropriate. |
| Firewall, Store, or installer produced the code | Identify that subsystem’s named service and inspect it instead of changing Windows Update automatically | The same code can be returned by more than one Windows feature. |
| The code is actually 0x80070005 or another value | Stop and follow guidance for the verified code | Similar-looking codes represent different conditions; this procedure is for 0x80070422. |
Service-state checklist
- Disabled: change the startup type to Automatic for the service required by the failed operation, then start it if possible.
- Stopped: start the required service, save the change, restart Windows, and retry the original operation.
- Running but the feature still fails: verify that you are repairing the service belonging to the correct subsystem; a running Windows Update service does not repair a firewall or installer dependency.
- Reverting to Disabled: capture the timing and exact text, avoid unrelated registry changes, and escalate to the relevant Microsoft component-reset or support procedure.
- No administrator access: obtain authorized administrator credentials before attempting a service change.
Common mistakes that make the error harder to diagnose
Searching for the wrong number
Adding or dropping a zero changes the code. Start by comparing the on-screen number with 0x80070422. Do not silently substitute the separate access-denied code 0x80070005.
Changing the wrong service
The Services list contains many similarly named entries. Select the service associated with the feature that failed. If the error came from Firewall or an installer, changing Windows Update may have no effect.
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The documented sequence ends with a restart before trying Windows Update again. Retrying immediately can leave you testing the same failed session rather than the saved service configuration.
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Using registry edits as a first response
Unrelated registry changes can create additional startup and servicing problems. The supported first action is the Services-console change. Use component-reset guidance only when the service repair does not persist or does not resolve Windows Update.
Assuming “denied” means a file permission problem
The numeric code and its ERROR_SERVICE_DISABLED classification point first to service availability. Investigate file permissions only if a separate, verified message identifies a file-access condition.
When to stop troubleshooting manually
Stop and collect details when the service cannot be changed, the setting reverts, or the code returns after a successful restart. Record the exact hexadecimal code, the full message, the operation that triggered it, the service startup type before and after the change, whether Start succeeded, and whether you were using an administrator account. Those details distinguish a straightforward disabled-service repair from a Windows Update component problem or a different subsystem’s dependency issue.
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Final answer
For a Windows 8 update failure that truly shows 0x80070422, open services.msc, set Windows Update to Automatic, start it, select Apply and OK, restart Windows, and retry. If the error came from another feature or the service will not stay enabled, identify that subsystem and escalate through the appropriate Microsoft component-reset guidance instead of treating the number as a generic access-denied error.
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