Fix A referral was returned from the server on Windows 10

Users have reported an error while trying to install new programs,update drivers, reinstall the OS, etc. The error is:

A referral was returned from the server.

 

This error would prevent the installation and merely restarting the system wouldn’t help.

Cause

While the exact cause is unknown, the reason might be a Windows update. This has been assumed since many users mentioned that the issue got resolved when the rolled back the latest update.

We could try the following steps sequentially to fix the issue:

Solution 1 ] Always run as admin

1. Right click on the application in which you are getting this error and click on properties.

2. Now, click on Compatibility tab.

3. Now, click on Change settings for all users.

 

 

4. Now, select run this program as administrator.

 

Solution 2] Change the UAC settings

You can alter the UAC settings to get rid of the error.

1] Press Win + R to open the Run window. Type control panel and press Enter to open the Control Panel window.

 

 

2] Go to User accounts.

 

Click again on user accounts.

 

 

3] Choose Change User Account Control Settings from the options. You would find a bar with 4 options for the ease of notifications.

 

 

 

 

4] Push the bar as low as comfortable for you, possibly the second last option. In this case, it won’t notify you when you make changes to Windows settings.

 

 

5] Click on OK and restart the system.

Solution 3] Using Registry editor

1. Press windows key + r key together from your keyboard and write regedit in it and click OK to open registry editor.

2. Now, go to the following path given below

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\System\

3. In the right side double click on ValidateAdminCodeSignatures and set the value data to 0.

4. Now, double click on ValidateAdminCodeSignatures and set the value data to 0.

Solution 4 ] Using Local Group Policy editor

1. Open Local Group Policy Editor

2. Now, Go to

• Computer Configuration
• Windows Settings
• Security Settings
• Local Policies
• Security Options
• User Account Control

3. In Only elevate executables that are signed and validated ,  Select Disabled radio button

Solution 5] Rollback a Windows update

1] Click on the Start button and then the gear-like symbol to open the Settings page.

2] Go to updates and security.

3] Click on View updates history and then on Uninstall updates.

 

 

 

 

 

4] The window would show the list of recently installed Windows updates. Please right-click and delete the most recent update.

Solution 6] Log in with the hidden administrator account

Once you are logged in to the system as the administrator, follow the following procedure:

1] Press Win + R to open the Run window. Type the command cmd and press Enter to open the Command Prompt window.

2] Type the following command to log in to the hidden administrator account:

net user administrator /active:yes

3] Install the program if possible.

4] Type the following command to log out of the hidden administrator account:

net user administrator /active:no

These steps should be helpful in resolving the issue.