How to resolve WSL error 4294967295 on Windows

This error code means there is a problem with communication between Windows and Linux, and it may prevent you from using WSL properly. The following article will guide you through different methods to fix this problem permanently.

1. Check network connection

Since the error message itself indicates that the connection attempt failed or that the connection was established unsuccessfully because the connected server (in this case, Windows) is not responding, the first thing you should do is make sure Make sure you have a stable Internet connection. This is because network interruptions, latency or packet loss can lead to communication problems between the client and server, which can cause current problems.

You can try switching to a different network connection if possible or try troubleshooting your current network. Once done, try performing the same action that caused the original error and check if the problem is resolved.

2. Restart WSL

You may be experiencing problems due to a temporary glitch or corruption that may prevent WSL from working properly. Such problems are mostly temporary and can be fixed by restarting the gadget.

Here's how you can do it:

1. Open Task Mananger and right-click on any process related to WSL.

2. Select End task or Disable .

How to resolve WSL error 4294967295 on Windows Picture 1

3. Once done, open your favorite terminal emulator with admin rights. For example, if you're using Command Prompt, press the Win + R keys together to open Run and type "cmd" into the text field.

4. Press the Ctrl + Shift + Enter keys together to launch Command Prompt with admin rights.

5. Click Yes in the User Account Control prompt.

6. Enter "wsl" in the following window and click Run as administrator to reopen WSL.

Now you can check if the problem is resolved. Additionally, you can also re-enable WSL with these steps:

1. In the Command Prompt window with admin rights, execute each of the following commands:

DISM /online /disable-feature /featurename:VirtualMachinePlatform /norestart DISM /online /disable-feature /featurename:Microsoft-Windows-Subsystem-Linux /norestart

2. After completing the commands, restart your computer and on restart, execute the following commands in cmd:

​​​​​​​DISM /online /enable-feature /featurename:VirtualMachinePlatform /norestart DISM /online /enable-feature /featurename:Microsoft-Windows-Subsystem-Linux /norestart

Now you can try the original action that caused the error and check if the problem is resolved.

3. Reset network settings

You can also fix network issues by resetting network settings (a quick fix that worked for some affected users), as doing so will clear any corrupted network, cache, or proxy configurations. or out of date can impede network traffic. You will essentially restore the default network settings, which will hopefully allow WSL to connect to Windows servers and the Internet without any problems.

Here's how you can do it:

1. Type "cmd" into the Windows search utility and click Run as administrator .

2. Select Yes in the User Account Control prompt.

3. Now, execute each of the following commands:

​​​​​​​​​​​​​​wsl --shutdownnetsh winsock resetnetsh int ip reset allnetsh winhttp reset proxyipconfig /flushdns

4. Once done, press the Win + I keys together to open the Settings app.

5. Navigate to Network & Internet > Status > Network reset .

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6. Click Reset now .

7. Finally, restart your computer and after restarting, check if the problem is resolved.

4. Temporarily disable anti-virus software

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Sometimes, your antivirus program can interfere with WSL network traffic and cause errors.

You can check if this is the cause by temporarily turning off your antivirus program and then launching Windows Subsystem for Linux. If it works fine without antivirus, it means the antivirus is blocking WSL network traffic.

In this case, you can change your antivirus program settings to allow WSL network traffic or switch to any of the best antivirus programs for Windows that do not cause this problem.

Another way you can try to fix your problem is to check if you have DNSCrypt installed on your system. DNSCrypt is a program that encrypts your DNS traffic, but it can also cause some problems with your connection. Some users reported that uninstalling DNSCrypt resolved their problem, so you can give it a try.

To uninstall a program, you can use the Control Panel on your system. Just go to the Programs and Features section . Right-click on the targeted program and select Uninstall . Follow the on-screen instructions to complete the process.

5. Modify the Hypervisor launch style

You can also try changing the Hypervisor launch type to automatic and check if that makes any difference. This is especially useful if you are using other virtualization technologies such as Hyper-V to run virtual machines.

Changing the launch type can help avoid conflicts that can fix issues similar to the current one. Here's all you need to do:

1. Launch Command Prompt with admin rights.
2. Execute the following command:
   

   ​​​​​​​​​​​​​​bcdedit /set hypervisorlaunchtype auto

3. Once done, restart your computer and check if the error is resolved.

In case you suspect there is a problem with the Hyper-V service itself, you can also try restarting it. To do that, just go to the Services utility , find the Hyper-V service and right-click on it. Select Restart and check if that makes any difference.

Micah Soto

Update 28 September 2023