Linked server was unable to begin a distributed transaction.

Error:

The operation could not be performed because OLE DB provider “SQLNCLI11” for linked server “xxxx” was unable to begin a distributed transaction.

Fix:

The default settings were not configured correctly to allow communication with the other servers.  These configuration settings are found under the Component Services snapin which can be launched by typing dcomcnfg.msc at a run/command window.

• Right click on the Local DTC option under the Distributed Transaction Coordinator

• You will then see the Local DTC Properties dialog box.  Navigate to the Security tab.  As you can see below, the default options are that everything is unselected – Network DTC Access, Transaction Manager Communication, etc.

• Place a check in the Network DTC Access and the Allow Inbound and Allow Outbound under the Transaction Manager Communication option.  We also selected No Authentication Required as this was the way the other servers in the enviroment were configured.

Sources:

https://www.virtualizationhowto.com/2015/04/ole-db-provider-sqlncli11-linked-server-unable-distributed-transaction/