Fix NS_E_DRM_STORE_NOTALLOWED (0XC00D27DC) on Windows 10/11

I know that error is a headache. You're trying to play a protected file—maybe a video from a streaming download or a music track with DRM—and instead you get that message about your machine not meeting requirements. It's not your hardware. It's almost always a corrupted DRM cache folder.

Step-by-step fix

1. Close any media apps that might be using DRM. That includes Windows Media Player, Netflix app, or any video player that plays protected content. Give it 30 seconds.
2. Open File Explorer. In the address bar, type %USERPROFILE%\AppData\Local\Microsoft and hit Enter. You're looking for a folder called DRM.
3. Right-click the DRM folder and choose Properties. Go to the Security tab. Click Advanced. At the top, you should see your username listed as the owner. If it says SYSTEM or something else, click Change next to the owner, type your username, click Check Names (it should underline it), then click OK. Apply that, then close out.
4. Now delete everything inside the DRM folder. Don't delete the folder itself—just the files and subfolders inside it. If Windows says a file is in use, you didn't close all media apps. Reboot to safe mode if you have to.
5. Press Win+R, type services.msc, and hit Enter. Find Windows Media Player Network Sharing Service. Right-click it, choose Stop. Don't change the startup type, just stop it for now.
6. Open Command Prompt as administrator. Type net localgroup Administrators /add networkservice and press Enter. Then type net localgroup Administrators /add localservice and press Enter. This gives the built-in service accounts the permissions they need to write to the DRM store. Restart your computer.
7. After restart, try playing your protected file again. It should work now.

After you click Apply on the folder's security settings, you should see the owner change immediately. When you delete the DRM folder contents, you might get a warning that you'll need to re-authorize some licenses. That's fine—most services will re-download them automatically.

Why this works

Windows stores DRM licenses in that folder. When it gets corrupted—maybe from a crash, a bad update, or a permission change—the DRM system can't write new licenses or read existing ones. The error code 0XC00D27DC specifically means "store not allowed." It's not telling you your hardware is bad; it's saying the store (that folder) refused the write. Deleting the old corrupted files and fixing the permissions forces the system to create fresh ones with the right access. The services command ensures the network service account—which Windows Media Player and other apps use—can actually write there.

Less common variations

• On Windows 7 or 8.1: The folder path is %USERPROFILE%\AppData\Local\Microsoft\DRM same as above, but you might also need to run regsvr32 drmclien.dll from an admin command prompt to re-register the DRM client.
• On Windows 11 version 22H2 or later: Some users report that the error shows up after a feature update. In that case, also run the Windows Media Player Troubleshooter from Settings > System > Troubleshoot > Other troubleshooters. It's not great, but it fixes the registry keys sometimes.
• If you're using a corporate machine: Group Policy might be blocking DRM storage. Check with your IT team. You can test this by opening a command prompt and typing gpresult /h gp.html, then look in the generated HTML file under Windows Media Player settings for any policy that disables DRM.
• If you have McAfee or Norton: These can lock the DRM folder. Temporarily disable real-time scanning, try the fix, then re-enable it.

How to prevent it from coming back

Three things make this error return. First, don't run disk cleanup tools that wipe the DRM folder. If you use something like CCleaner, exclude %USERPROFILE%\AppData\Local\Microsoft\DRM from its cleanup list. Second, when Windows does a feature update, the DRM folder sometimes gets reset. After any major update, check that the folder still has your user as owner. Third, keep Windows Media Player updated through Windows Update. Microsoft has patched several DRM bugs over the years. The real fix is just keeping that folder clean and owned by you.