Fix NS_E_WMG_LICENSE_TAMPERED (0XC00D1064) in WMP

Quick Fix — Restart and Delete the DRM Folder (30 seconds)

This is the fastest fix. The culprit here is almost always a corrupted DRM (Digital Rights Management) store. Windows Media Player uses a hidden folder to manage licenses. When that folder gets damaged — say after a failed Windows update or a third-party codec pack installer — you get this error.

1. Close Windows Media Player completely. Check the system tray — right-click and exit if it's running there.
2. Open File Explorer and paste this into the address bar:

   %windir%\ServiceProfiles\LocalService\AppData\Local\Microsoft\PlayReady

3. Press Enter. You might get a permissions warning — just click Continue.
4. Delete everything inside that folder. Don't delete the folder itself, just the files inside. It'll recreate them cleanly on the next WMP launch.
5. Open Windows Media Player again. It'll take a few extra seconds to initialize — that's normal. Try playing the file again.

If that didn't work, the license store might be in a different location for older Windows versions. Move to the next step.

Moderate Fix — Reset DRM via Command Prompt (5 minutes)

Microsoft buried a DRM reset tool in the command line. Don't bother with third-party registry cleaners — they rarely help here and often make things worse. Use this instead.

1. Press Windows Key + X and select Terminal (Admin) or Command Prompt (Admin).
2. Type or paste this command and press Enter:

   net stop wmpnetworksvc

3. Then run:

   cd %systemroot%\System32\WindowsPowerShell\v1.0
   powershell.exe -Command "& {Get-AppxPackage *zune* | Remove-AppxPackage -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue}; Start-Sleep -Seconds 2; (New-Object -ComObject WMPlayer.OCX.7).close()"

4. Finally, restart the service:

   net start wmpnetworksvc

5. Close the command prompt and fire up Windows Media Player again.

This forcibly clears the DRM store and re-registers the player. Note: If you have a lot of purchased music from the old Zune or Groove Music days, this might invalidate those licenses. You'll need to re-download the files from your account.

Advanced Fix — Full DRM Store Reset via Registry (15+ minutes)

This is the nuclear option. Only do this if the first two steps failed. You're going to delete the registry keys that store DRM state. Back up your registry first — seriously, don't skip that.

1. Press Windows Key + R, type regedit, and press Enter.
2. Navigate to:

   HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\DRM

3. Right-click the DRM key and select Export — save it somewhere safe as a backup.
4. Now delete the entire DRM key. Yes, the whole thing. Right-click and Delete.
5. Also check this location and delete the DRM key there too if it exists:

   HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\MediaPlayer\DRM

6. Close the registry editor.
7. Open Windows Media Player. It'll rebuild everything from scratch. You'll see "First Use Experience" dialogs again — that's fine.
8. Try playing the file. If it still fails, the file itself has a broken license. You might need to re-download it from the source.

What Actually Causes This Error

I've seen this mostly on Windows 8.1 and Windows 10 machines that had an abrupt shutdown during a DRM-licensed file playback. Also common after installing codec packs like K-Lite or CCCP that overwrite WMP's internal decoders. The DRM store becomes an inconsistent mess, and WMP throws the 0XC00D1064 error instead of playing anything.

Another scenario: you're playing an old .wma file from a decade ago. The license server for that music store (like MSN Music or the old Zune Marketplace) went offline years ago. The local license got corrupted during a Windows upgrade. In that case, none of the above will help — the file is effectively dead. You'd need to find a DRM-free copy.

When to Give Up and Use VLC

Honestly? If you've done the full DRM reset and still get the error, the file's license is permanently toast. Don't spin your wheels. VLC Media Player plays most DRM-free formats without any license management headaches. It won't play protected files either (that's the point of DRM), but if the file was unprotected and just had a broken license header, VLC might handle it.

Grab VLC from videolan.org. It's free, open-source, and won't mess with your DRM store.

TL;DR: Delete the PlayReady folder, then try the command-line reset, then nuke the registry keys. If none of that works, the file itself is beyond saving. Use VLC.