0X80090348

SEC_E_NO_KERB_KEY (0X80090348) Fix: No Kerberos Key Found

EP
Erropedia Team
📅 June 21, 2026 📅 Updated Jul 31, 2026 👁 10 views Cybersecurity & Malware Beginner
This error means Windows can't find a Kerberos key for authentication. Usually happens after a password change or when connecting to a domain resource.

What is This SEC_E_NO_KERB_KEY Error?

I know this error is infuriating. You're trying to connect to a network drive, a SharePoint site, or maybe just log into a domain-joined PC, and boom — SEC_E_NO_KERB_KEY (0X80090348). The short explanation: Windows needs a Kerberos key to verify your identity, but it can't find one. This often happens right after you change your domain password, or when your computer's clock is out of sync with the domain controller.

Real-world trigger: You change your Windows password at 3 PM, then at 3:05 PM try to access a shared folder on the server. The error pops up. Why? Your cached Kerberos ticket still has the old password hash. The fix is to get a fresh ticket.

Let's fix it. Start with the quickest thing — it takes 30 seconds and works more often than you'd think.

Step 1: The 30-Second Fix — Log Off and Back On

This sounds dumb, but it's not. When you log off, Windows throws away your old Kerberos tickets. When you log back in, it requests new ones from the domain controller using your current password.

  1. Save your work.
  2. Press Ctrl + Alt + Delete and choose Sign out.
  3. Wait 10 seconds.
  4. Log back in with your current password.

If the error is gone, you're done. If not, move to Step 2.

Step 2: The 5-Minute Fix — Purge Kerberos Tickets from Command Line

Logging off didn't work? Let's manually nuke the bad tickets. This takes about 2 minutes and is the real fix for most people.

  1. Open Command Prompt as Administrator. Press Win + R, type cmd, then press Ctrl + Shift + Enter.
  2. Type this command and press Enter:
    klist purge
  3. You'll see a message like "Current LogonId is 0:0x... Purge of current logon session's tickets succeeded."
  4. Now type klist to confirm no tickets are cached (should show zero).

This clears all cached Kerberos tickets. The next time you try to access a resource, Windows will ask for a new ticket from the domain controller. Try connecting again. Still getting the error? One more thing to check — your system clock.

Step 3: The 15+ Minute Fix — Sync Clock and Rejoin Domain (If Needed)

Kerberos is VERY picky about time. If your PC's clock is off by more than 5 minutes from the domain controller, the tickets get rejected. Also, sometimes the Kerberos key itself is corrupted in Active Directory. Let's fix both.

Sync Your System Clock

  1. Right-click the clock on your taskbar and choose Adjust date/time.
  2. Turn on Set time automatically and Set time zone automatically.
  3. Click Sync now under Synchronize your clock.
  4. If that fails, run Command Prompt as Admin and type:
    w32tm /resync

Wait 30 seconds and try your connection again.

Rejoin the Domain (Last Resort)

If none of the above worked, the Kerberos key on the domain side might be out of sync with your machine. You'll need to remove the computer from the domain and rejoin it. This requires domain admin credentials.

  1. Go to Settings > Accounts > Access work or school.
  2. Click on your domain account, then Disconnect. Follow the prompts. Your computer will restart.
  3. After restart, go back to the same screen and click Connect. Choose Join this device to a local Active Directory domain.
  4. Enter the domain name and admin credentials. Restart again.

This forces Active Directory to generate a fresh Kerberos key for your computer. It's a pain, but it almost always works.

One More Thing — Check the Application Event Log

If you're still stuck, open Event Viewer (eventvwr.msc), go to Windows Logs > Application. Look for any error with source Kerberos or Microsoft-Windows-Kerberos. The details might tell you exactly which service or server is rejecting your key. For example, you might see "The kerberos client received a KRB_AP_ERR_MODIFIED error." That usually means the password hash on the server doesn't match the one on your PC — purging tickets and logging off again usually fixes it after the second try.

I've been running a help desk blog for 6 years, and I've seen this error pop up mostly after password changes in environments where the domain controller is on a different time zone or where users have multiple cached credentials. The purge command is my go-to. Skip the registry edits you see online — they rarely help here.

Hope this gets you back to work quickly.

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EP
Erropedia Team
Tech Support Editors
The Erropedia editorial team researches and documents real-world tech errors from across Windows, Linux, macOS, networking, databases, cloud platforms, and more. Every solution is reviewed for accuracy and updated as software and systems evolve.