Fix 'Diagnostics Policy Service Is Not Running' in Windows 8 or 8.1 (Historical)

Historical support note: Windows 8 and Windows 8.1 are out of support. This article is retained for legacy PCs.

The Diagnostic Policy Service (DPS) enables Windows to detect and troubleshoot problems. Microsoft documents DPS as an automatically started service. If Windows reports that the service is not running, start with the service itself and system integrity before changing account permissions.

1. Check the Diagnostic Policy Service

Press Windows + R.
Type services.msc and press Enter.
Locate Diagnostic Policy Service.
Open its properties.
Make sure the service is not disabled. Its normal startup type is Automatic.
If it is stopped, select Start.

If the service fails to start, note the error instead of repeatedly changing permissions.

2. Check Windows system files

Open an elevated Command Prompt and run:

sfc /scannow

If the component store may also be damaged, run DISM health and repair commands appropriate for Windows 8/8.1 before running SFC again.

3. Check the network adapter and driver

If the warning appears while troubleshooting a network connection:

Open Device Manager.
Expand Network adapters.
Check the adapter for an error or warning icon.
Install a compatible driver from the PC, motherboard, or network-adapter manufacturer if necessary.

4. Remove the old administrator-group workaround

An older version of this guide used commands that added the NETWORK SERVICE and LOCAL SERVICE identities to the local Administrators group. That grants broad privileges that are not appropriate as a generic networking fix, so those commands are no longer recommended here.

If DPS still cannot start after the service, driver, and system-file checks, review the service error and Windows event logs rather than widening service-account privileges.