[KB7175] An error occurred communicating with the ESET Endpoint Encryption subsystem

Issue

• ESET Endpoint Encryption (EEE) client software includes a service component. The service component must be started within the first three minutes after EEE is launched, or you receive the following error: "An error occurred communicating with the ESET Endpoint Encryption subsystem. The ESET Endpoint Encryption software may not be installed correctly."
  
  

  

Solution

Old version of EEE (formerly DESlock+) being installed on newer operating system

The most common cause for this error is when an out-of-date version of EEE (formerly DESlock+) client is installed on the latest Windows version.

Install the current, most recent version of EEE will address the error.

If the issue persists, verify the EEE service is present and running:

1. Press the Windows key + R key, type services.msc into the Open field and click OK.

2. In the list of installed services, find the DESlock+ Service entry and follow the steps in the applicable expander below:

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   Service not present

   
   

   1. Open Programs and Features in the Windows settings.

   2. Select the ESET Endpoint Encryption entry in the list of installed software.

   3. Click Repair.

   4. Allow the system to repair and restart.

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   Startup type incorrect

   
   

   The Start-up Type of the DESlock+ service should be listed as Automatic:

   1. Right-click the DESlock+ Service.

   2. Click the Properties item from the context menu.

   3. In the Startup Type drop-down menu, select Automatic.

   4. Click OK.

   5. Follow the steps in the Service not started section.

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   Service not started

   
   

   If the service status is blank or stopped, start the service using these steps:

   1. Right-click the DESlock+ Service.

   2. Click Start. The status will change to Started.

      

   3. If the ESET Endpoint Encryption (EEE) frontend is running, exit it by right-clicking the EEE system tray icon and select Exit.

      

   4. Press the Windows key + Q key, type ESET Endpoint encryption into the Search field and click ESET Endpoint Encryption (EEE) to start the app.

Create/adjust a registry key to change the service start-up time allowance

If starting the service manually and rebooting the machine does not fix the problem:

1. Press the Windows key + R key, type regedit into the Open field and click OK.

   

2. Navigate to the following location:

   HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control

3. Verify the ServicesPipeTimeout value exists. If the value does not exist, create a DWORD (32-bit) Value and name it ServicesPipeTimeout.

4. Set the decimal value to 120000.

   

5. Restart your computer for the change to take effect.

Other solutions

• We have seen cases where some anti-malware and anti-virus systems incorrectly flag the ESET Endpoint Encryption (EEE) service and prevent it from being installed. Check logs of any such utilities to verify this is not the cause of the problem you are experiencing. If EEE software is incorrectly flagged, whitelist the EEE software and then perform the install repair process
• We have seen rare instances where other recently installed software prevents the DESlock+ service from starting. If this is the case, restart Windows again, as it may resolve the problem
• If the client is managed by an EEE Server, check logs of any Firewall software to see if it has blocked the DESlock+ Service from starting