Installing any distro fails with "WslRegisterDistribution failed with error: 0x80070002 Error: 0x80070002 The system cannot find the file specified."

[k3rst1n]

Hi,

After installing Windows 10 on my desktop, I installed the Debian distribution. Right after installation, it loaded and worked fine, however after closing the shell and re-opening it, it got stuck while loading and my CPU usage increased to 100% - in the services I could see around 8 processed called "init" that were running and using up all cpu resources.
I wasn't able to kill the processes, only a reboot helped. As the processes came back every time I opened the Debian shell, I eventually deinstalled the disto.
Now, when I try to install any distro, I always end up with the same error:

Installing, this may take a few minutes...
WslRegisterDistribution failed with error: 0x80070002
Error: 0x80070002 The system cannot find the file specified.

Press any key to continue...

I tried all possible combinations of deinstalling, reboot, etc.
wsllist never shows any of the Distros, even if they show up in the installed programs.

wsl --list --all
Windows Subsystem for Linux has no installed distributions.
Distributions can be installed by visiting the Microsoft Store:
https://aka.ms/wslstore

Attached you can find my logs - I was collecting them while I tried to install the Ubuntu distribution.

logs.zip

Windows version: Win 10 Pro, Version 1909 Build 18363.657.

Please let me know if you require anything else!

Thank you,
Kerstin

[carlosbornes]

Same here. I add this working. Today I've tried to open my Ubuntu terminal and I'm having the same problem.

[spaceraccoon]

Same here. Happened when I upgraded to WSL 2.

[spaceraccoon]

@CBornes @k3rst1n Did yall find any fixes for this?

[k3rst1n]

@spaceraccoon No unfortunately not - still not working

[afallenhope]

Not to bump but.... also having this issue. Windows 10.0.19041.264

[jankowtf]

Same here

[NicoWde]

I also have this issue on 2004 Build 20150.1000

[donxp]

Same issue here on Windows version 2004 build 19041.329

[chancez]

I was able to get this resolved by removing the WSL kernel update from programs/features, and then removing the WSL feature, rebooting, and then re-enabling the WSL feature and rebooting. I also deleted my WSL instances during this process.

[NicoWde]

I was able to get this resolved by removing the WSL kernel update from programs/features, and then removing the WSL feature, rebooting, and then re-enabling the WSL feature and rebooting. I also deleted my WSL instances during this process.

Hey @chancez, I tried this at 20150.1000 - it unfortunatly did not help.

[simmessa]

I was able to get this resolved by removing the WSL kernel update from programs/features, and then removing the WSL feature, rebooting, and then re-enabling the WSL feature and rebooting. I also deleted my WSL instances during this process.

Thank You for the info, I've tried this partially, by uninstalling that WSL kernel update because since a couple of reboots ago WSL2 is completely broken... I'm desperate to recover my WSL2 filesystem, hopefully somebody from the dev team can help us here :(

[simmessa]

I'm on build #19592 and my WSL2 only says this:

I've tried de-registering Ubuntu but it's dead and won't launch... I'm really in need to recover the WSL2 filesystem if there's a way. oh, and btw to make it work again!

Thanks for your time / help.

[alminisl]

The only way I fixed this is by disabling WSL and re-enabling it again, I tried everything.

[simmessa]

The only way I fixed this is by disabling WSL and re-enabling it again, I tried everything.

WSL2 on insider previews has been so unreliable I've gone back to something I can control: an Ubuntu VM made in HyperV which is basically the same, and I'm already feeling the experience is much better.

I now feel confident that no windows update will wipe out my WSL2 distros, as a next step I'm opting out of insider previews, I'm probably done with WSL and evangelizing it, It's a good concept but the execution is so lacking... I don't feel it's really worth it.

[Picoseconds]

insider previews

unreliable

Well, it's not like you weren't warned about it. I don't believe this is a valid reason to hate on WSL2.

[simmessa]

Sure, i was aware of the insider "disclaimer" and that's just my personal opinion.

But I won't deny I'm sick of WSL2, too many things broke at the wrong time, I'm outta here. Enjoy the ride!

[danvln]

Bumping this since it is really an issue and blocked the usage of WSL 2

[JosXa]

Issue still appears in December.

[nagarajcruze]

have anyone found fix for this issue? i was using 2sl2 kali-linux peacefully but today i tried to overwrite the kali-linux.vhdx file, then this problem started for me and i did every fixes posted on other git issues, still i can't find any fix. anyone help me .

[qiushiyan]

the same issue. I tried reinstalling wsl and disabling virtual machine and then enabling it again, didn't work.

[CollapsedMetal]

Same problem here!

As people are suggesting on #5107, I also think that it is related to the absence of vEthernet (WSL) adapter. No matter how much I try reinstalling WSL stuff in different order, there is no way the nic adapter being installed again.

Iv'e also tried to "manually" install the adapter via Hyper-V with no luck.😥

[benyaminl]

Same problem here!

As people are suggesting on #5107, I also think that it is related to the absence of vEthernet (WSL) adapter. No matter how much I try reinstalling WSL stuff in different order, there is no way the nic adapter being installed again.

Iv'e also tried to "manually" install the adapter via Hyper-V with no luck.😥

I Agree, I also having this problem on 20H2, it's frustating
Edit :

I fix it using in-place upgrade with latest windows 20H2 and it works. I take sometimes and no data/Apps deleted as like reset windows. It works for me anyway, I could install fedora on WSL now

[WassimBenzarti]

I encountered this issue today. I had Docker Desktop installed, I removed it but no luck starting with WSL Ubuntu :(

[jyjwhbk]

I encountered this issue today. I had Docker Desktop installed, I removed it but no luck starting with WSL Ubuntu :(

exactly same situation as u, and have no idea what to do

[Forbzy]

I wish I hadn't of updated. Everything was working fine util about a week ago. I hope we are getting close to a fix reliable permanent fix.

[amchii]

Same

[hguitar]

for anyone still looking for solution here, try to delete the .wslconfig under your C:\Users\<your username>\.

[gibait]

for anyone still looking for solution here, try to delete the .wslconfig under your C:\Users.

I uninstalled Docker Desktop. Removed Ubuntu install. Disabled and re-enabled WSL. This is what made it work eventually! Thank you

[jerrychong25]

for anyone still looking for solution here, try to delete the .wslconfig under your C:\Users\<your username>\.

Thanks @hguitar !

This method works for my end!

[Durbek-Gafur]

I just managed to fix this, but am unsure of the exact underlying issue, or what caused it (the original issue was Docker Desktop failing to start with various random errors).

Firstly I noticed the comment above about a possible link to network adapters. I noticed I had a "VMWare Bridge Protocol" attached to my ethernet adapter, probably left over from an old VMWare Player install, but I was unable to remove/uninstall it (0x8007007E error).

I then did a Network Reset in Windows, which broke all my networking, the adapters had the error "Windows is still setting up the class configuration for this device, Code 56" which is relatively obscure, and again apparently related to an incompatible underlying driver. This error seems to be impossible to solve by a user (ie. through the normal Windows UI) except by a system restore or something. I was only able to fix it by running the CCleaner software (free version), and accepting all it's recommendations in the registry clean section.

After a reboot all the networking worked fine again, and I was able to install WSL2 and then reinstall Docker Desktop (which is what started me on the trail of fixing it all!)

Using CCleaner and cleaning registry helped me. Thanks

[copapp]

help, couldnt solve by solution above, I have tried

• docker desktop was uninstalled
• I dont have .wslconfig in C:\Users\<username>\
• wsl feature off->ccleaner to clean registry->reboot->wsl feature on again->reboot-> wsl --install -d Ubuntu return WslRegisterDistribution failed with error: 0x80070002

I thought it was because wuauserv was stopped, but wsl --install was run with wuauserv running. I dont know what else I could try

Edit: problem was solved, vEthernet (WSL) adapter was failed to installed, since vmware blocking hyper-v to install the adapter, I uninstalled it. Problem solved

[EricGT]

Could not find root cause of problem.

What achieved a successful install for me was to forgo using winget and just install from Microsoft Store.

Just to see if that cleared the root cause, used wsl --unregister, rebooted, then tried

winget install -e --id Canonical.Ubuntu

which resulted in

Installer failed with exit code: 0x80070002 : The system cannot find the file specified.

So maybe this is a winget issue and not a WSL issue.

---

A speculation of mine as to what I did that is the root cause is that I renamed a distribution by editing a distribution name as per https://superuser.com/a/1613251/125532

If you want to rename your WSL distro, you have to:

Stop all instances of WSL
Open Registry Editor and go to HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Lxss
Find the distro you want to rename, look for the DistributionName
Change it as you want
Start WSL again, you can also execute wsl.exe -l -v to check if it changes

---

As per microsoft/winget-cli#1705 using Windows Event Viewer in branch

Applications and Services Logs/Microsoft/Windows/AppXDeployment-Server/Microsoft-Windows-AppXDeploymentServer/Operational

for tab: Details
find error: 0x80073cf1

For more on the error code see: Troubleshooting packaging, deployment, and query of Windows apps

Error code: ERROR_INSTALL_PACKAGE_NOT_FOUND
Value: 0x80073CF1
Description and possible causes: The package couldn't be found. You may get this error while removing a package that isn't installed for the current user.

[Stormholt]

Same problem here!

As people are suggesting on #5107, I also think that it is related to the absence of vEthernet (WSL) adapter. No matter how much I try reinstalling WSL stuff in different order, there is no way the nic adapter being installed again.

Iv'e also tried to "manually" install the adapter via Hyper-V with no luck.😥

My solution based on CollapsedMetals idea that the problem can be related to missing the vEthernet (WSL) adapter. Was to try and fix its as a missing network adapter. When i made it to windows network reset, what ended up happening was that all my network adapters got corrupted and returned code 56 forever. This error led me to this, which made me update to the latest windows from a USB drive. After the update my internet adapters worked fine, vEthernet (WSL) adapter had returned, and WSL2 worked fine after installing the latest kernel update.

[himansh-u]

wsl --set-default-version 1
seems to work on build 2004

[Faniche]

I got same problem. And I remembered that I uninstalled the VMware Workstation Player before the problem occur. So I tried to reinstall the VMware Workstation Player and it was solved. You could try to install VMware Workstation Player if it helps.

[handmade-medium]

for anyone still looking for solution here, try to delete the .wslconfig under your C:\Users\<your username>\.

This worked for me right away, no reboots or uninstall/reinstall required, thank you!

[sumitNITS]

Error: 0x80070002 The system cannot find the file specified

Here's how I fixed it today! Thanks, everyone for this wonderful discussion above, it did help me to fix it!

1. Install the free version of CCleaner and use it to fix the issues present in your system.
   I've used v6.09 at the time of doing
   

2. Check whether Windows feature windows subsystem for Linux is on. If not then turn it ON and restart your machine
   

3. From the windows store get your desired Ubuntu version and run it. Set your username and password. That's all. Now it will work.
   

[Erokos]

I just managed to fix this, but am unsure of the exact underlying issue, or what caused it (the original issue was Docker Desktop failing to start with various random errors).

Firstly I noticed the comment above about a possible link to network adapters. I noticed I had a "VMWare Bridge Protocol" attached to my ethernet adapter, probably left over from an old VMWare Player install, but I was unable to remove/uninstall it (0x8007007E error).

I then did a Network Reset in Windows, which broke all my networking, the adapters had the error "Windows is still setting up the class configuration for this device, Code 56" which is relatively obscure, and again apparently related to an incompatible underlying driver. This error seems to be impossible to solve by a user (ie. through the normal Windows UI) except by a system restore or something. I was only able to fix it by running the CCleaner software (free version), and accepting all it's recommendations in the registry clean section.

After a reboot all the networking worked fine again, and I was able to install WSL2 and then reinstall Docker Desktop (which is what started me on the trail of fixing it all!)

Thank you, from all the proposed solutions only this one worked for me! You're a life saver!

[nasNasa]

I just managed to fix this, but am unsure of the exact underlying issue, or what caused it (the original issue was Docker Desktop failing to start with various random errors).

Firstly I noticed the comment above about a possible link to network adapters. I noticed I had a "VMWare Bridge Protocol" attached to my ethernet adapter, probably left over from an old VMWare Player install, but I was unable to remove/uninstall it (0x8007007E error).

I then did a Network Reset in Windows, which broke all my networking, the adapters had the error "Windows is still setting up the class configuration for this device, Code 56" which is relatively obscure, and again apparently related to an incompatible underlying driver. This error seems to be impossible to solve by a user (ie. through the normal Windows UI) except by a system restore or something. I was only able to fix it by running the CCleaner software (free version), and accepting all it's recommendations in the registry clean section.

After a reboot all the networking worked fine again, and I was able to install WSL2 and then reinstall Docker Desktop (which is what started me on the trail of fixing it all!)

i wanna just say thanks for your sharing. it help me to solve my mind blowing problem.

[Francis-Ferri-personal]

I just managed to fix this, but am unsure of the exact underlying issue, or what caused it (the original issue was Docker Desktop failing to start with various random errors).

Firstly I noticed the comment above about a possible link to network adapters. I noticed I had a "VMWare Bridge Protocol" attached to my ethernet adapter, probably left over from an old VMWare Player install, but I was unable to remove/uninstall it (0x8007007E error).

I then did a Network Reset in Windows, which broke all my networking, the adapters had the error "Windows is still setting up the class configuration for this device, Code 56" which is relatively obscure, and again apparently related to an incompatible underlying driver. This error seems to be impossible to solve by a user (ie. through the normal Windows UI) except by a system restore or something. I was only able to fix it by running the CCleaner software (free version), and accepting all it's recommendations in the registry clean section.

After a reboot all the networking worked fine again, and I was able to install WSL2 and then reinstall Docker Desktop (which is what started me on the trail of fixing it all!)

I just had to use CCleaner to remove the registry

[yuuki798]

注册表问题，用CCcleaner解决。

[Leonezz]

Same issue suddenly occurs, and none of the above solutions work for me.

[ecotner]

wsl --set-default-version 1 seemed to "work" temporarily for me, but ended up creating a new distribution with none of my existing files. So I eventually had to wipe WSL (not just the distro, like all of WSL) and reinstall it. Make sure to back up your filesystem before deleting/uninstalling anything by backing up C://Users/<your user>/AppData/Local/Packages/<your distro>/LocalState/ext4.vhdx, then copying the backup to the original location once you're reinstalled everything. In my case (using the Ubuntu-20.04 distro) the <your distro> folder was called CanonicalGroupLimited.Ubuntu20.04LTS_79rhkp1fndgsc.

[rz1027]

I just managed to fix this, but am unsure of the exact underlying issue, or what caused it (the original issue was Docker Desktop failing to start with various random errors).

Firstly I noticed the comment above about a possible link to network adapters. I noticed I had a "VMWare Bridge Protocol" attached to my ethernet adapter, probably left over from an old VMWare Player install, but I was unable to remove/uninstall it (0x8007007E error).

I then did a Network Reset in Windows, which broke all my networking, the adapters had the error "Windows is still setting up the class configuration for this device, Code 56" which is relatively obscure, and again apparently related to an incompatible underlying driver. This error seems to be impossible to solve by a user (ie. through the normal Windows UI) except by a system restore or something. I was only able to fix it by running the CCleaner software (free version), and accepting all it's recommendations in the registry clean section.

After a reboot all the networking worked fine again, and I was able to install WSL2 and then reinstall Docker Desktop (which is what started me on the trail of fixing it all!)

Ok I have to confess, I thought I caused this problem for myself by blindly deleting huge vhdx's and uninstalling docker desktop.
But just before this problem I coincidentally installed VMware Workstation.
It seems interestingly unrelated but solved my problem like charm, despite trying tons of other solution.
Cheers bro, you're a magician

[bnbncch]

I just managed to fix this, but am unsure of the exact underlying issue, or what caused it (the original issue was Docker Desktop failing to start with various random errors).
Firstly I noticed the comment above about a possible link to network adapters. I noticed I had a "VMWare Bridge Protocol" attached to my ethernet adapter, probably left over from an old VMWare Player install, but I was unable to remove/uninstall it (0x8007007E error).
I then did a Network Reset in Windows, which broke all my networking, the adapters had the error "Windows is still setting up the class configuration for this device, Code 56" which is relatively obscure, and again apparently related to an incompatible underlying driver. This error seems to be impossible to solve by a user (ie. through the normal Windows UI) except by a system restore or something. I was only able to fix it by running the CCleaner software (free version), and accepting all it's recommendations in the registry clean section.
After a reboot all the networking worked fine again, and I was able to install WSL2 and then reinstall Docker Desktop (which is what started me on the trail of fixing it all!)

Using CCleaner and cleaning registry helped me. Thanks

It really works! I tried to solve this problem all day and you really saved me.

[Definelymes]

I tired many things over past 24 hours, and the only thing that worked for me was removing the whole wsl and then re-installing it.

[hiedt]

I just managed to fix this, but am unsure of the exact underlying issue, or what caused it (the original issue was Docker Desktop failing to start with various random errors).

Firstly I noticed the comment above about a possible link to network adapters. I noticed I had a "VMWare Bridge Protocol" attached to my ethernet adapter, probably left over from an old VMWare Player install, but I was unable to remove/uninstall it (0x8007007E error).

I then did a Network Reset in Windows, which broke all my networking, the adapters had the error "Windows is still setting up the class configuration for this device, Code 56" which is relatively obscure, and again apparently related to an incompatible underlying driver. This error seems to be impossible to solve by a user (ie. through the normal Windows UI) except by a system restore or something. I was only able to fix it by running the CCleaner software (free version), and accepting all it's recommendations in the registry clean section.

After a reboot all the networking worked fine again, and I was able to install WSL2 and then reinstall Docker Desktop (which is what started me on the trail of fixing it all!)

After years of development, this WSL2 issue still hit my computer today. I tried all solutions proposed here and installing CCleaner was the only way. Thank you very much.

[Cameron-Nguyen1]

I just managed to fix this, but am unsure of the exact underlying issue, or what caused it (the original issue was Docker Desktop failing to start with various random errors).
Firstly I noticed the comment above about a possible link to network adapters. I noticed I had a "VMWare Bridge Protocol" attached to my ethernet adapter, probably left over from an old VMWare Player install, but I was unable to remove/uninstall it (0x8007007E error).
I then did a Network Reset in Windows, which broke all my networking, the adapters had the error "Windows is still setting up the class configuration for this device, Code 56" which is relatively obscure, and again apparently related to an incompatible underlying driver. This error seems to be impossible to solve by a user (ie. through the normal Windows UI) except by a system restore or something. I was only able to fix it by running the CCleaner software (free version), and accepting all it's recommendations in the registry clean section.
After a reboot all the networking worked fine again, and I was able to install WSL2 and then reinstall Docker Desktop (which is what started me on the trail of fixing it all!)

After years of development, this WSL2 issue still hit my computer today. I tried all solutions proposed here and installing CCleaner was the only way. Thank you very much.

CCleaner -> Tools -> Registry -> Scan -> Apply Fix (Works for Windows 10 home edition ubuntu 22.04 in August, 2024)

Thanks for sharing, hieudtrung.

[msuzuki55]

I occurred 0x80070002 because C:\Program Files\WSL\system.vhd was not found.
I restored system.vhd using the steps below and the problem was resolved.
#11069 (comment)

[Trimatix]

My company had deployed the latest version of the Microsoft Defender for Endpoint plugin for WSL via Intune. This failed to install on multiple PCs, causing this error when launching WSL:

Installing, this may take a few minutes...
WslRegisterDistribution failed with error: 0x80070002
Error: 0x80070002 The system cannot find the file specified.

Or one of these errors when launching docker desktop:

checking if isocache exists: CreateFile \wsl$\docker-desktop-data\isocache: The filename, directory name, or volume label syntax is incorrect.

Or:

checking if isocache exists: CreateFile \wsl$\docker-desktop-data\isocache: The network name cannot be found.

I resolved the issue on computer by repairing the plugin installation from control panel, as described in the documentation: https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/defender-endpoint/mde-plugin-wsl#installation-steps:~:text=If%20you%20see%20an%20error%20on%20launching%20WSL%2C%20such%20as%20%22A%20fatal%20error%20was%20returned%20by%20plugin%20%27DefenderforEndpointPlug%2Din%27%20Error%20code%3A%20Wsl/Service/CreateInstance/CreateVm/Plugin/ERROR_FILE_NOT_FOUND%22%2C%20it%20means%20the%20Defender%20for%20Endpoint%20plug%2Din%20for%20WSL%20installation%20is%20faulty.%20To%20repair%20it%2C%20follow%20these%20steps%3A

[velicaferov5]

Had same issue, tried a lot of suggestions, and was not resolved.
Installed Microsoft Defender for Endpoint plug-in for Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL), followed steps and did troubleshooting in microsoft-defender-for-endpoint
I hope will be also fixed for others.

[HugoRebelo99]

I was able to fix this issue by using wsl.exe --set-default-version 1, and then wsl.exe --install <distro>. After this it worked like a charm, I was able to install the distros but I was limited to version 1, every time I wanted to wsl.exe --set-version <distro> 2 it gave me a different error. WSL version 1 doesn't allow me to run Docker from within WSL. After a long time and checking other issues, I tried to update my WSL kernel and even this was unsuccessful. In the end, the folder C:\Windows\System32\lxss didn't contain the lib folder and the kernel and license files under C:\Windows\System32\lxss\tools. I just grabbed those files from another WSL installation on another PC and got the issue fixed! 😁
I don't know how those files went missing, but I assure you that disabling/enabling the Windows features such as Hyper-V, WSL, Windows Hypervisor Platform, and Virtual Machine Platform doesn't fix the issue nor bring these files back.

Hope this helps. 😉

TLDR: Check if you have C:\Windows\System32\lxss\tools\(kernel/license) files and if not try grabbing them from another WSL installation into your PC.

[AdrianDeWinter]

I was able to fix this issue by using wsl.exe --set-default-version 1, and then wsl.exe --install <distro>. After this it worked like a charm, I was able to install the distros but I was limited to version 1, every time I wanted to wsl.exe --set-version <distro> 2 it gave me a different error. WSL version 1 doesn't allow me to run Docker from within WSL. After a long time and checking other issues, I tried to update my WSL kernel and even this was unsuccessful. In the end, the folder C:\Windows\System32\lxss didn't contain the lib folder and the kernel and license files under C:\Windows\System32\lxss\tools. I just grabbed those files from another WSL installation on another PC and got the issue fixed! 😁 I don't know how those files went missing, but I assure you that disabling/enabling the Windows features such as Hyper-V, WSL, Windows Hypervisor Platform, and Virtual Machine Platform doesn't fix the issue nor bring these files back.

Hope this helps. 😉

TLDR: Check if you have C:\Windows\System32\lxss\tools\(kernel/license) files and if not try grabbing them from another WSL installation into your PC.

Oh my goodness, I have been trying everything I could think of for the past two weeks, thank you so much!
Just for SEO to help others get here, my problems began after I did an in-place upgrade of my server to Windows Server 2025