Windows 10: Windows Search service fails to start: Error 5: Access is Denied

Hello, At some point in the last few month I started encountering an error on my two Win 11 VMs running under VirtualBox fully updated. My symptoms appear while I'm in Explorer, When I click on any folder or file Explorer hangs. Eventually it clears. But if I click again it hangs. I currently don't have Win 11 installed on a base system, so I have been reluctant to update my host system from Windows 10.After extensively tearing my VM apart and trying just about everything I've found online, including SFC, DISM, repair install, full install I have found that the hangs is correlated with the

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wsearch won't start, error 5 access denied

I guess when the service itself has an issue, it renames itself to the "Service name" instead of "Display name".

- - - Updated - - - Try these suggestions: c# - windows could not start service on local computer error 5 access is denied - Stack Overflow - - - Updated - - - Another idea, similar to: DHCP Client service Error 5: Access is denied 1) Open Registry Editor and go to: 2) Computer\HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\WSearch 3) Right click WSearch, and press Permissions... Do all these look similar on your computer? If not, then make them similar and restart your computer:

After the computer restarts, see if Windows Search works - - - Updated - - - Here are search results for having an exactly the same Permissions error for a Service: "windows could not start the "+"error 5 access is denied" - Search This could widen the horizon of different possibilities that you can try to fix the error if none of the above worked.

 

Windows 10 Search service not started Error 5: Access is denied

I turned off the Windows Search service as I have an SSD C drive and didn't want the service writing over and over to the SSD drive. I found that I could control the Search service and I tried to enable it. It will not start.

Going to Services, Standard Tab, locating Windows Search and setting it to Start issues the following:

A popup titled "Services", a yellow triangle with an apostrophe in it and the following words:

"Windows could not start the Windows Search service on Local Computer.

Error 5: Access is denied."

And an OK button.

 

Windows 10 Search service not started Error 5: Access is denied

In that case, let's focus on the Error 5: Access denied error message that you received. Check out the link for
Error message when attempting to start the Windows Event Log Service: "Access denied" from

Solution Center for Access Denied Error Messages.

Update us with the results.

Regards.