If you receive a The Windows Security Center service can’t be started error message in Windows 8, Windows 7 or Windows Vista, then this article may be able to help you troubleshoot the problem. You may try these troubleshooting steps in any order.
The Windows Security Center service can’t be started
1) First of all,
deep-scan your PC with your security software. This is to ensure that, it is not some malware, which is preventing your Security Center from running.
2)
Disable and then enable Security Center and see if it helps.
3) If your Security Center is disabled, open
Control Panel\All Control Panel Items\Action Center and see if you can restart the Windows Security Service by clicking on the
Turn on now button.
4) If this does not help, type
services.msc in Start Screen search and hit Enter to open
Services Manager.
Here ensure that the
Security Center service is started and set on Automatic or Automatic (Delayed Start). Also ensure that the
Remote Procedure Call (RPC) and
Windows Management Instrumentation services are started and set on Automatic.
The Windows Security Center (WSCSVC) Service monitors and reports security health settings on the computer.
5) Since the Service Manager is open, you may optionally open Properties of Security Center Service > Log On tab. Click Browse.
Enter your computer’s name in the Enter the object name to select box. Click on
Check names, and then on
OK/Apply/OK. See if this helps.
6) Repair the
WMI Repository, and see if it helps. To do so, open an elevated command prompt windows from the Windows 8 WinX menu, type
winmgmt /verifyrepository and hit Enter.
If you get a
WMI repository is consistent message, you may skip this step. But if you get a
WMI repository is inconsistent message, you can reset or repair the WMI repository. To do so, type
winmgmt /salvagerepository and hit Enter. You will see a
WMI repository has been salvaged message. Now see if it has helped.
The Windows Security Center uses the Windows Management Instrumentation or WMI collect information about the PC. If there are some inconsistencies, the Security Center may fail to start.
7) Run System File Checker to check for and replace corrupted system files, if any, and see if it helps resolve the issue. In the command prompt window which opens, type sfc /scannow and hit Enter.
Microsoft Fix it 20084 for Windows 7 and Windows Vista will fix your registry keys and reset Windows Security Center settings to its defaults. See if it helps. I am not sure if it will work on Windows 8 too.
9) If this does not help, you have to perform a
Clean Boot and troubleshoot the conflicting program which may be preventing the Security Center from running.
10) If nothing helps, you may have to
Repair Windows 7 or
Reset Windows 8.
Do remember to create a system restore point first before making any changes to your system, so that you can always go back, if the changes are not to your expectations.
