How to Fix Fix Error 0x80042303 — Volume Shadow Copy Service (VSS) Error on Windows
Getting error 0x80042303 during System Restore, backup, or shadow copy operations? VSS writer or provider failed? Fix this Volume Shadow Copy Service error.
Symptoms
You might be experiencing this problem if you notice:
- •System Restore fails with error 0x80042303
- •Windows Backup reports VSS error with this code
- •Shadow copy creation fails on one or more volumes
- •Third-party backup software reports VSS writer failure
- •Event Viewer shows VSS errors with provider or writer timeout
- •Error creating restore points manually
Common Causes
- ⚠VSS service not running or stuck in a bad state
- ⚠VSS writers in failed state (SQL, Exchange, System Writer, etc.)
- ⚠Insufficient disk space for shadow copy storage
- ⚠Third-party backup software conflicting with native VSS
- ⚠Antivirus real-time protection interfering with VSS operations
- ⚠Corrupted VSS provider registration
Solutions
Solution 1: Restart VSS Service and Reset Writers
- 1CMD as Admin:
- 2net stop vss
- 3net start vss
- 4Check VSS writer status: vssadmin list writers
- 5Look for writers with "State: Failed" or "Last error: Non-retryable"
- 6If any writers show failed: restart their associated service
- 7For "System Writer": restart Cryptographic Services
- 8For "WMI Writer": restart Windows Management Instrumentation
- 9After restarting services: retry the backup/restore
Solution 2: Fix VSS Storage Space
- 1Check shadow copy storage: vssadmin list shadowstorage
- 2If "Maximum Shadow Copy Storage space" is too low:
- 3vssadmin resize shadowstorage /for=C: /on=C: /maxsize=10GB
- 4Delete old shadow copies if disk is full:
- 5vssadmin delete shadows /for=C: /oldest
- 6Ensure at least 10% free space on each volume
- 7Disk Cleanup → check "System Restore and Shadow Copies"
- 8Retry the operation
Solution 3: Re-register VSS Components
- 1CMD as Admin — re-register all VSS DLLs:
- 2cd /d %SystemRoot%\System32
- 3regsvr32 ole32.dll
- 4regsvr32 vss_ps.dll
- 5regsvr32 /i swprv.dll
- 6regsvr32 /i eventcls.dll
- 7regsvr32 es.dll
- 8regsvr32 stdprov.dll
- 9regsvr32 msxml.dll
- 10Restart PC → retry backup or restore point creation
FIXES THIS IN 5 MINUTES
Fix Fix Error 0x80042303 — Volume Shadow Copy Service (VSS) Error Automatically
RescuePC Toolkit includes 109+ automated repairs that fix this problem with one click. No command line knowledge required.
Download Now - Free TrialNo credit card required • Works on Windows 10 & 11