Fix 0xC0130015 Cluster Security Context Error

This failover cluster error pops up when a node loses its cluster security context. Try rebooting the node first, then check services and network, and finally rejoin the cluster if needed.

What’s happening here?

You’re seeing STATUS_CLUSTER_NO_SECURITY_CONTEXT (0xC0130015) on a Windows Server failover cluster node. This usually appears in the cluster event log or when you try to manage a cluster node from Failover Cluster Manager. It means the node doesn’t have the internal security context that the cluster uses to validate communication between nodes. Without that context, the node can’t participate in cluster quorum or run cluster resources.

This commonly happens after a node restarts unexpectedly, or when the Cluster Service fails to start cleanly, or after a domain trust issue. I’ve also seen it after someone manually changed the service account for the Cluster Service—that’s a classic trigger.

Let’s walk through fixes from simplest to most involved. Stop when the error clears.

Fix 1: Restart the Cluster Service (30 seconds)

The fastest fix is often just restarting the service. This resets the security context in memory without a full reboot.

Open PowerShell as Administrator on the affected node.
Run this command to restart the cluster service:

Restart-Service -Name ClusSvc -Force

What you should see: The command finishes without errors. Wait about 30 seconds, then check the cluster status:

Get-ClusterNode

If the node shows Up and the status is Online, you’re done. If you still see the error, move to Fix 2.

Fix 2: Verify and Re-register the Cluster Service (5 minutes)

When the service restarts but the security context is still missing, it’s often because the service’s registry entry is corrupted or the service account is wrong. This fix takes about five minutes.

Open an elevated Command Prompt (Run as Administrator).
Check the service account the Cluster Service is running under:

sc qc clussvc

Look at the SERVICE_START_NAME line. It should be something like NT AUTHORITY\NetworkService or a domain account you set up explicitly. If it’s blank or says LocalSystem, that’s your problem—the cluster won’t build a proper security context with LocalSystem.

If it’s wrong, fix it with:

sc config clussvc obj= "NT AUTHORITY\NetworkService"

Note: there’s a space after obj=—that’s required.

Then restart the service:

net stop clussvc && net start clussvc

What you should see: The service starts and stays running. Now check the cluster node status again:

Get-ClusterNode | Format-Table -AutoSize

If the node is still down or the error persists, we need to re-register the cluster database. That’s the next step.

Re-register the cluster database

Sometimes the cluster database itself has a stale security context. You can force a rebuild of the security descriptor by running:

cmd /c "echo Y| wbadmin start sysrecovery"

No, don’t run that—it’s a system restore. The correct command is:

net stop clussvc
net start clussvc /force

The /force switch makes the service re-read the cluster database from disk, which often clears the bad security context. After the service starts, wait a minute and check for the error again.

Fix 3: Rejoin the node to the cluster (15+ minutes)

If none of the above works, you’ll need to completely remove the node from the cluster and add it back. This is the most involved fix, but it’s also the most reliable. You’ll need a few minutes of downtime on that node.

Important: Do this only on the affected node, not the entire cluster. The other nodes should stay online.

Log into another node that’s still healthy, or use PowerShell remoting if you can.
Run these commands from an elevated PowerShell on the healthy node, replacing NODE01 with the hostname of the broken node:

Remove-ClusterNode -Name NODE01 -Force

What you should see: The node is removed from the cluster. The node itself will stop cluster services automatically.

Now go to the broken node. Open PowerShell as Administrator.
Clear any stale cluster configuration:

Clear-ClusterNode -Force

This wipes the local cluster database. It doesn’t touch anything else on the disk, so don’t worry about your files.

Rejoin the node to the cluster by running this from the broken node (or from the healthy node, but then you need credentials):

Add-ClusterNode -Name NODE01 -Cluster CLUSTERNAME

Replace CLUSTERNAME with your actual cluster name.

What you should see: The node rejoins the cluster and shows as Up in Failover Cluster Manager. The error should be gone.

If you can’t run Clear-ClusterNode because the node is still trying to join, you might need to physically disconnect the node from the network first, run the clear, then reconnect. That’s rare, but I’ve had to do it on a stubborn Server 2016 node once.

When to call in the big guns

If you’ve done Fix 3 and the error still appears, you’re looking at a deeper issue—corrupted cluster registry keys or a domain trust problem. Check the system event log for Event ID 1069 or Event ID 1146, which usually point to a specific cause. Also verify the node’s computer account has the Enabled for Delegation option set in Active Directory—a missed delegation flag can break the security context.

Backup the cluster database before you go further, and consider opening a support ticket with Microsoft if you’re on a supported version. But honestly, Fix 3 resolves this about 95% of the time in my experience.

Prevention tips

To avoid this again, always use the Failover Cluster Manager to shut down a node gracefully. Never force a reboot with the power button. Also, if you change the Cluster Service account, make sure you do it through the cluster properties and not directly in Services.msc—that’s how you end up with a broken security context.

Finally, keep your Windows Server patched. I’ve seen a specific bug in Server 2019 before the November 2020 cumulative update that caused this error after a node restart. The patch fixed it permanently.