VirtualBox 7.0.6 failed to open a session on host Windows 10 lacking WinVerifyTrust

Question

I'm working on Windows 10 Home (version 22H2, OS build 19045). Shortly after another Windows update my Oracle VM VirtualBox (which I'm using with no extension packs) stopped launching virtual machines (Ubuntu in my case), raising a typical error during VM start, namely:

Failed to open a session for the virtual machine.
 
The virtual machine has terminated unexpectedly during startup with exit code 1 (0x1).
 
Result Code: E_FAIL (0X80004005)

Component: MachineWrap

Interface: IMachine {300763af-5d6b-46e6-aa96-273eac15538a}

Just in case, hardware specs are:

• Processor Intel(R) Core(TM) i3-8145U CPU @ 2.10GHz 2.30 GHz
• Installed RAM 8.00 GB (7.82 GB usable)
• System type 64-bit operating system, x64-based processor

I understand that this is a classical problem answered many times on several forums, but the trick is that it's never the same for every single user and his machine (damned Windows updates). I have explored lots of different solutions on stackoverflow, virtualbox forums and here, but nothing helped so far.

Here is the list of my attempts:

1. Rebooting.

2. Updating VirtualBox and Windows 10. Uninstalling and reinstalling VirtualBox again, checking thoroughly 'Run as administrator' option every time.

3. Running in cmd bcdedit.exe /set nointegritychecks on for disabling driver integrity checks.

4. Setting Paravirtualization Interface to KVM.

5. Haven't found C:\Program Files\Oracle\VirtualBox\drivers\vboxdrv directory (\drivers contains \network, \USB and \vboxsup folders) and therefore had no chance to try reinstalling the VB kernel driver VBoxDrv.inf ; I really wonder where is this driver in that new version of VirtualBox (if it could only help...).

6. Repairing Windows System Files via running sfc /scannow in terminal.

7. Trying all the three different types of starting the vm: normal, headless and detachable. Done this after nearly every change from previous steps. Discarding current vm state as well, restoring other states to launch from.

8. Turning off real-time protection in Windows Defender and launching VM.

9. Installing VBoxSup.inf driver in the aforementioned \vboxsup directory.

10. I've read about some issues with Hyper-V preventing VBox to start correctly, but since my Win10 version is Home, I don't have an option to access it via Windows Features in Control Panel (actually, it's obviously absent).

11. Virtual Machine Platform and Windows Hypervisor Platform were unchecked even before I visited Windows Features Panel, but despite this I tried checking, applying, rebooting, unchecking, applying, and rebooting again, to be sure.

12. Changing adapter settings by checking and unchecking (with rebooting) VirtualBox NDIS6 Bridged Networking Driver in VirtualBox Host-Only Ethernet Adapter and my network connection, tried one and both.

13. Disabling Secure Boot option in BIOS and reinstalling VBox again.

As far as I understand (but I'm neither an experienced VM user nor good at reading logs), there should be probably a trouble with Wintrust.dll because for some reason there is a bunch of VBox libraries lacking WinVerifyTrust. Though I'm not sure at all, so VBoxHardening.log is attached (link). Any help appreciated, I'm really quite in despair spending two days on it and gaining zero progress...

Answer 1

After asking this question on virtualbox forum, I received an answer that eventually helped me:

A library named Itcspea.Dll is invading the address space of the VirtualBoxVM process, and it seems to belong to one of the softwares named ViPNet ... by infotecs. Uninstall this software for a test or make it ignore VirtualBox.

FWIW, VBoxDrv.sys was renamed to VBoxSup.sys at some point during the VirtualBox 6.1.x release updates.

Uninstalling this software solved the problem.