Fix NS_E_DRM_RESTORE_FRAUD 0XC00D2753 Error

You see this error right after reinstalling Windows or setting up a brand-new PC, when you open Windows Media Player and try to restore your purchased music or video licenses. The exact message is NS_E_DRM_RESTORE_FRAUD (0XC00D2753) - You cannot restore your license(s). It's not random – it triggers when the DRM system detects something that looks like you're trying to game the system, even when you're not.

What's actually happening here

Windows Media DRM ties each license to a unique hardware ID. When you reinstall Windows or move to a new machine, that hardware ID changes. The restore process is supposed to transfer your licenses to the new ID. But Microsoft's DRM server keeps track of how many times you've done this. If you've restored too often, or if the time gap between restores is suspiciously short, the server flags it as potential fraud and refuses.

The 0XC00D2753 code specifically means the server thinks you're abusing the restore feature. It's the same mechanism that prevents people from sharing licenses across hundreds of machines. The thing is, the trigger is often mundane – like restoring after a failed update, or doing a clean install twice in a month.

The fix that usually works

There's no official Microsoft tool to reset this counter. But you can reset the local DRM store, which forces a fresh start. This doesn't guarantee success if the server has already blacklisted your machine, but it clears the local state that might be causing the mismatch.

Close all media apps – Windows Media Player, Groove Music, Movies & TV, anything that might hold DRM files open.
Open File Explorer and go to C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows\DRM. You might need to enable hidden files – click View → Hidden items.
Delete everything inside the DRM folder. Don't delete the folder itself, just the contents. You'll see files like drms031.drm, drmstore.hds, and some .bak files. Select them all and press Delete.
Reboot your PC. Windows will recreate the DRM store from scratch on next boot.
Try restoring licenses again – open Windows Media Player, go to Tools → Manage Licenses (in older versions) or just play a protected file. On Windows 10/11, the restore prompt usually appears automatically when you play a DRM'd file.

The reason step 3 works is that the local DRM store holds a cached version of your license data. If that cache is corrupted or has conflicting entries, the restore process fails before it even talks to the server properly. Wiping it forces a clean handshake.

If that doesn't cut it

If you still get the error after resetting, the server-side flag is still active. You've got two realistic options.

Call Microsoft support

They can't directly reset the DRM counter, but they might issue a manual license restoration if you can prove you own the content. Have your purchase receipts handy. This is a long shot – most support agents don't even know what 0XC00D2753 means – but it's the only official channel.

Re-download the content

If you bought the media from a store like the old Xbox Music or iTunes (which used Windows DRM for some old tracks), go back to that store, log in, and re-download the files. The new files come with fresh licenses tied to your current hardware ID. You'll lose the files you had, but you won't lose the money you spent.

What to check if it still fails

System clock – If your date or time is off by more than a day, the DRM handshake fails with a different error usually, but sometimes it throws this one. Make sure automatic time sync is on.
Old Windows.old folder – If you upgraded instead of doing a clean install, the old DRM files might still be around. Look in C:\Windows.old\ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows\DRM and delete that too, after confirming you don't need anything else from the old install.
Other user accounts – DRM data is per-user, but the restore counter might be machine-wide. Log into every user account on the PC and check if any of them can play the protected files. If one works, you might be able to copy the license.

Realistically, if you've hit this error, the DRM server has flagged your machine. The clean-install reset works maybe 60% of the time. The rest of the time, you're stuck with re-downloading or accepting the loss. It's an old copy-protection scheme that doesn't play nice with modern upgrade cycles – and that's exactly why stores moved to streaming.