Phenquestions
VPNs come with many benefits like online obscurity, encryption for exchanging data and access to geographically blocked web content, and so on. But, like all technological innovations, VPNs are prone to developing snags and troubleshooting may be needed. There are numerous commonplace problems faced by the majority of VPN users. While few can be fixed by checking settings and altering them, few may require exhaustive troubleshooting. Occasionally, you may even need to contact tech support for either company VPN provider or any VPN service you use. Building on this, we discuss the fix for VPN Error 609.
VPN Error 609 on Windows 10
Error 609 on VPN occurs if a non-existing device type was specified. It can also when your Windows operating system becomes corrupted. This error displays the message:
A device type was specified that does not exist.
Common symptoms
- VPM Error 609 will appear and crash the current program window
- Your computer crashes frequently showing Error 609 On VPN while running the same program
- Your Windows runs slowly, and mouse or keyboard input is inactive
- Occasional freezing of the system
Typically, this error is communicated by the VPN Client present on your system. When Error 609 occurs, opening programs get slower and response time lags. Also, the user may experience crashes and freezes when multiple applications are running.
Possible Causes
This error usually occurs when the connecting VPN device (AKA Miniport) is not configured properly. If that isn't the case, there can be numerous causes of this error including extreme startup entries, registry errors, hardware/RAM decline, fragmented files, malware, spyware, unnecessary or redundant program installations and so on.
This problem happens if the virtual WAN miniports for PPTP/L2TP are not installed or corrupted. You can confirm the issue by following the below steps:
- Open 'Device Manager'
- Click on 'View' in the toolbar and select 'Show hidden devices'
- Expand the machine name node.
- Under 'Network Adapters' node, see if WAN Miniport (PPTP) and WAN Miniport (L2TP) are present
Once the issue is identified, if simply rebooting the system does not help, you can fix them using the below fixes:
1] Use Windows built-in diagnostic:
The possible solution for this kind of common VPN errors is a built-in diagnostic with repair is provided in Windows. This is provided for the 'missing Miniport' issue for VPN connections which are created locally. Clicking 'Diagnostic' button which is shown on the Error page of the VPN connection gives a 'repair' option, which will try to fix the issue automatically, provided that it finds the issue to be Miniport missing.
2]: Start/Stop Remote Access Connection Manager:
The Remote Access Connection Manager (rasman) service is responsible for handling how your computer connects to the internet through services like dial-up and VPN. Sometimes, a glitch in this service can trigger VPN Error 609. This service often loads by default when the Windows system is turned on. This file can sometimes take up a lot of system resources, so if you do not use a VPN or dial-up connection, you may want to disable it on the computer. You can disable it following the below steps:
- Click the 'Start' button and then type 'services.msc' into the search bar and press the 'Enter' button.
- Scroll down the list of 'Local Services' to locate the 'Remote Access Connection Manager'.
- Now 'Right-click' the service and select 'Properties'.
- Click the drop-down menu next to 'Startup Type' and select 'Manual'.
- Click the 'Stop' button under service status and hit 'OK' to disable the Remote Access Connection Manager.
Now check if the error is resolved.
Read: Common VPN error codes troubleshooting & solutions.
In all probabilities, these fixes should resolve this error. But, if the VPN still cannot be connected, the only way out is getting in touch with customer support.
