How to Fix “The RPC Server is Unavailable” Error on Windows?

When the error occurs, that means the computer cannot communicate with the other devices under the same network as RPC enables users or RPC clients to transfer data. However, when the error popups, you may not be able to access some folders and files on the computer through Windows file explorer. As per the affected users, interference from the third-party software or the stopped RPC services seems to be the main contributor to this error.

Below are some of the main causes:-

• Stopped RPC Services- If the RPC (Remote Procedure Calls) services are not running properly, you will encounter this error as these services are responsible for managing Remote Procedure Calls.
• Interference From Third-party applications- Interference from the third-party application can also cause this issue, as some users have reported that the wallpaper engine was a culprit for their error.
• Remote Assistant is blocked From the Firewall- Remote Assistant allows the person who you trust to take control of the PC to fix problems. If it is blocked from the firewall, the error might appear.

1. Restart Your Computer

Before applying any major changes, first, we advise restarting your computer as it will restart all the services, including the RPC server.

2. Perform a Clean boot

As many users were getting this issue due to interference from the third party. However, they also managed to eliminate this error by closing the culprit applications. As per the affected users, the wallpaper engine was the application bringing this error. So if you use the wallpaper engine and any other third-party application, we recommend either closing them or booting a Windows in a clean boot as it enables the Windows with a minimum of drivers and services, which helps determine a source of a problem. Follow the steps:-

1. Type MSConfig in the Windows search bar
2. Open Microsoft Configuration settings, and select the Selective Startup

   

3. Then, go to Services and tick the Hide All Microsoft Services
4. Click Disable All
   
5. Then, click Apply and click OK
   

   

6. Once done, restart your computer and check if the error persists.

3. Restart DCOM Server Process Service

Distributed Component Object Model or DCOM allows the other computers to communicate under the same network. Therefore, if it gets stopped, you may encounter this error. Hence, try restarting the services to resolve this issue.

1. Press the Windows + R to launch Run Program
2. Type services.msc and click OK
   

   

3. Type D on the keyboard to scroll down to the DCOM Server Process Launcher
4. Right-click on it and select Properties
   

   

5. Change the Startup type from Manual to Automatic
6. If the service is stopped, click Start
7. Click Apply and click OK
   

   

4. Restart Remote Procedure Call Service

Remote Procedure Call services is a protocol that allows the computer program to request a service to another program located on another computer on the same network. If it gets stopped or disabled, you will have this error as it is used to communicate with another computer, similar to DCOM. Follow the steps:-

1. Press the Win + R on the keyboard
2. Type services.msc and click OK
3. Find and right-click Remote Procedure Call service
4. Click Properties
   

   

5. Now change the startup type to Automatic
6. Then, click Apply and start the service by clicking on the Start button

   

7. Once done, click OK and check if the error is fixed.

5. Allow Remote Assistance to Firewall

You may have seen in some situations that when the users get stuck with an error, they contact the technician to fix the error by giving access to the computer, and this whole process can be performed by a Remote Assistant. So if this application is blocked, you may encounter this error message as the application can use remotely. Therefore, allowing Remote Assistant from the firewall might fix this.

1. To allow the remote assistant service, type the control panel in the Windows search bar
2. Open the control panel and navigate to the following path

Control Panel\System and Security\Windows Defender Firewall

1. From the left pane, click Allow An App or Feature Through Windows Firewall
   

   

2. Click Change Settings
3. Find Remote Assistance and check boxes of Private and Public
   

   

4. Once done, click OK and check if the issue is resolved.

6. Change Registry Settings

As we have checked all the services and applications that are related to establishing an RPC Server. The last thing which is left is RPC registry files that may get corrupted or set incorrectly, and due to that, you are having this error. Follow the steps to change the RPC value from the registry.

1. Before making any changes to the system, create a registry backup
2. Now press the Windows + R to launch Run Program
3. Type Regedit and click OK to navigate

   

4. Navigate to the following path

   HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\services\RpcSs

5. Find the entry with the name of Start and double-click on it
6. Change its value data to 2

   

7. Repeat the same process with the following directories

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\services\DcomLaunch
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\services\RpcEptMapper

Once done, check if the error persists.

7. Use Restore Point

If all the methods have failed to resolve this error, we recommend resetting or restoring the Windows. Restoring the Windows will take the Windows to a previous state, which may fix all the Windows Update errors. This method requires a restore point created before you have encountered the error messages.

1. Click Start Menu and type rstrui in the search box

   

2. Open the restore settings and click Next
3. Select the restore point and click Next
   

   

4. Click Finish to start the restore process.