Windows Firewall – error code 0x8007042c – Online Parts International

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What to do in the event of not being able to switch your Windows Firewall On or Off – error code 0x8007042c

I was not even aware that I had a problem until Windows told me that my system was not firewall protected. I have used the following spyware and anti-virus software with great results:

Avast – antivirus
Malwarebytes – malware
Spyhunter – malware

And then the dreaded error code 0x8007042c when trying to switch the firewall on. Looking through the pages and pages of Google search returns on this error I was absolutely delighted to find that I was not the only one. The returns revealed the following:

The Windows Firewall has been disabled and on enabling comes up with error code 0x8007042c
The dependency service or group failed to start
The dependency files associated with Windows Firewall are corrupt or missing

Not going into detail about how to restart the dependency service or group of which hundreds of tech-minded gurus kindly explain the process, it became apparent that this was not working and in all likelihood the firewall code had been compromised. I then proceeded to run the Microsoft safety scanner – the downloadable file is 100MB and at 20:00 on a Saturday night this was going to take a while so canned that idea quickly and then proceeded with Microsoft FixIt, hopefully to see the last of error code error code 0x8007042c.

Microsoft FixIt

Microsoft have written a host of FixIt applications which for the end user is a Godsend – go there. However in this case it still did not help. The FixIt processes are quick and I am sure, gauging by the responses on Bing or Google searches there are millions of happy customers out there. I tried this first because error code 0x8007042c is directly linked to a Windows application and if anyone should know something about Windows it would be Microsoft. Right? Well it did not work and I was still not prepared to dive into the registry only because at 20:00 in the evening one error would mean a restore – if I was lucky.

Tweaking with the Gurus

The problem here is not just that an application has failed but from what I gather a larger problem. From the technical gurus themselves, the Windows Firewall is not a freestanding software application but is embedded into the soul of the operating system. The only way one would therefore, clinically, do a repair is hoping that a reload would suffice. I was not prepared to do that either. I am human and therefore inherently lazy. I need a quick fix. And indeed there was a fix for error code 0x8007042c – found right under my very nose. This may sound like one of those pathetic advertisments written by the online marketing squad but we all know that Windows 7 is possibly the most robust of Microsoft operating systems so we do not need to tinker and tune and change and change again. Yet, here lay a gem of a website called www.tweaking.com – in this case a repair to your Windows Firewall.

In conclusion

The entire process of downloading and running the executable took less than two minutes (i7 processor). No bells and whistles. The Firewall was resurrected and I could load Kaspersky. (original problem was that Kaspersky could not communicate with it’s server to register the activation code.

I am not an advocate of diving into the deep end first – often software problems are user related. I work in the IT sector and see how end-users blame hardware for very apparent software related issues, using incorrect hardware drivers, flashing with incorrect firmware and the old “I didn’t load it, how did it get there” mystery. I don’t blame end users alone, manufacturers should take some responsibility – we are at a point in technology where it should be absolutely impossible to load the incorrect driver. Microsoft often take a lot of unnecessary abuse – yes it may be a money making machine but this machine is not run by idiots. In every case I have picked up problems it has been a virus or third party software.

Websites or companies dedicated to providing a free service to the millions of Windows (and Linux and Mac) users to tune and repair their PCs, like www.tweaking.com are really what the internet is about. Having a system open to hacker attacks is one thing, to have an entity providing free intellectual capital to assist in a repair is the ultimate in sacrificing your own potential earnings.

The Error Code 0x8007042c is not caused by Microsoft – it may have been a virus or third party software. In my case I am sure it was my own stupidity that got me into the mess in the first place.