Fix SCHED_E_UNKNOWN_OBJECT_VERSION (0X80041313) Error

Quick answer

Delete the corrupted task via Task Scheduler or Command Prompt, then recreate it from scratch. If you exported the XML, check its format and version number.

What's happening here

You're seeing error code 0X80041313 (SCHED_E_UNKNOWN_OBJECT_VERSION) when trying to run, export, or import a scheduled task on Windows 10 or 11. This typically shows up when you've copied a task from a newer Windows build (like Windows 11 22H2) to an older one (like Windows 10 2004), or when the task's XML file got corrupted after a power outage or a manual edit gone wrong. I've had this pop up most often when someone exports a task from a fresh install and tries to import it into a legacy system that doesn't support the XML schema version. The task scheduler is picky — it expects a specific XML version, and if the root element's version attribute doesn't match what the engine expects, it throws this error and refuses to touch the task.

The real fix is straightforward: remove the dead task and recreate it. But if you need to preserve settings, we can also fix the XML manually. I'll walk you through both.

Step-by-step fix

Identify the broken task. Open Task Scheduler (taskschd.msc). Look for the task that fails. Right-click it and select Export — even if export fails, note the task name and path (e.g., \MyTasks\MyJob).
Delete the corrupted task. Right-click the task and choose Delete. Confirm when prompted. If deletion fails, open an elevated Command Prompt (cmd as Administrator) and run:
```
schtasks /delete /tn "\MyTasks\MyJob" /f
```
Recreate the task fresh. In Task Scheduler, click Create Task (not Import) and manually set up the triggers, actions, and conditions as before. Test it immediately by right-clicking and selecting Run. If it works, you're done.
If you have an exported XML file, check its version. Open the .xml file in Notepad. Look for the opening <Task> element. It should look like:
```
<Task version="1.3" xmlns="http://schemas.microsoft.com/windows/2004/02/mit/task">
```
If the version is 1.4 or higher, that's your problem. Change 1.4 to 1.3 (or 1.2 on older Windows 10 builds). Save the file, then try importing it again via Import Task.
Still failing? Delete the task again, then import the fixed XML. Sometimes the scheduler caches the old version.

Alternative fixes if the main one doesn't work

Use schtasks to import directly

If Task Scheduler's GUI fails, use the command line. Open an elevated command prompt and run:

schtasks /create /tn "\MyTasks\MyJob" /xml "C:\path\to\task.xml" /f

This often bypasses GUI glitches. If you get a version error, the XML is definitely not compatible — edit it as described above.

Check for orphaned registry entries

Rare, but I've seen this in corporate environments. The task scheduler might have a stale entry in the registry. Open regedit as Administrator, navigate to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Schedule\TaskCache\Tasks. Look for a folder with a GUID that matches your task (you can identify it by the Path string inside). Right-click and delete the entire folder. Then recreate the task.

System File Checker

If multiple tasks are broken, system files might be damaged. Run sfc /scannow in an elevated command prompt. Reboot and retry.

How to stop this from happening again

Always export tasks from the same Windows version you'll import them into. If you're moving from Windows 11 to Windows 10, open the XML and change version="1.4" to version="1.3" before importing.
Keep backups of task XML files in a safe folder — not the default scheduler cache. If a task breaks, you'll have a clean copy to fix.
Don't edit task XML manually unless you know the schema. One stray character can corrupt the whole thing.
Run Windows Update periodically. Microsoft has patched scheduler bugs in cumulative updates (e.g., KB5021233 fixed import issues on Windows 10 22H2).

That's it — you should be back up and running in 10 minutes. If you're still stuck, check the Task Scheduler event log (Event Viewer > Windows Logs > Microsoft-Windows-TaskScheduler/Operational) for more detailed error messages. Good luck.