Connection problems (error 800401f3)

Hi,

I am connection problems for some user accounts on my PC. I have no
problems using Messenger, but other people (who have the same admin
rights as me) can't connect. When they try to connect, they get the
error 800401f3. I saw an article which suggested MSXML library may be
corrupt. When I try to register the library (via Regsvr32
%windir%\system32\msxml3.dll), I get the error "DllRegisteServer
msxml3.dll failed. Return code was 0x80004005".

I have checked that Messenger isn't blocked by my firewall (McAfee). I
ran the connection trouble shooter within Messenger and it did not
identify any issues.

However, if they login to the PC using my account and then connect to
Messenger with their username and password, it works. So this may be to
do with some permission issue.

I am using Messenger 8.1 (beta). However, I had the same problem with
7.5.

I e-mailed MSN support and they replied with a list of steps to do (see
below). It still got the msxml3.dll registration error.


Thanks for any ideas or suggestions.


E-mail from MSN support:

You may be experiencing this problem because Windows Live Messenger is
being blocked by a firewall or cannot connect to the service. Several
reasons/conditions may also be true. The issue may occur if you do not
have an active Internet connection. It may also happen if your account
may be temporarily locked out because an incorrect password was used
repeatedly. Additionally, the following conditions may apply:

- You have an old version of Messenger.
- Windows Live Messenger cannot verify the certificates on the required
library files.
- Microsoft Internet Explorer security settings are interfering with
Windows Live Messenger.
- XML libraries are not registered correctly.
- There are incorrectly cached DNS settings.

What we need to do is verify that you can connect to the Internet and
try to sign in to Web Messenger. Then, verify whether you can sign in
to Passport Network website using your Passport account. Additionally,
we need to determine what version of Windows Live Messenger is
installed on your computer, and upgrade if it is necessary. We will
then check and configure your firewall settings if it is blocking
Windows Live Messenger. We may also perform the following workarounds:

- Verify the date and time settings on the computer.
- Reregister the MSXML library.
- Make sure that Internet Explorer is configured.
- Reregister the security .dll files.
- Determine the status of the Windows Live Messenger service.

You might have done some of the workarounds I mentioned above. However,
I would appreciate it if you go through them one more time so we can
make sure that they are not causing your issue.

The troubleshooting steps for this issue are rather long. I have
explained the probable cause of the problem to give you an idea of what
we're about to do. Please follow these steps carefully. Try to sign
in to Windows Live Messenger after each step.

1. Visit the following Web site to verify that you can connect to the
Internet:
http://www.microsoft.com
If you cannot connect, contact your Internet service provider for
help.

2. If you are receiving an error message that states that your sign-in
name or password is incorrect, go to step 2-a; otherwise go to step 3.
a. Visit the following Web site, and sign in by using the user
name and password that you used with Windows Live Messenger:
http://login.live.com
b. If you are successfully signed into your account in Passport,
go to step c.

If you receive an error message about your user name or password,
your address or password may be incorrect or your account may have been
blocked due to multiple incorrect attempts. For more information, see
Passport Help: Click the "Help" button, type "Reset your password," and
select the options that apply.

If you need more help with your credentials, contact Passport
support through the following Web site:

http://support.msn.com/eform.aspx?pr...ail&ct=eformts

c. Start Windows Live Messenger, and then try to sign in by using
the e-mail address and password that you used at the Passport site.

Note: Do not sign in with credentials that are saved in Windows Live
Messenger. Type your e-mail address and password in the sign in window.

If this step does not work and you still receive the error message,
skip the rest of the steps and write back to us. Include the following
information:

- The version of Windows Live Messenger you are using
- The exact error message you receive
- The error code of the error message that you receive

3. Determine what version of Windows Live Messenger is installed on
your computer, and upgrade if it is necessary.

If the version is not 8.1.0106.00, you need to install the latest
version of Windows Live Messenger. Otherwise, proceed to step 4.

To upgrade to the latest version of Windows Live Messenger, I suggest
that you uninstall the previous version of the program first from your
computer.

a. To uninstall the current version of Messenger that you have.
i. Click on START and RUN and type in CONTROL APPWIZ.CPL and
hit Enter.
ii. Look for MSN Messenger or Windows Live Messenger or
Windows Live Messenger beta from the list of programs.
iii. Click "Remove" and remove the currently installed
version of Messenger.

b. Remove all temporary files
i. Click "Start," click "Run," type "cleanmgr", and then
click "OK."
ii. If you are prompted to, click "C:" in the "Select the
drive you want to clean up" list, and then click "OK."
iii. Note: If you partitioned your hard disk, the CleanMgr
utility prompts you to select a drive.
iv. The Disk Cleanup utility displays how much disk space can
be released. This process can take several minutes.
v. On the "Disk Cleanup" tab, make sure that the following
options are selected, and then clear any other options that are
selected:
- Downloaded Program files
- Temporary Internet files
- Temporary files
- Temporary Offline files
- Offline files

vi. Click "OK," and then click "Yes" or "OK" again.

c. To download the latest released version of Windows Live
Messenger, please do the following:
i. Go to
http://ideas.live.com/programpage.as...c-b37d7ccd5617.
If this link does not work for you, go to http://ideas.live.com and
look for "Windows Live Messenger 8.1 Beta" under Windows Live products
section.
ii. Click on the "Download" link and step through the
wizard to install Windows Live Messenger.
iii. Follow the steps in the wizard to complete
installation.

After the installation process is completed you need to sign into
Windows Live Messenger again. This should resolve your issue. If the
issue persists proceed to the next step.

4. Try to sign in to Web Messenger by using the same account with which
you are signing in to Windows Live Messenger:
a. Visit the following Web site:
http://webmessenger.msn.com
b. Click "Start Web Messenger" or "Start MSN Web Messenger", and
then sign in.
c. If you successfully signed in to Web Messenger, Windows Live
Messenger may be blocked by a firewall. Visit
http://spaces.msn.com/messenger-supp...53F!3669.entry
and look for steps on how to enable Windows Live Messenger through the
most common firewalls.

5. Verify the date and time settings on the computer:
a. Click "Start," click "Run," type the following command, and
then click "OK":
CONTROL TIMEDATE.CPL

b. Make sure that the date and time settings are correct.

6. Reregister the MSXML library. This file is used to send and receive
data when authenticating with the Windows Live Messenger service.

a. Click "Start," click "Run," type the following command, and
then click "OK":
REGSVR32 MSXML3.dll

You will receive a "DllRegisterServer succeeded" message when the
command runs successfully.

7. Make sure that Internet Explorer is configured as the following
steps show. This is required because Windows Live Messenger uses the
settings in Internet Explorer while making a connection to the Windows
Live Messenger service:

a. Start Internet Explorer.
b. Make sure that Internet Explorer is not set to work off-line:
On the "File" menu, make sure that there is no check mark next to "Work
Offline."
c. On the "Tools" menu, click "Internet Options."
d. Click the "Content" tab.
e. Under "Certificates," click "Clear SSL State."
f. When you receive the message that states that the SSL cache was
cleared successfully, click "OK."
g. Click the "Advanced" tab, and then click "Restore Defaults."
h. Click the "Connections" tab, and then click "LAN Settings."
i. Clear all the check boxes, and then click "OK."
j. Click "OK" to close the Internet Options window.
k. Verify that you can connect to the Internet by visiting the
following Web site:
http://www.microsoft.com


8. Reregister the security .dll files:
a. Click "Start," click "Run," type CMD, and then click "OK."

b. Type the following commands. Press ENTER after each command
line. After each command runs successfully, you receive a
"DllRegisterServer succeeded" message. Wait until you receive this
message before you type the next command.

REGSVR32 SOFTPUB.DLL
REGSVR32 WINTRUST.DLL
REGSVR32 INITPKI.DLL
REGSVR32 RSAENH.DLL
REGSVR32 MSSIP32.DLL
REGSVR32 CRYPTDLG.DLL
REGSVR32 DSSENH.DLL
REGSVR32 GPKCSP.DLL
REGSVR32 SLBCSP.DLL
REGSVR32 SCCBASE.DLL


9. Change Windows Explorer settings

a. Right-click "Start," and then click "Explore" to open Windows
Explorer.

b. In the "Windows Explorer" window, click the "Tools" menu
followed by "Folder Options." Click the "View" tab. In the Advanced
settings list, check "Show hidden files and folders" and uncheck the
option "Hide extensions for known file types" under "Hidden files and
folders." Click "OK" to close the "Folder Options" window.

c. In the "Windows Explorer" window, click the "View" menu
followed by "Explorer bar" and ensure that the "Folders" option is
checked. This will ensure that you are able to see the folder list on
the left side of the "Windows Explorer" window.


10. Delete the Contacts Cache folder by following the steps below:

a. Right click Start; click Explore from the short-cut menu to
open the Windows Explorer window.

b. In the Windows Explorer window, go to the Folder list on the
left pane and navigate to the folder C:\Documents and Settings\Your
Windows logon name\Contacts\Your Windows Live Messenger email address

Note: Windows Logon name is the login name you use to sign into windows
and Your Windows Live Messenger email address is the address that you
use to sign into Windows Live Messenger.

c. Delete all the files that are in the Your Windows Live
Messenger email address folder.

d. Right click "Start," Click "Explore" from the short-cut menu to
open the Windows Explorer window.

e. In the "Windows Explorer" window, go to the Folder list on the
left pane and navigate to the folder C:\Documents and Settings\Your
Windows logon name\Local Settings\Application Data\Microsoft\Windows
Live Contacts\Your Windows Live Messenger email address.

f. Delete the "real" and the "shadow" folders that are in the
messenger email address folder.

12. Visit the following Web site to determine the status of the Windows
Live Messenger service:

http://messenger.msn.com/status.aspx


Wait several minutes and try to sign in again. If the issue persists,
reply to this message and include following information:

- Were you able to follow all the steps provided here? If not,
what is the error message that you received?
- Were you able to find the steps for the firewall that you are
using?
- What is the exact sign-in error message and error code that you
receive in the sign-in window?
- Were you given the option to run the Connectivity troubleshooter
when you received the sign-in error message? If you were given the
option, did you run the troubleshooter, and what error message did you
receive in the troubleshooter window?

Please inform us of the results you encounter after performing the
above instructions so we may investigate further and give you more
appropriate troubleshooting steps to resolve this issue.

I hope these steps resolve your concern with Windows Live Messenger. If
you need further assistance, you may contact us at
http://support.live.com. For additional information and self-help
instructions, visit https://account.live.com/HelpCentral.aspx and
choose "Windows Live Messenger" from the drop-down menu.