The problem was reported by one of our readers who was troubled by this Windows Installer service error. The following error occurred whenever we try to install a program and especially with .msi extension.

According to Microsoft, the error occurs if:

•    You are using Windows XP in Normal mode.
•    The Windows Installer Service that is included with Windows XP is unregistered or damaged.

Solutions:

Any of the following solutions will solve the problem.

Solution 1:

•    Open the command prompt, type msiexec.exe /unregister, press Enter.

•    Now type msiexec /regserver and press Enter.

•    Verify that the SYSTEM account has full control access permissions to the HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT hive in the Windows registry. (more info here)

Solution 2:

•    Ensure that the startup type of Windows Installer service is set to Manual.

•    Type services.msc in the Run box and see the Windows Installer service and check its startup type.

Solution 3:

•    Download a file called msiserver.zip and let it do the work for you.

•    Extract the file and double click the .reg file.

•    Confirm with Yes and reboot.

[Via Winhelponline]

The solution here can also help you.

Let me know if the problem is solved.