An Event 27 ID Error Message Is Generated When You Set Up a Subordinate Certification Authority (273037)


The information in this article applies to:

  • Microsoft Windows 2000 Server
  • Microsoft Windows 2000 Advanced Server
This article was previously published under Q273037

SYMPTOMS

The following error message is generated in Event Viewer in the Application log when you attempt to start Windows 2000 Certificate Services on a subordinate certification authority (CA):
Event Source: CertSvc
Event ID: 27
Event Type: Error
Description:
Certificate Services did not start: Hierarchical setup is incomplete. Use the request file %Systemdrive%:\Name of subordinate CA.req to obtain a certificate for this Certificate Server, place it in %Systemdrive%:\Name of subordinate CA.crt, and run the Certificate Server Hierarchy Configuration tool to complete the installation.
The following event is also generated in the System log:
Event Source: Service Control Manager
Event ID: 7023
Event Type: Error
Description:
The Certificate Services service terminated with the following error: Installation suspended, incomplete.
Your attempt to manually start the Certificate Services generates the following error message:
Could not start the Certificate Services service on local computer.
Error 1604: Installation suspended, incomplete.

CAUSE

This problem can occur if a certificate that is issued by the root CA has not been installed correctly. Even though you can right-click the certificate (which is downloaded from the root CA) and use the Install Certificate option, this method is not the correct method to install a CA certificate. If you use this method, it can cause the error messages that are described in the "Symptoms" section of this article.

RESOLUTION

To resolve this problem, you must properly configure the subordinate CA:
  1. In Administrative Tools in Control Panel, start the Certification Authority tool.
  2. Right-click the name of your subordinate CA.
  3. Under All Tasks, click Install CA Certificate.
  4. Locate the CA certificate file that was downloaded from the root CA.
  5. Click OK.

STATUS

Microsoft has confirmed that this is a problem in the Microsoft products that are listed at the beginning of this article.

MORE INFORMATION

The Certificate Server Hierarchy Configuration tool is used with Microsoft Certificate Server version 1.0. This tool is used during subordinate CA Setup.
Modification Type:MinorLast Reviewed:1/26/2006
Keywords:kberrmsg kbprb KB273037
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