NS_E_INTERNAL_SERVER_ERROR (0XC00D2EE2) Fix: Top 3 Causes

1. IIS Application Pool Crash (Most Common)

Every time I see this error, the culprit is almost always the WMPNetworkSvc or MediaCenterSvc application pool crashing in IIS. This happens when the pool identity doesn't have the right permissions or the pool runs out of memory. You'll see this after a Windows Update or a reboot — especially on Server 2012 R2 or Windows 8.1 machines acting as Media Center extenders.

Fix it by recycling the pools and checking the identity:

1. Open IIS Manager (run inetmgr).
2. Expand your server node, click Application Pools.
3. Find WMPNetworkSvc and MediaCenterSvc. Right-click each and select Recycle.
4. If that doesn't stick, check the pool's Advanced Settings — set .NET CLR Version to No Managed Code and Enable 32-Bit Applications to False (unless you're running legacy extensions).
5. Restart the Windows Media Player Network Sharing Service (net stop WMPNetworkSvc && net start WMPNetworkSvc).

If the pool keeps crashing, check the Event Viewer under Windows Logs > System for a WAS or W3SVC error with ID 5009 or 5011. That points to a memory overflow — increase the Private Memory Limit from 1GB to 2GB in the pool settings.

Skip the 'repair Media Center' reinstall — it almost never helps here. I've seen it waste hours.

2. Corrupted ACL on Media Center Directories

Second most common cause: Windows Update or a permissions tool (like icacls run wrong) screws up the ACL on C:\Users\Public\Recorded TV or C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\eHome. The NETWORK SERVICE account loses read access, and the server throws 0XC00D2EE2 when a client tries to stream.

Here's the fix — run this from an elevated command prompt:

icacls "C:\Users\Public\Recorded TV" /grant "NT AUTHORITY\NETWORK SERVICE":(OI)(CI)R

icacls "C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\eHome" /grant "NT AUTHORITY\NETWORK SERVICE":(OI)(CI)M

Then restart the Windows Media Center Receiver Service and Windows Media Center Scheduler Service.

If you're still stuck, check the eHome folder for orphaned temp files. Delete everything inside C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\eHome\temp — these can cause the parser to shit the bed. I've cleared gigabytes of garbage from there on a single server once.

3. Windows Media Foundation or Codec Corruption

Less common, but I've seen it on machines that've had codec packs installed then uninstalled. The Media Center backend relies on Windows Media Foundation to transcode streams. If a codec DLL is missing or registered wrong, the pipeline fails silently and returns this error.

Run sfc /scannow and dism /online /cleanup-image /restorehealth to fix system files. If that doesn't do it, check for KB977377 — it's a hotfix for Media Center streaming issues on Windows 7/Server 2008 R2. Grab it from the Microsoft Update Catalog if it's not installed.

For a quick test, disable transcoding: open Windows Media Center, go to Settings > Media Libraries > Streaming > Allow Remote Access, and uncheck Transcode media when streaming. If the error disappears, you've got a codec issue. Reinstall the Media Feature Pack for your Windows version (Windows 10 N/KN users, this is your fix).

Don't bother with third-party codec packs — they'll just make it worse. Stick to Microsoft's stuff for WMC.

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