WinOS Module 7.6.170 Fails to install due to Pre-installation Check failure (NETIQKB72557)

The Windows OS module 7.6.170 will fail with a Pre-installation Check failure. The failed component will indicate that hotfix 71704 has not been installed, even though it has been.
Unable to install any Module to an existing AM 7.0.25x Agent on 64-bit Windows Servers via Deployment Task.
Module deployment tasks fail with the following error: 'A registry query on the machine failed. The machine may not be reachable or the credentials for accessing it are not valid. Return code = 1.'

This predominantly happens when a Registry Key is inserted onto a new system, before the NetIQ agent is installed on a 64-bit machine. Some of these Registry Key insertions do not consider that the NetIQmc is a 32 bit process, so the automation tool being used will create the desired Registry Key in the HKLM | Software | NetIQ hive, rather than in the HKLM | Software | Wow6432Node | NetIQ hive where it should be.

This will cause this type of check to fail, as the Module Installer (through the ckNT process) will find the HKLM | Software | NetIQ hive, and assume that this is a 32-bit OS... which will trigger the 32-bit installer components, which will fail when it checks for the existing Agent's install path info in the 32-bit NetIQ Registry hive, which will not have the required information.

Please make a full backup of the registry before attempting to modify the registry.

1. Isolate the registry value that was created before the netiq agent was installed.
   
2. Insert that key into HKLM | Software | Wow6432Node | netiq under the corresponding value.
   
   For example if you were looking at the AllowReboot string.  Its path under a 32 bit install path would be:
   
   HKLM | Software | NetIQ | Appmanager | 4.0 | NetIQmc | Security | AllowReboot
   
   Under a 64 bit install of the AppManager Agent the correct path would be:
   
   HKLM | Software | Wow6432Node | NetIQ | Appmanager | 4.0 | NetIQmc | Security | AllowReboot
   
   
3. Once all the keys have been relocated Delete the HKLM | Software | NetIQ | Appmanager | 4.0 | NetIQmc Key
   
4. Attempt the install again.

This is due to a failure to find the Install Path registry key.  In the ckNT.log this is generated / appended when the Pre-installation Check runs.

1282748187 Main - Enter for install check.
1282748187 CheckOSVer - Enter
1282748187 CheckOSVer - OS major version = 5; OS minor version = 2; OS Build Number = 3790; Product Type = 0
1282748187 CheckOSVer - Processor architecture == x86
1282748187 CheckOSVer - Exit
1282748187 CheckAgentReqs - Enter
1282748187 CheckAgentReqs - Checking version of file "\bin\netiqmc.exe"
1282748187 CheckAgentReqs - Error: unable to get version of file (size = 0)

The above 'Checking version of file' should be reflecting the FULL install path of the NetIQmc.exe service.  Note that in the above example, the full file path is not present.  This is because the process is checking for an AM Agent registry key called InstallPath, which should be present on the server if an Agent has been installed there.

The problem is that the Install Path Registry String does not exist in the registry hive that it is being sought out in. Since the ckNT utility cannot verify the version of this exe the Pre-installation Check will fail.

Formerly known as NETIQKB72557