Windows system >> Windows Server System Tutorial >> Windows Server Tutorial

How to disable DCOM support in Windows

Overview
The Distributed Component Object Model is a protocol that enables software components to communicate directly over a network. Originally known as "Network OLE," DCOM can be used across multiple network transports, including Internet protocols such as HTTP. For more information about DCOM, visit the following Microsoft Web site: http://www.microsoft.com/com/tech/dcom.asp
Windows NT 4.0, Windows 2000, Windows XP, and Windows Server 2003 Support for DCOM.

Warning If DCOM is disabled, the operating system may lose some functionality. Disabling support for DCOM can lead to the following results:

Any COM object that can be activated remotely may not work properly.

The local COM+ snap-in will not be able to connect to remote servers to enumerate their COM+ catalogs.

Certificate auto-enrollment may not work properly.

Windows Management Instrumentation (WMI) queries to remote servers may not work properly.

If you disable DCOM, there are many potential built-in components and third-party applications that will be affected. Microsoft does not recommend disabling DCOM in your environment unless you have detected which applications have been affected by testing. DCOM is not disabled in all environments,

but DCOM support is disabled on all Windows NT-based operating systems. To disable this feature, follow these steps:

Note To disable DCOM on a Windows 2000-based computer, you must be running Windows 2000 Service Pack 3 (SP3) or later. Edit Registry

Start Registry Editor.
Find the following path:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\\Software\\Microsoft\\OLE
Change the EnableDCOM string value to "No".
Restart the operating system for the changes to take effect.

Use DCOMCNFG.EXE
1. Run Dcomcnfg.exe.
2. If you are running Windows XP or Windows Server 2003, perform the following additional steps:
  1. Click the Component Services node under Console Root.
  2. Open the Computers folder.
  3. For the local computer, right-click My Computer, and then click Properties.
  4. For remote computers, right-click the Computers folder, point to New, and then click Computer.
  5. Type the computer name.
  6. Right-click the computer name and click Properties.
  7. Click the "Default Properties" tab.
  8. Click to select (or click to clear) the Enable distributed COM on this computer check box.
  9. If you want to set more properties for this computer, click Apply to enable (or disable) DCOM. Otherwise, click OK to apply this change and exit Dcomcnfg.exe.
  10. Restart the operating system for the changes to take effect.
    
    The following registry string value is used to enable or disable DCOM on all operating systems:
    HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\\Software\\Microsoft\\OLE\\EnableDCOM
    If the value is Change to "N" to disable DCOM after restarting the operating system.