Okta Verify Fails to Launch With "SupportLib.LoadAppSecret: Failed to load secret.: Element not found. [0x80070490]" Error
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Overview
Okta Verify for Windows fails to launch because the application secret is missing in the Windows Credential Manager. Deleting the application database and relaunching the application resolves this issue. When attempting to open the application, Okta Verify fails to launch, and the following error appears in the Okta Verify Event Viewer application logs:
SupportLib.LoadAppSecret: Failed to load secret.: Element not found. [0x80070490]
Applies To
- Okta Verify for Windows (WOV)
- Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA)
- Okta Identity Engine (OIE)
Cause
The Windows Credential Manager lacks the required application secret. An operating system password reset, or manual deletion by administrators or third-party applications, causes this secret to be lost.
The secret can also be deleted by the Windows OS during startup when the system fails to decrypt the DPAPI Master Key used to access the credentials stored in the Windows Credential Manager. These security-critical events result in the permanent loss of secret credentials and require immediate attention and remediation.
The following image shows the Windows Credential Manager interface, where the application secret is stored.
Solution
How is the "Failed to load secret.: Element not found. [0x80070490]" error resolved?
Okta Verify requires this secret to decrypt the application database before launching. If the OKTA_VERIFY_STORE_* key credential is missing, the user must generate a new one. Generating a new key credential requires deleting the application database and relaunching the application.
Automated Workaround
A feature was rolled out in Windows Okta Verify version 6.7.1 that enabled end users to self-remediate this issue by allowing them to Reset Okta Verify. This effectively applies the manual workaround below.
Manual Workaround
Terminate the background process, remove the database, and restart the application by following these steps.
- Terminate the Okta Verify background process.
- Remove the Okta Verify database.
- Restart Okta Verify.
Detailed scripts are available in the Some Users Cannot Open Windows Okta Verify after Installing Okta Verify for Windows Version 5.0.1.0 or Later article.
NOTE: To determine the root cause of the issue, Okta recommends thorough testing of Windows updates, applications, and credential management software. Enable audit logging on the Windows Credential Manager to determine which applications make changes.
Remediations may vary depending on the root cause of the issue. One such remediation involved granting the SYSTEM account with fallback proxy access to communicate with the Intune Cloud services.
