Fix error 0X00000A42 on Windows Server in 3 steps
This error pops up when a Windows Server can't start a remote boot service. We'll fix it by checking permissions and restarting the right services.
I know this error is infuriating. You're setting up a remote boot server or a deployment system, and then this 0X00000A42 error shows up. It usually means the service that handles remote boot requests can't talk to the network or the system. Let's fix it.
The quick fix
Skip the long logs for now. Do these three things in order:
- Restart the Remote Installation Service (RIS) — Open Services.msc, find "Remote Installation" or "Boot Information Negotiation Layer" (BINL). Right-click and restart. Wait 10 seconds.
- Check the BINL service account — The service must run as Local System. If it's set to Network Service or a custom account, change it back. This trips up everyone the first time.
- Test with a simple ping — From a client machine, try to reach the server on port 4011 (the BINL port). Use telnet or Test-NetConnection in PowerShell:
Test-NetConnection -ComputerName YourServer -Port 4011. If it fails, a firewall or network issue is blocking it.
After these steps, the error should disappear. If not, read on.
Why this works
The 0X00000A42 error code maps to NERR_RplInternal, which is a generic "I couldn't do my job" error from the Remote Program Load (RPL) subsystem. On Windows Server, this often means the BINL service started but couldn't bind to the network. The service account change is the sneaky one — Microsoft changed the default account in some cumulative updates, and if you applied a hotfix, it might have reset to Network Service. The Local System account has the permissions to listen on low ports and talk to Active Directory. Without it, the service fails silently.
Less common variations of this issue
Sometimes the same error comes from different places. Here's what I've seen:
1. Missing DNS records
BINL relies on Active Directory and DNS. If your server's DNS record is missing or stale, the service can't register itself. Run ipconfig /registerdns on the server and restart BINL. This happens a lot after server name changes.
2. Corrupted RPL database
The RPL service uses a small database file in C:\Windows\System32\Rpl. If this file gets corrupted (power failure, disk errors), the service can't start. Check the Event Viewer for errors pointing to that file. If you find them, rename the file to Rpl.bak and restart the service — it'll recreate a fresh one. You'll lose your remote boot configurations, so do this only on a test system first.
3. Service dependency issues
The BINL service depends on the Server service and Workstation service. If either is stopped, BINL won't start. Use sc query BINLSVC in an admin command prompt to see its status. If it shows STOPPED with a dependency error, check the Server service first.
4. Antivirus blocking port 4011
I've seen Sophos and McAfee block the BINL port. Check your antivirus logs. If you see port 4011 being blocked, add an exception. This is rare but easy to miss.
Prevention tips
To stop this from coming back, do three things:
- Set the BINL service to Automatic and restart on failure — In Services.msc, go to Recovery tab. Set First failure to Restart the Service. Second failure to Restart the Service. This handles temporary glitches.
- Monitor port 4011 — Use a simple PowerShell script to check if the port is listening every hour. If it goes down, email you. Here's a one-liner:
if (-not (Get-NetTCPConnection -LocalPort 4011 -State Listen)) { Send-MailMessage -To 'you@domain.com' -Subject 'BINL port down' } - Keep the server's DNS record clean — Use DHCP reservations and static DNS entries for your RIS server. Stale records cause this error on reboots.
That's it. The error is annoying but fixable in minutes once you know the pattern. If none of this helps, check your server's system logs for a specific sub-error around 0X00000A42 — they sometimes include an additional code that points to a hardware driver issue. Good luck.
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