The Cisco VPN client v5.0 does not work out-of-the-box on Windows 7 and 8. Starting the VPN will result in an error:

Error
Reason 442: Failed to enable Virtual Adapter

This is because of a malfunctioning installer, creating an invalid connection to the Cisco VPN Adapter. To resolve, follow the steps below.

Open regedit and navigate to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\CVirtA.

Look for the DisplayName value and change it to remove all leading characters up to and including %;:For x86, the value change from something like @oem8.inf,%CVirtA_Desc%;Cisco Systems VPN Adapter to Cisco Systems VPN Adapter

For x64, the value would change from something like @oem8.inf,%CVirtA_D  ...