◆Error Codes Wiki

Windows WMI Repository Errors — WMI Corruption and Repair Guide

Errorsystem

Overview

Fix Windows Management Instrumentation (WMI) repository corruption causing Group Policy failures, SCCM issues, and system management tool errors.

Key Details

  • WMI (Windows Management Instrumentation) provides system management data to tools and scripts
  • A corrupted WMI repository can break Group Policy, SCCM, monitoring tools, and PowerShell Get-WmiObject
  • Symptoms: Event ID 10, WMI errors in Event Viewer, Get-WmiObject returning errors
  • The WMI repository is stored in C:\Windows\System32\wbem\Repository
  • Microsoft discourages manual repository rebuilds as they can cause more problems

Common Causes

  • WMI repository corruption from improper shutdown or disk errors
  • Conflicting WMI providers installed by third-party software
  • Failed Windows Update modifying WMI components
  • Antivirus quarantining WMI-related files
  • Manual deletion of files in the wbem\Repository folder

Steps

  1. 1Verify WMI health: winmgmt /verifyrepository in elevated Command Prompt
  2. 2If inconsistent: winmgmt /salvagerepository (attempts to salvage what it can)
  3. 3If salvage fails: winmgmt /resetrepository (resets to initial state — last resort)
  4. 4Restart WMI service: net stop winmgmt && net start winmgmt
  5. 5Re-register WMI DLLs: for %i in (%windir%\system32\wbem\*.dll) do RegSvr32 -s %i
  6. 6Check Event Viewer for Event ID 10 (WMI errors) to identify specific failing queries

Tags

wmirepositorywinmgmtsystem-managementcorruption

Related Items

windows-group-policy-errors

More in System

windows-C000021A-status-system-process-terminatedWindows Error 0xC000021A — STATUS SYSTEM PROCESS TERMINATED
Critical
windows-C0000225-boot-configuration-errorWindows Error 0xC0000225 — Boot Configuration Error
Critical
windows-C000000F-boot-selection-failedWindows Error 0xC000000F — Boot Selection Failed
Critical
windows-80004005-unspecified-errorWindows Error 0x80004005 — Unspecified Error
Warning
windows-80070570-file-or-directory-corruptedWindows Error 0x80070570 — File or Directory Corrupted
Error
windows-system-0xc0000185Windows Error 0xC0000185 — Boot Device Inaccessible
Critical

Frequently Asked Questions

Many things: Group Policy processing, SCCM management, hardware monitoring, PowerShell system queries, and any application using WMI for system information. The impact is wide.