Error message when you try to install or start the Network Policy Server role service in Windows Server 2008 R2: "Error 0x80004005 Unspecified error"

Symptoms

When you try to install or start the Network Policy Server role service on a computer that is running Windows Server 2008 R2, the role is not installed, or the service is not started. Additionally, you receive an error message that resembles the following:

Resolution

Important This section, method, or task contains steps that tell you how to modify the registry. However, serious problems might occur if you modify the registry incorrectly. Therefore, make sure that you follow these steps carefully. For added protection, back up the registry before you modify it. Then, you can restore the registry if a problem occurs. For more information about how to back up and restore the registry, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

322756 How to back up and restore the registry in Windows To resolve this problem, set the NT AUTHORITY\NETWORK SERVICE subkey in the registry to 1. To do this, follow these steps:

1. Start Registry Editor. To do this, click Start , type regedit in the Start Search box, and then press ENTER.
   
   If you are prompted for an administrator password or for confirmation, type the password or provide confirmation.

2. Locate and then click to select the following registry key:

   HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\System\CurrentControlSet\Services\VSS\VssAccessControl

3. Right-click NT AUTHORITY\NETWORK SERVICE, and then click Modify.

4. In the Value data box, type 1, and then click OK.

5. On the File menu, click Exit to exit Registry Editor.

6. Stop all instances of the Lashost.exe process.

7. Restart the Network Policy Server service.

More Information

For more information about this problem, visit the following Microsoft TechNet Web site:

http://blogs.technet.com/sbs/archive/2009/02/20/the-network-policy-server-service-ias-fails-to-start-or-be-installed.aspx