0x80070422 has one literal meaning: the service this feature depends on is disabled. Most often it is the Windows Update service - the error then appears in Windows Update itself, in the Microsoft Store, during .NET installs or app setups that pull components from Windows Update. The same code from the Firewall points at the firewall service. Turn the right service back on and the error disappears immediately.
Fix it automatically
Outbyte Driver Updater identifies your installed hardware automatically and updates outdated or broken drivers from official sources, with a backup before every change. Useful when you would rather not run the steps below by hand - the scan and diagnosis are free.
Download Driver Updater Downloads Outbyte Driver Updater for Windows 11, 10, 8 and 7. Free 2-day trial, no credit card required.Quick answer
Press Win+R, type services.msc and press Enter. Find Windows Update, double-click it, set Startup type to Automatic, press Start, then OK. Do the same for BITS (Background Intelligent Transfer Service) if it is disabled too, and retry what failed.
Tools that promise to "stop forced updates" do it by disabling the Windows Update service - and everything that depends on it starts failing with 0x80070422.
Windows Update leans on BITS and the cryptographic service. Any of them disabled produces the same code, which is why the fix checks all three.
Old registry "fixes" and group policies from guides linger for years. They re-disable the service on every boot until removed.
Some malware disables updates and the firewall to keep itself alive. If you did not disable anything and no tweak tool did, scan the PC after re-enabling the services.
services.msc and press Enter.Do not do this: Do not "fix" unwanted updates by leaving the service disabled. Windows has a proper pause: Settings, then Windows Update, then "Pause updates". A disabled update service costs you security patches and breaks the Store, .NET installs and activation - the exact errors that brought you here.
Usually an "update blocker", a debloat script, a gaming optimizer or an aggressive privacy tool - many of them switch off Windows Update or its helpers under the hood. Malware does it too, which is why an unexplained disabled service deserves a full antivirus scan afterwards.
No. Without updates the PC misses security patches within weeks, and more and more features fail with codes like 0x80070422 - the Store, activation and even some app installers depend on the same services. Re-enable it and manage the timing of updates instead: Windows lets you pause them properly from Settings.
Something keeps disabling it: a leftover tweak tool running at startup, a scheduled script, or a group policy. Check the startup list in Task Manager and remove the tool that manages updates; on a work PC, ask the administrator - a policy may enforce it. For other update codes, see the 0x80070643 guide.