Problem with WMI

I have started to get an error message on the Advanced Tab in the Network Properties dialogue box for my network connection, stating the Windows Management Instrumentation (WMI) information might be corrupt. To correct this, I am asked to use System Restore, but is there any other solution?

If the WMI system is corrupt there’s not much you can do other than use System Restore to get it back, or re-install Windows XP. However, if that was the case you’d probably be having other problems too, so it’s likely that just the files in your Windows\ System32\Wbem\Repository folder have become corrupted, and if you delete them the WMI tools will be available again.

Firstly, check if the WMI service is actually running, as that could also be the problem, especially if you’ve turned off services for better performance. Choose Start > Run and type CMD, then in the Command Prompt type NET Start; you’ll get a list of running services, with WMI towards the bottom. Right- click on My Computer and choose Manage > Services and Applications > Services; scroll down to ‘Windows Management Instrumentation’. If it wasn’t running start it from here and then try the network connection properties again; if it was, click Stop then open the Repository folder in Explorer and delete all the files in it. Restart and the necessary files are recreated; WMI will then start up and you can open the Advanced tab.

If it still doesn’t work, check the Event Log and ‘Remote Procedure Call’ services; they need to be set to Automatic start and to be running, or WMI can’t start. You can also try to restore the WMI files by typing this at the command prompt: MOFCOMP %WINDIR%\ SYSTEM32\WBEM\HNETCFG. MOF. You should see a message saying the MOF file has been successfully parsed and the data stored in the repository. Make sure you check your firewall settings afterwards as this might change them.