How to Fix Configure PXE failed with Error 0x80041001

ByPrajwal Desai Hours

In this post I will cover an issue related to SCCM distribution point setup. If you are using SCCM 2012 R2, then you might come across this error. I am talking about Configure PXE failed with Error 0x80041001. I have come across this error while installing SCCM distribution point role on Windows Server 2012. Not once but numerous times I faced this error. The steps mentioned in this post have worked all the time for me.

So where do you see this error “Configure PXE failed with Error 0x80041001”. The answer is when you enable PXE and Multicast roles. I noticed two things after enabling PXE and multicast.

  1. The WDS service got installed but wasn’t running. When attempted to start it didn’t start and even rebooting the server didn’t help much.
  2. The RemoteInstall folder wasn’t created at all.
Note – In my experience, the steps listed in this post have worked well every time. However if something else has worked for you, let me know in the comments section.

Configure PXE failed with Error 0x80041001

To fix Configure PXE failed with Error 0x80041001, try the following steps.

  1. Assuming PXE and Multicast are enabled on the problematic DP. First of all uncheck or deactivate PXE and multicast on distribution point.
  2. Log in to the distribution point server. Uninstall Windows Deployment services via Server Manager.
  3. Restart the distribution point server. This is required because you just uninstalled WDS.
  4. Open Server Manager and Install WDS. You should see the WDS service running in services console.
  5. Finally right click Distribution Point server and activate PXE and multicast on DP.

Once you perform the above steps, you should see RemoteInstall folder created on distribution point server. Also verify that boot images are present inside smsimages folder. Your distribution point is now ready to use for imaging the computers.

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Prajwal Desai is a Microsoft MVP in Intune and SCCM. He writes articles on SCCM, Intune, Windows 365, Azure, Windows Server, Windows 11, WordPress and other topics, with the goal of providing people with useful information.