STATUS_NO_TRACKING_SERVICE (0XC000029F) Fix: Tracking Service Not Running

When You'll See This Error

You're trying to map a network drive or access a shared printer on a Windows Server 2019 box. Suddenly you get hit with STATUS_NO_TRACKING_SERVICE (0XC000029F). Or maybe it's a Remote Desktop session that won't start because the tracking service is dead. I had a client last month whose whole office couldn't print because this error locked up their print server. The trigger is almost always a failed Windows update that quietly corrupts a service dependency, or someone on the team disabled the Workstation service thinking it wasn't needed.

Root Cause: The Workstation Service Is Off

Plain and simple: Windows needs the Workstation service (LanmanWorkstation) to redirect local requests to network shares. Without it, the tracking service — which is just another name for the Workstation service's core functionality — can't start. This service is a dependency for a bunch of other things: the Browser service, the Netlogon service, and even some Group Policy extensions. When it's dead, you get 0xC000029F.

Common reasons it stops:

• A Windows update replaces a system file and the service doesn't restart cleanly.
• Someone tinkered with services.msc and set it to Disabled.
• A third-party antivirus quarantined the file MRxSmb.sys (the SMB redirector driver).
• Corruption in the registry keys under HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\LanmanWorkstation.

The Fix: Get the Service Running Again

Step 1: Check Service Status

Open an admin command prompt — right-click Start, Command Prompt (Admin) or PowerShell as Administrator. Run:

sc query lanmanworkstation

Look at the STATE line. If it says STATE : 1 STOPPED or STATE : 4 STOP_PENDING, it's not running. If it's STATE : 4 RUNNING, skip to Step 4 — your issue might be different.

Step 2: Start the Service

In the same command prompt, run:

net start lanmanworkstation

If it starts without error, you're done. But often you'll see "System error 1058" or "The service cannot be started, either because it is disabled or because it has no enabled devices associated with it." That means the service startup type is wrong.

Step 3: Enable the Service via Registry

If net start fails, open Regedit and go to:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\LanmanWorkstation

Check the Start DWORD value. It should be 2 (automatic start). If it's 4 (disabled) or 3 (manual), change it to 2. Close Regedit and run net start lanmanworkstation again.

Step 4: Verify Dependencies

Even if the service starts, it might crash again if a dependency is broken. Run:

sc qc lanmanworkstation

Look at the DEPENDENCIES line. It should list Bowser, MRxSmb20, NSI, and rdbss. If any are missing or stopped, you'll need to fix them. For example, check MRxSmb20 with sc query mrxsmb20 — if it's stopped, run sc start mrxsmb20.

Step 5: Reboot and Test

After fixing the service, restart the machine. Then try whatever triggered the error — map the drive, connect to the printer, or start the Remote Desktop session. If it works, you're golden.

What to Check If It Still Fails

If the service starts but the error comes back, you've got a deeper issue. Here's what I'd check:

• Group Policy: There's a policy under Computer Configuration > Windows Settings > Security Settings > System Services that can lock services to Disabled. Run gpresult /h gpresult.html to see if a GPO is enforcing a wrong startup type.
• Antivirus: Temporarily disable real-time scanning and see if the service stays up. I've seen Symantec Endpoint Protection kill the Workstation service because it flagged the SMB driver as suspicious.
• Corrupt SMB Driver: Run sfc /scannow to check system file integrity. If it finds issues, run dism /online /cleanup-image /restorehealth after.
• Event Logs: Open Event Viewer and look under Windows Logs > System for errors from source Service Control Manager with event ID 7000 or 7001. Those will give you the exact reason the service stopped.

If nothing helps, you might be looking at a corrupt service database. That's rare, but when it happens, the nuclear option is to use the System Restore point from before the error started, or rebuild the LanmanWorkstation registry key from a known-good machine. Most of the time, though, the steps above get it done.