Article ID: 259736 - Last Review: November 1, 2006 - Revision: 1.1

Partial RPC Entries May Cause Netlogon Error Messages

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This article was previously published under Q259736
IMPORTANT: This article contains information about modifying the registry. Before you modify the registry, make sure to back it up and make sure that you understand how to restore the registry if a problem occurs. For information about how to back up, restore, and edit the registry, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:
256986  (http://support.microsoft.com/kb/256986/EN-US/ ) Description of the Microsoft Windows Registry
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SYMPTOMS

You may receive the following error message when you attempt to log on to the domain from a computer running Windows NT 4.0 Workstation:
The system could not log you on to this domain because the system's computer account in its primary domain is missing or the password on that account is incorrect.
Resetting the machine account does not correct this problem.
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CAUSE

This behavior can occur because of problems with the remote procedure call (RPC) registry information.
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RESOLUTION

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.

To resolve this problem, make sure the registry key is correct:
  1. Start Registry Editor (Regedt32.exe).
  2. Locate the following key in the registry:
    HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\RPC\SecurityService
  3. On the Edit menu, click Add Value, and then add the following registry value:
    Value Name: 68
    Data Type: REG_SZ
    Value: netlogon.dll
  4. Quit Registry Editor.
  5. Restart the computer.
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MORE INFORMATION

The following error messages may be displayed in the event log:
Event Type: Error
Event Source: NETLOGON
Event Category: None
Event ID: 3224
Description:
Changing machine account password for account computername;$ failed with the following error: The authentication service is unknown.

Event Type: Error
Event Source: NETLOGON
Event Category: None
Event ID: 3210
Description:
Failed to authenticate with \\domaincontroller, a Windows NT domain controller for domain domainname.
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APPLIES TO
  • Microsoft Windows NT Server 4.0, Terminal Server Edition
  • Microsoft Windows NT Server 4.0 Standard Edition
  • Microsoft Windows NT Workstation 4.0 Developer Edition
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Keywords: 
kbenv kberrmsg kbprb KB259736
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