Windows Error 0x80070005 — Access Denied Fix Guide

What it means

Windows error 0x80070005 is the system 'Access is denied' code, documented across Microsoft Learn and Microsoft Support.
The exact wording you see varies by context — 'Access is denied. (0x80070005)' in file operations, 'Error 0x80070005 (Access denied)' in activation, 'Error 0x80070005' in Microsoft Store installs — but the underlying reason is always the same: your current account or the running process doesn't have the permission Windows needed to complete the action.
The fix sequence is well-defined and almost always solves it without reinstalling Windows.

Affected Models

Windows 11 (every version — 21H2, 22H2, 23H2, 24H2, 25H2)
Windows 10 (every version — 1909 onward)
Windows Server 2016 / 2019 / 2022 / 2025
Common during Windows Update, Microsoft Store installs, activation, and System Restore
Same fix sequence works across all supported Windows versions

Common Causes

Your user account isn't an administrator on the machine
User Account Control (UAC) blocked the action without prompting
Windows Update service or BITS isn't running with the right permissions
System Volume Information or another protected folder denied access
Antivirus or third-party security software blocked the action

How to Fix It

Run the failing action as Administrator.

Right-click the program or installer.
Choose 'Run as administrator'.
UAC prompts; click Yes.
If 0x80070005 was a permission issue, running as admin solves it on the spot — this is the #1 fix and works for most file-operation and installer cases.
Sign in with an Administrator account.

If you don't have a separate admin account, sign into the one that was used to set up Windows originally — that's typically the admin.
Settings > Accounts > Your info confirms whether your current account has Administrator rights.
Take ownership of the folder.

Right-click the folder > Properties > Security > Advanced > at the top, click 'Change' next to Owner > type your username > OK.
Tick 'Replace owner on subcontainers and objects' > OK.
Now click Edit, add your user, give Full Control.
This fixes 0x80070005 when the file or folder genuinely belongs to a different user or to SYSTEM.
Run System File Checker.

Open Command Prompt as Administrator.
Run: sfc /scannow
Wait for it to complete (5-15 minutes).
If it reports and repairs corrupt files, restart and retry the original action.
If sfc finds nothing, follow with: DISM /Online /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealth — that repairs the underlying Windows image.
Temporarily disable third-party antivirus.

Some third-party antivirus suites (Norton, McAfee, Avast) block Windows Update operations and return 0x80070005.
Right-click the antivirus tray icon > Disable for 1 hour.
Retry the failing action.
If it succeeds, add an exclusion in the antivirus for the relevant Windows process or installer.
Reset Windows Update components.

Open an elevated Command Prompt and run these commands in order:
net stop wuauserv
net stop cryptSvc
net stop bits
net stop msiserver
ren C:\Windows\SoftwareDistribution SoftwareDistribution.old
ren C:\Windows\System32\catroot2 catroot2.old
net start wuauserv
net start cryptSvc
net start bits
net start msiserver
This rebuilds the Windows Update working folders from clean state — clears 0x80070005 on Windows Update specifically.

When to Call a Professional

Error 0x80070005 doesn't need professional help in almost every case.
If running the action as Administrator, fixing folder permissions, running sfc /scannow, and temporarily disabling third-party antivirus all fail, the SubInACL.exe tool from Microsoft can reset Windows Update permissions to defaults — that resolves persistent cases on managed corporate machines.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why does 0x80070005 keep coming back after a single fix?

If 0x80070005 returns specifically during Windows Update or Microsoft Store installs, the Windows Update component state is corrupted at a deeper level than a single permission fix.
The 'Reset Windows Update components' step in this guide rebuilds those folders from scratch and clears the deeper issue.
If the error returns on file operations (not updates), the underlying folder permission inheritance is broken — taking ownership of the parent folder and applying 'Replace owner on subcontainers and objects' propagates the fix to all child files at once instead of fighting each one individually.