NS_E_NOTARCHIVING (0XC00D1B7E) fix for Windows Media Encoder

You're running Windows Media Encoder 9 (or WME 9.1), and you've set it up to archive a live stream to a local file. Everything starts fine — the preview window shows video, the encoder says "Running" — but then you get the error: NS_E_NOTARCHIVING (0XC00D1B7E). The encoder is not archiving. The stream doesn't write to disk.

I've seen this most often when someone moves the archive destination folder after setting it, or when the encoder is started before the folder exists. It can also happen when Windows permissions don't allow the encoder to write to that path — especially on Windows 10 or 11 where Program Files folders are locked down.

What causes this error

The encoder tries to create or write to an archive file, but it fails. Windows Media Encoder 9 is old software (last updated in 2004), and it doesn't handle missing folders or permission errors gracefully. Instead of a warning, it just gives you the cryptic 0XC00D1B7E code and stops. The root cause is always something blocking the write — either the path is gone, it's read-only, or the encoder doesn't have create rights.

Step-by-step fix

1. Close the encoder if it's running. Right-click the system tray icon (if you see it) and select Exit. Or kill it from Task Manager.
2. Create or confirm your archive folder exists. Go to the exact path you want to use. For example: C:\ArchivedStreams\. If it doesn't exist, create it. Right-click in File Explorer, choose New > Folder, and name it. Don't use spaces if you can help it — WME sometimes chokes on paths with spaces.
3. Set correct permissions on the folder. Right-click the folder, select Properties, go to the Security tab. Click Edit. Add the group Users (or Everyone if you're on a home machine). Give them Modify permission. Check the checkbox for Write. Click Apply, then OK. If you don't do this, the encoder can't create files there, and you'll keep getting the error.
4. Open Windows Media Encoder. Go to Start, type "Windows Media Encoder" and open it.
5. Load your session or start a new broadcast. If you were using a saved session file (.wme), click File > Open, then browse to it. If starting fresh, click New Session and set up your source as before.
6. Check the archive destination. In the session properties, go to the Output tab. Look for the archive file path. It should point to the folder you just created. Example: C:\ArchivedStreams\myStream.wmv. If it points somewhere else, click Browse and select your folder. Name the file something simple — live.wmv works fine.
7. Test with a short run. Click Start Encoding. Let it run for 10 seconds. Stop it. Then go to the folder and check that the file exists and has a non-zero size. If it's there, the fix worked. If not, move to the next step.
8. Run Windows Media Encoder as administrator. This bypasses most permission issues. Right-click the encoder shortcut, select Run as administrator. Click Yes on the UAC prompt. Then load your session and start encoding again.
9. If it still fails, use a different folder. Try a path like C:\Temp\ or C:\Users\Public\Videos\. Avoid any folder inside C:\Program Files — those are protected by Windows and WME can't write there without special permissions you don't want to mess with. I've seen this fix the problem more times than I can count.

What to check if it still fails

If you've done all the steps above and the error comes back, check these things:

• Disk space. If the drive is full, the encoder can't write. Free up at least 1 GB.
• File already exists and is locked. If a previous archive file is still open (maybe in Windows Media Player or another encoder instance), close that app. Delete the old file if needed.
• Path length. Keep the full path under 150 characters. Long paths break old software like WME.
• Source video resolution. I've seen cases where a 1080p source caused the encoder to silently fail when archiving. Drop the resolution to 720p in the session settings (Output tab, then Edit compression). It's a workaround, but it works.

One last thing: Windows Media Encoder 9 is not supported on Windows 10 or 11. It works 90% of the time, but if none of this fixes it, you might need a modern alternative like OBS Studio with its built-in archiving. That's what I switched to years ago, and I never looked back.