problem with msconfig [system configuration utility]

[albert]

System -- Pentium D, 2 Gig ram, XP Pro. Fully patched and up-to-date.
Currently protected by firewall and AV from Zone Alarm.

I am the sole user and administrator of this machine. My user ID is
identified by the system as being the Administrator.

When I use msconfig, I get this message after making changes:

"An Access Denied error was returned while attempting to change a service.
You may need to log on using an Administrator account to make the specified
changes."

That notification is annoying, but seems to be meaningless, as whatever
change I might make seem to be successfully applied and stay applied [e.g.,
changes in boot.ini, changes in stuff under the Startup tab].

This behavior started some time, as best I recall, around late October,
early November 2006. I think it is related to some MS patch. Here's why:

I always patch regularly, and keep it virus and malware-free through regular
scans and updates. I use differing software, sometimes trying out stuff and
removing it -- all the software is legit and from major firms. This machine
originally had XP MCE. Around late Oct. to mid Nov., this "access denied"
error started showing up [unfortunately I did not pay enough attention at
the time to figure out what had been recently installed or what patch was
most recent].

At the end of November I completely redid the machine with XP Pro - new hard
drive, reinstall from scratch. I did this over a period of several days.
As I went along, msconfig behaved normally. I assumed I had triumphed over
whatever glitch or software conflict had first caused that behavior.

Since there were so many patches to install in the rebuild [using a
slipstreamed XP with sp2, and 2002 Office], and since MS makes it offers to
do multiple patches at once -- once I assumed I had licked the problem, I
stopped checking to see the behavior of MSCONFIG after each stage of
rebuilding the machine.

Well, the problem returned. So it is not something unique to my earlier
MCE installation. I did some searching on the internet, and found
references to this problem associated with Zone Alarm's security suite.
Although I currently use that software, I don't think that is the source of
the problem [because with the earlier MCE installation I had used Norton's
AV and Firewall -- and the problem first showed up with that install].
Nonetheless, I tried out what was suggested with Zone Alarm, including
shutting down the whole thing -- but to no effect.

I have even seen a web reference to this kind of problem stating that it
might be a McAfee problem [ although I don't have McAfee on this machine --
fyi, that link is: http://www.oregontechsupport.com/support/windows_xp/ ].
Perhaps this is a problem relating to firewalls, in general? But if so,
then why would it not appear in the machine when brand new [with a fully
patched MCE 2005 install], or with a brand new XPSP2 install, and
aftermarket firewalls in place and functioning? I am stumped. Any
comments, suggestion or ideas will be appreciated.

TIA
albert

 

[Detlev Dreyer]

System -- Pentium D, 2 Gig ram, XP Pro. Fully patched and up-to-date.
Currently protected by firewall and AV from Zone Alarm.

"Zone Alarm" (snakeoil) is notorious for causing problems.

Perhaps this is a problem relating to firewalls, in general?

Nope. No such problems when using the WinXP built-in firewall.

Any comments, suggestion or ideas will be appreciated.

Uninstall "Zone Alarm". See also
http://forum.zonelabs.org/zonelabs/board/message?board.id=win_za_msgs&message.id=11470#M11470

 

[Ron Sommer]

Do you have only one administrator account?
If you boot to SafeMode, to you have a default administrator account?
--
Ronald Sommer

: System -- Pentium D, 2 Gig ram, XP Pro. Fully patched and up-to-date.
: Currently protected by firewall and AV from Zone Alarm.
:
: I am the sole user and administrator of this machine. My user ID is
: identified by the system as being the Administrator.
:
snipped

 

[Ana]

I also have the same problem and I've one admin.
Ana

System -- Pentium D, 2 Gig ram, XP Pro. Fully patched and up-to-date.
Currently protected by firewall and AV from Zone Alarm.

I am the sole user and administrator of this machine. My user ID is
identified by the system as being the Administrator.

When I use msconfig, I get this message after making changes:

"An Access Denied error was returned while attempting to change a service.
You may need to log on using an Administrator account to make the
specified
changes."

That notification is annoying, but seems to be meaningless, as whatever
change I might make seem to be successfully applied and stay applied
[e.g., changes in boot.ini, changes in stuff under the Startup tab].

This behavior started some time, as best I recall, around late October,
early November 2006. I think it is related to some MS patch. Here's
why:

I always patch regularly, and keep it virus and malware-free through
regular
scans and updates. I use differing software, sometimes trying out stuff
and
removing it -- all the software is legit and from major firms. This
machine
originally had XP MCE. Around late Oct. to mid Nov., this "access denied"
error started showing up [unfortunately I did not pay enough attention at
the time to figure out what had been recently installed or what patch was
most recent].

At the end of November I completely redid the machine with XP Pro - new
hard drive, reinstall from scratch. I did this over a period of several
days. As I went along, msconfig behaved normally. I assumed I had
triumphed over whatever glitch or software conflict had first caused that
behavior.

Since there were so many patches to install in the rebuild [using a
slipstreamed XP with sp2, and 2002 Office], and since MS makes it offers
to do multiple patches at once -- once I assumed I had licked the problem,
I stopped checking to see the behavior of MSCONFIG after each stage of
rebuilding the machine.

Well, the problem returned. So it is not something unique to my earlier
MCE installation. I did some searching on the internet, and found
references to this problem associated with Zone Alarm's security suite.
Although I currently use that software, I don't think that is the source
of the problem [because with the earlier MCE installation I had used
Norton's AV and Firewall -- and the problem first showed up with that
install]. Nonetheless, I tried out what was suggested with Zone Alarm,
including shutting down the whole thing -- but to no effect.

I have even seen a web reference to this kind of problem stating that it
might be a McAfee problem [ although I don't have McAfee on this
machine -- fyi, that link is:
http://www.oregontechsupport.com/support/windows_xp/ ]. Perhaps this is a
problem relating to firewalls, in general? But if so, then why would it
not appear in the machine when brand new [with a fully patched MCE 2005
install], or with a brand new XPSP2 install, and aftermarket firewalls in
place and functioning? I am stumped. Any comments, suggestion or ideas
will be appreciated.

TIA
albert

 

[utahbuck]

I had this problem and found it to be caused by McAfee software. Once I
uninstalled McAfee, msconfig works as expected.

In addition to this problem, I found McAfee to be bothersome in other ways
like not stopping to scan out going emails when I told it to and not doing
System Guard when I turned it off.

I also have the same problem and I've one admin.
Ana

System -- Pentium D, 2 Gig ram, XP Pro. Fully patched and up-to-date.
Currently protected by firewall and AV from Zone Alarm.

I am the sole user and administrator of this machine. My user ID is
identified by the system as being the Administrator.

When I use msconfig, I get this message after making changes:

"An Access Denied error was returned while attempting to change a
service.
You may need to log on using an Administrator account to make the
specified
changes."

That notification is annoying, but seems to be meaningless, as whatever
change I might make seem to be successfully applied and stay applied
[e.g., changes in boot.ini, changes in stuff under the Startup tab].

This behavior started some time, as best I recall, around late October,
early November 2006. I think it is related to some MS patch. Here's
why:

I always patch regularly, and keep it virus and malware-free through
regular
scans and updates. I use differing software, sometimes trying out stuff
and
removing it -- all the software is legit and from major firms. This
machine
originally had XP MCE. Around late Oct. to mid Nov., this "access
denied"
error started showing up [unfortunately I did not pay enough attention at
the time to figure out what had been recently installed or what patch was
most recent].

At the end of November I completely redid the machine with XP Pro - new
hard drive, reinstall from scratch. I did this over a period of several
days. As I went along, msconfig behaved normally. I assumed I had
triumphed over whatever glitch or software conflict had first caused that
behavior.

Since there were so many patches to install in the rebuild [using a
slipstreamed XP with sp2, and 2002 Office], and since MS makes it offers
to do multiple patches at once -- once I assumed I had licked the
problem, I stopped checking to see the behavior of MSCONFIG after each
stage of rebuilding the machine.

Well, the problem returned. So it is not something unique to my earlier
MCE installation. I did some searching on the internet, and found
references to this problem associated with Zone Alarm's security suite.
Although I currently use that software, I don't think that is the source
of the problem [because with the earlier MCE installation I had used
Norton's AV and Firewall -- and the problem first showed up with that
install]. Nonetheless, I tried out what was suggested with Zone Alarm,
including shutting down the whole thing -- but to no effect.

I have even seen a web reference to this kind of problem stating that it
might be a McAfee problem [ although I don't have McAfee on this
machine -- fyi, that link is:
http://www.oregontechsupport.com/support/windows_xp/ ]. Perhaps this is a
problem relating to firewalls, in general? But if so, then why would it
not appear in the machine when brand new [with a fully patched MCE 2005
install], or with a brand new XPSP2 install, and aftermarket firewalls in
place and functioning? I am stumped. Any comments, suggestion or ideas
will be appreciated.

TIA
albert

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[albert]

Ron, thanks for the ideas.

OK, followed your suggestions.

Booting into Safe Mode --

Yes, there are two listings -- Administrator and my User ID.

I chose to log on as Administrator -- used MSCONFIG to make one small change
in "startup" -- and got the same response from the system -- "An Access
Denied error ............ You may need to log on using an Administrator
account..........."

So, even what the system knows as the Administrator gets this reaction from
MSCONFIG.


Going on to investigate the system under Normal Mode ---- using the
"Computer Management Tool" --

Under "Local Users and Groups\Users"

There is both an "Administrator" and an "albert" [my user ID] --- both have
identical properties [except that the Administrator has a "Description"
included -- "Built-in account for administering the computer/domain" --
which I assume is what Windows has as its default in the original
installation]

Under "Local Users and Groups\Groups"

albert

 

[Guest]

I am having the same problem. However, I do have the built-in Admin account,
two Computer Administrator accounts, one Limited account, and one Guest
Account that is turned off. Also, I Do Not have either ZoneAlarm or any
McAfee software running on my WinXP Pro system which is also on a small
peer-to-peer home network. I do have Norton Internet Security/Virus.
Recently, my built-in Admin account "lost" it's password. Sometimes when I
start my PC, it loads all start-up items (8 shown loaded in taskbar lower
right hand corner) and at other times it will only load 3. If I do a
restart, they will all load. I've wondered if there is a corrupt user
account. Under "Document and Settings", I have the following accounts listed:
+ Admin MyName (Computer Administrator)
+ Administrator (Built-in Administrator Account)
+ Administrator.MyNameDesK
+ Administrator.MyNameDesk.000
+ All Users
+ Default User
+ Hubby'sName (Limitied Account)
+ LocalService
+ PlainName (Computer Administrator)
+ NetworkServices

I have run Ad-aware SE, Spy-bot, SpySweeper, Norton Full Scans, with no
problems found. Did a Repair install from WinXP Pro Cd thinking it might be a
corrupted windows file. Problem still exists. I would love to hear from
anyone who my be able to shed some light on this problem that Albert has
described.

I had this problem and found it to be caused by McAfee software. Once I
uninstalled McAfee, msconfig works as expected.

In addition to this problem, I found McAfee to be bothersome in other ways
like not stopping to scan out going emails when I told it to and not doing
System Guard when I turned it off.

I also have the same problem and I've one admin.
Ana

System -- Pentium D, 2 Gig ram, XP Pro. Fully patched and up-to-date.
Currently protected by firewall and AV from Zone Alarm.

I am the sole user and administrator of this machine. My user ID is
identified by the system as being the Administrator.

When I use msconfig, I get this message after making changes:

"An Access Denied error was returned while attempting to change a
service.
You may need to log on using an Administrator account to make the
specified
changes."

That notification is annoying, but seems to be meaningless, as whatever
change I might make seem to be successfully applied and stay applied
[e.g., changes in boot.ini, changes in stuff under the Startup tab].

This behavior started some time, as best I recall, around late October,
early November 2006. I think it is related to some MS patch. Here's
why:

I always patch regularly, and keep it virus and malware-free through
regular
scans and updates. I use differing software, sometimes trying out stuff
and
removing it -- all the software is legit and from major firms. This
machine
originally had XP MCE. Around late Oct. to mid Nov., this "access
denied"
error started showing up [unfortunately I did not pay enough attention at
the time to figure out what had been recently installed or what patch was
most recent].

At the end of November I completely redid the machine with XP Pro - new
hard drive, reinstall from scratch. I did this over a period of several
days. As I went along, msconfig behaved normally. I assumed I had
triumphed over whatever glitch or software conflict had first caused that
behavior.

Since there were so many patches to install in the rebuild [using a
slipstreamed XP with sp2, and 2002 Office], and since MS makes it offers
to do multiple patches at once -- once I assumed I had licked the
problem, I stopped checking to see the behavior of MSCONFIG after each
stage of rebuilding the machine.

Well, the problem returned. So it is not something unique to my earlier
MCE installation. I did some searching on the internet, and found
references to this problem associated with Zone Alarm's security suite.
Although I currently use that software, I don't think that is the source
of the problem [because with the earlier MCE installation I had used
Norton's AV and Firewall -- and the problem first showed up with that
install]. Nonetheless, I tried out what was suggested with Zone Alarm,
including shutting down the whole thing -- but to no effect.

I have even seen a web reference to this kind of problem stating that it
might be a McAfee problem [ although I don't have McAfee on this
machine -- fyi, that link is:
http://www.oregontechsupport.com/support/windows_xp/ ]. Perhaps this is a
problem relating to firewalls, in general? But if so, then why would it
not appear in the machine when brand new [with a fully patched MCE 2005
install], or with a brand new XPSP2 install, and aftermarket firewalls in
place and functioning? I am stumped. Any comments, suggestion or ideas
will be appreciated.

TIA
albert

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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privados.
Ha eliminado 2121 correos spam hasta la fecha.
Los abonados no tienen este mensaje en sus correos.
¡Pruebe SPAMfighter gratis ya!

 

[utahbuck]

Try a clean boot with all Norton products disabled and see if the problem
goes away.

I am having the same problem. However, I do have the built-in Admin
account,
two Computer Administrator accounts, one Limited account, and one Guest
Account that is turned off. Also, I Do Not have either ZoneAlarm or any
McAfee software running on my WinXP Pro system which is also on a small
peer-to-peer home network. I do have Norton Internet Security/Virus.
Recently, my built-in Admin account "lost" it's password. Sometimes when I
start my PC, it loads all start-up items (8 shown loaded in taskbar lower
right hand corner) and at other times it will only load 3. If I do a
restart, they will all load. I've wondered if there is a corrupt user
account. Under "Document and Settings", I have the following accounts
listed:
+ Admin MyName (Computer Administrator)
+ Administrator (Built-in Administrator Account)
+ Administrator.MyNameDesK
+ Administrator.MyNameDesk.000
+ All Users
+ Default User
+ Hubby'sName (Limitied Account)
+ LocalService
+ PlainName (Computer Administrator)
+ NetworkServices

I have run Ad-aware SE, Spy-bot, SpySweeper, Norton Full Scans, with no
problems found. Did a Repair install from WinXP Pro Cd thinking it might
be a
corrupted windows file. Problem still exists. I would love to hear from
anyone who my be able to shed some light on this problem that Albert has
described.

I had this problem and found it to be caused by McAfee software. Once I
uninstalled McAfee, msconfig works as expected.

In addition to this problem, I found McAfee to be bothersome in other
ways
like not stopping to scan out going emails when I told it to and not
doing
System Guard when I turned it off.

I also have the same problem and I've one admin.
Ana

"albert" <[email protected]> escribió en el mensaje
System -- Pentium D, 2 Gig ram, XP Pro. Fully patched and
up-to-date.
Currently protected by firewall and AV from Zone Alarm.

I am the sole user and administrator of this machine. My user ID is
identified by the system as being the Administrator.

When I use msconfig, I get this message after making changes:

"An Access Denied error was returned while attempting to change a
service.
You may need to log on using an Administrator account to make the
specified
changes."

That notification is annoying, but seems to be meaningless, as
whatever
change I might make seem to be successfully applied and stay applied
[e.g., changes in boot.ini, changes in stuff under the Startup tab].

This behavior started some time, as best I recall, around late
October,
early November 2006. I think it is related to some MS patch. Here's
why:

I always patch regularly, and keep it virus and malware-free through
regular
scans and updates. I use differing software, sometimes trying out
stuff
and
removing it -- all the software is legit and from major firms. This
machine
originally had XP MCE. Around late Oct. to mid Nov., this "access
denied"
error started showing up [unfortunately I did not pay enough attention
at
the time to figure out what had been recently installed or what patch
was
most recent].

At the end of November I completely redid the machine with XP Pro -
new
hard drive, reinstall from scratch. I did this over a period of
several
days. As I went along, msconfig behaved normally. I assumed I had
triumphed over whatever glitch or software conflict had first caused
that
behavior.

Since there were so many patches to install in the rebuild [using a
slipstreamed XP with sp2, and 2002 Office], and since MS makes it
offers
to do multiple patches at once -- once I assumed I had licked the
problem, I stopped checking to see the behavior of MSCONFIG after each
stage of rebuilding the machine.

Well, the problem returned. So it is not something unique to my
earlier
MCE installation. I did some searching on the internet, and found
references to this problem associated with Zone Alarm's security
suite.
Although I currently use that software, I don't think that is the
source
of the problem [because with the earlier MCE installation I had used
Norton's AV and Firewall -- and the problem first showed up with that
install]. Nonetheless, I tried out what was suggested with Zone Alarm,
including shutting down the whole thing -- but to no effect.

I have even seen a web reference to this kind of problem stating that
it
might be a McAfee problem [ although I don't have McAfee on this
machine -- fyi, that link is:
http://www.oregontechsupport.com/support/windows_xp/ ]. Perhaps this
is a
problem relating to firewalls, in general? But if so, then why would
it
not appear in the machine when brand new [with a fully patched MCE
2005
install], or with a brand new XPSP2 install, and aftermarket firewalls
in
place and functioning? I am stumped. Any comments, suggestion or
ideas
will be appreciated.

TIA
albert





--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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privados.
Ha eliminado 2121 correos spam hasta la fecha.
Los abonados no tienen este mensaje en sus correos.
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