Fix PLA_E_CREDENTIALS_REQUIRED 0x80300103 Error

What Triggered This?

You were trying to create or modify a Data Collector Set in Performance Monitor (perfmon.msc). Maybe you clicked "New" under Data Collector Sets, gave it a name, picked a template, and then hit the finish button. That's when the error pops up: PLA_E_CREDENTIALS_REQUIRED (0x80300103) – A user account is required to commit the current Data Collector Set properties.

It's a permissions thing. Performance Logs and Alerts (PLA) service needs to run under a specific user account to collect data. By default, it uses 'SYSTEM', but when you're trying to save a new set, it sometimes demands explicit credentials. Here's how to fix it, from quickest to most thorough.

Fix 1: Run Perfmon as Administrator (30 seconds)

This is the first thing to try. It works about half the time.

1. Close Performance Monitor if it's open.
2. Right-click the Start button and select Windows PowerShell (Admin) or Command Prompt (Admin).
3. Type perfmon.msc and press Enter.
4. Try creating your Data Collector Set again. After clicking 'Finish', you should not see the error this time.

What to expect: If it worked, the Data Collector Set will show up under 'User Defined' with a green arrow icon. You're done. If you still get the error, move on to Fix 2.

Fix 2: Change the Data Collector Set to Run as SYSTEM (5 minutes)

This one's more reliable. You're going to edit the Data Collector Set properties directly.

1. Open Performance Monitor as administrator (as in Fix 1).
2. In the left pane, expand Data Collector Sets, then User Defined.
3. Right-click the Data Collector Set that's giving you the error (or the one you failed to create earlier) and select Properties.
4. Go to the Security tab at the top of the window.
5. Click the Run as... button. A dialog titled 'Performance Monitor Credentials' will appear.
6. In that dialog, select SYSTEM from the dropdown. Don't touch the password fields — they're grayed out for a reason.
7. Click OK twice to close all dialogs.
8. Right-click your Data Collector Set and select Start.

What to expect: The Data Collector Set should start running without any credential errors. You'll see it change to a green status with a running stopwatch icon. If it still fails, the issue might be in the registry.

Fix 3: Edit Registry to Force No Credential Prompt (15+ minutes)

This is the nuclear option. Only do this if Fix 1 and Fix 2 didn't work. It modifies the Performance Logs and Alerts service behavior.

1. Press Win + R, type regedit, press Enter.
2. Navigate to this key:

   HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\pla\Parameters

3. If you don't see a Parameters folder, right-click the pla folder, select New > Key, and name it Parameters.
4. Right-click in the right pane, select New > DWORD (32-bit) Value.
5. Name it DisableCredentialPrompt.
6. Double-click that new value, set the data to 1, and click OK.
7. Close Registry Editor.
8. Open a Command Prompt as administrator. Type net stop pla && net start pla and press Enter. This restarts the Performance Logs and Alerts service.
9. Now open Performance Monitor as administrator and create your Data Collector Set again.

What to expect: The registry change tells PLA to skip the credential dialog entirely. After restarting the service, creating a Data Collector Set should go straight through without the 0x80300103 error. If you still see the error, you might have a corrupt PLA service — but that's rare.

Why This Happens

Under the hood, PLA is a COM component that runs under the local SYSTEM account by default. But when you create a new Data Collector Set, Windows wants to make sure you're not a random user trying to monitor system-level performance. The error 0x80300103 is its way of saying, "Hey, I need to know who's running this thing." Running as admin or setting it to SYSTEM tells PLA, "It's me, the machine itself." The registry fix basically says, "Don't ask, just do it."

Still Stuck?

If none of these fixes worked, you might be dealing with a corrupted PLA service. Open an elevated PowerShell and run sfc /scannow to check system files, then DISM /Online /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealth to repair the component store. After that, retry from Fix 1. It's rare, but a busted install causes weird permissions issues.