See http://support.microsoft.com/kb/909444 if you have applied a more
restrictive security template to your xp system.

Loosening up my Bypass traverse checking policy setting and granting Read
access to the %windir%\Registration folder corrected the Windows update
problem.

Also, I noticed that Windows Firewall fails to start as mentioned in the
above KB. The Windows Firewall/Internet Connection Sharing (ICS) service
fails with: Could not start the Windows Firewall/Internet Connection Sharing
(ICS) service on Local Computer. Error 0x80004015: The cals is configured to
run as a security id different from the caller.

"Landon C." wrote:

> After I installed KB902400 (MS05-051), I began recieving this error when
> attempting to scan for updates with Windows Updates:
>
> [Error number: 0x800A0046]
> Please change your Internet Explorer security settings
> To save changes to your settings for this website, you need to enable
> userdata persistence for Internet Explorer. Complete the steps below, and
> then click Change settings to the left and try saving your changes again.
> In Internet Explorer, on the Tools menu, click Internet Options.
> Click the Security tab, click the Internet security zone icon, and then
> click Custom Level.
> In the Settings dialog box, scroll to the Miscellaneous section.
> Under Userdata persistence , select Enable.
> Click OK and when the security warning dialog box appears, click Yes.
>
> Read more about steps you can take to resolve this problem yourself.
>
>
>
> I tried the above fix and have tried all of these suggested solutions at the
> "Read more about" link:
>
>
> 1. Verify the Local Administrator and Service account are added to the
> "Impersonate a client after authentication" security policy.
> Click Start.
> Point to Programs.
> Point to Administrative Tools.
> Choose Local Security Policy.
> Expand Local Policies.
> Choose User Rights Assignment.
> Double-click to open the Impersonate a client after authentication policy.
> On the Local Security Setting tab, add the Service and Administrator to the
> list of Users and Groups.
> Click OK.
> Restart the system.
>
> 2. Set the Security Descriptor
> Click Start.
> Choose Run.
> In the Run box, type cmd.
> Click OK.
> At the command prompt, type sc sdset wuauserv
> DA;;CCLCSWRPWPDTLOCRRC;;;SY)(A;;CCDCLCSWRPWPDTLO CRSDRCWDWO;;;BA)(A;;CCLCSWLOCRRC;;;AU)(A;;CCLCSWRP WPDTLOCRRC;;;PU)
> Press Enter; you should receive a Success message.
> At the command prompt, type Exit to close the command prompt window.
> Try Windows Update again.
>
>
> 3. Please remove the user account experiencing difficulty from the Guests or
> Limited user account
> Click Start.
> Click Settings.
> Click Control Panel.
> Select Administrative Tools.
> Choose Computer Management.
> Expand Local Users and Groups.
> Select Users.
> Open the account used to access Windows Update.
> Click the Member Of tab.
> Highlight the user account you want to remove and click Remove.
>
>
> If I uninstall KB902400, Windows Update works again. Any thoughts?
>
> Regards,
> Landon
>
>
>
>
>