Fix: Xbox App Server Blocked Connectivity on Windows 10

Xbox is increasingly becoming one of the best gaming platforms, rivaling the likes of Play Station and Wii. With the Xbox One and the Xbox 360, you have unlimited games to play including the top games like FIFA, Call of Duty, Far Cry, GTA, Assassin’s Creed, Gears among others. However, there are a lot of PC enthusiasts that love playing games on their PC. For this reason, Microsoft created the Windows 10 Xbox streaming app on the Windows 10 PC. Game streaming allows you to play Xbox One games remotely from your Xbox One console on any Windows 10 PC on your home network. You can also create and join a party and be able to chat with other players on the platform. This feature allows you to leave your living room and play your favorite Xbox One games anywhere with access to your home network. Game streaming uses the power of the Xbox One console to manage the game. Your Windows 10 PC becomes a remote second screen so you can roam freely around your home while continuing to enjoy your Xbox One console and games.

However, the application sometimes shows an error. One would get a notification under the Settings > Network tab in the Xbox app that says “Server Connectivity: Blocked (This may impact your ability to play multiplayer games)”. Since you cannot connect to the Xbox server, you will not be able to play online multiplayer modes hence taking out the experience of interacting with others. You won’t be able to join parties either and voice chat communications will be unavailable. This article will explain why this error occurs and how you can get your Xbox app connected to the Xbox server.

Reasons for ‘Server Connectivity: Blocked’ error in the windows 10 Xbox App

As the error says, the Xbox application has been blocked from accessing the Xbox server. The blockage is usually anywhere between your PC and your router. Below are some of the issues that might be occurring.

1. The services that Xbox requires to connect to the server might not be running hence blocking the app from accessing the Xbox server through your network.
2. The Xbox app might be choosing the wrong network adapter to connect through. This could be the case if your computer can be connected through a LAN cable and through the Wi-Fi. Choosing the wrong network means the Xbox app cannot complete connection to the Xbox server despite seeing an internet availability hence returning an error that it is being blocked. If you have connected your computer through more than one of these network adapters, the issue might be more persistent.
3. Your third party security application might be blocking your connection. By reinforcing their own firewall policies, your antivirus, malware and spyware utilities might be blocking the connection between your Xbox application and the Xbox server. VPN (Virtual Private Networks) applications do not tend to support or connect broadcast domains, so some services may not be fully supported or work as they would on a local area network.

The methods below show how you can remedy the server connection issue in the Windows 10 Xbox application.

Method 1: Start/Restart the “IP Helper” and the “Xbox Live Networking Service” services

These services help in the completion of the Xbox server connection. Without them, the Xbox app might have trouble connecting successfully. Restarting these applications might clear any errors resulting from them starting wrongly. To start or restart these apps, follow the steps below.

1. Press the Windows Key + R to open the Run box
2. Type “services.msc” and hit enter to open the Services Window
   
3. Scroll down until you find an entry called “IP Helper”, right-click it, and then click restart.
   
4. Scroll all the way down to the bottom and do the same thing for “Xbox Live Networking Service”
5. Close the window, open the Xbox app and check your connection again; it should work now.

Method 2: Disable other network adapters

Disabling other network adapters (plugged or unplugged) from the network and sharing center (except the one you are using) will enable the Xbox app to find the correct adapter and connect through it successfully. To do this:

1. Press Windows Key + R to open run
2. Type ncpa.cpl and hit enter to open the Network Adapters page (network and sharing center> change adapter settings)
3. Identify the connection you want to keep.
4. Right-click on the rest of the connections (one by one) and select ‘Disable’
   
5. The disabled connection will be greyed out.
6. Close the window, open the Xbox app and check your connection again; it should work now.

Method 3: Uninstall VPN applications

VPN applications might hinder the correct communication between the Xbox app and the Xbox server. By creating a Virtual Network, the Xbox application might not find the correct connection. A common example of a VPN application in Windows 10 is the LogMeIn Hamachi application. To uninstall such an application, follow the steps below.

1. Press Windows Key + R to open run
2. Type appwiz.cpl and hit enter to open the programs and features window
   
3. Look for a VPN application like LogMeIn Hamachi
4. Select the application by clicking on it, and then click “Uninstall.”
5. Follow the prompts on the uninstaller to finish the uninstallation
6. Close the window, open the Xbox app and check your connection again; it should work now.

Method 4: Blocking Firewall Rule

In some cases, the Firewall might be blocking certain functions of the app from being able to connect to the internet. Therefore, in this step, we will be checking if any Firewall Rules regarding the application has been placed and then we will disable it entirely. For that:

1. Press “Windows” + “R” buttons simultaneously to open the Run prompt.
2. Type in “Cmd” and press “Shift” + “Ctrl” + “Enter” to provide it with administrative privileges.

   

3. Type in the following command and press “Enter” to execute it.

   netsh advfirewall firewall show rule 4jxr4b3r3du76ina39a98x8k2

4. If the result of the command shows that no rule has been found then you are good to go but if it shows that the rule has been found, type in the following command and press “Enter” to execute it.

   netsh advfirewall firewall set rule name="4jxr4b3r3du76ina39a98x8k2" new enable=no

5. Check to see if the issue persists.

Also, verify that you have set the correct date and time settings.

Method 5: Running a Command

Some users managed to fix the issue simply by running a command that resets certain settings relating to IPV6 connectivity. In order to run this command, we need to first open up an elevated command prompt. For that:

1. Press “Windows” + “R” to open the run prompt.
2. Type in “cmd” and then press “Shift’ + “Ctrl” + “Enter” to provide administrative privileges.

   

3. Type in the following command and press “Enter” to execute it.

   netsh int ipv6 set teredo client teredo.trex.fi

4. Check to see if the issue persists.
5. If it does, disable IPV6 connectivity completely and check again.

Method 6: Uninstall Intel Management Engine-Drivers

In some cases, the error might be triggered if Intel Management Engine Drivers are blocking the Xbox Connectivity. Therefore, in this step, we will be uninstalling it completely from our system. In order to do so follow the steps below.

1. Press “Windows” + “R” to open the run prompt.
2. Type in “Devmgmt.msc” and press “Enter”.

   

3. Expand the “System Devices” option and right-click on the “Intel Management Engine” or “Intel Management Interface” option.

   

4. Select the “Uninstall Drivers” option and check to see if the issue persists.
5. Also, uninstall Killer Network Suite if you have it installed on your computer because it is also known to block Xbox connectivity.

Method 7: Update Windows

In some cases, the issue goes away by updating Windows to a more recent version. In order to do that, follow the steps below.

1. Press “Windows” + “I” to open the settings.
2. Click on the “Update and security” option and click on the “Check for Updates” option.

   

3. Select the “Download and Install” button if any updates are available.
4. Check to see if the issue persists after the update is installed.

It will also be a good idea to disable spyware software like Malwarebytes and try out the connection again. Try disabling the firewall on third-party antivirus applications like AVG, Avast, Norton among others or allow the Xbox through the firewall on those apps including the Windows Firewall.