Windows Update is one of those components of Windows 10 which is best neither seen nor heard. Generally, though, if it’s not restarting your PC in the middle of an incredibly important piece of work – of course, this has never happened to anyone ever in the history of Windows – then Windows Update tends to whirr away unobtrusively in the background of Windows 10, downloading updates as it when it needs to. Well, that’s the theory, anyway.
Every now and then, however, Windows Update will decide it wants to stop working. Its common tricks include pretending to download an update and then getting stuck half way though, or just becoming completely unresponsive. Thanks, Microsoft.
If Windows Update gets stuck, then the first port of call is to check out this list of the most common upgrade and installation error codes. If Windows Update has been throwing out error messages, then make a note of the error codes contained within and compare them to that list – this will help you deduce the reasons that the updates are failing in the first place.
However, when it comes to solving the most common Windows Update problems, you can just skip to the list below
How to fix Windows Update: Be patient
Sometimes updates can be large and require a long time to download. If a particular update is stuck at, say, 75% for an hour or two – don’t panic. However, there may be an issue if that figure doesn’t shift overnight.
How to fix Windows Update: Run Windows Update troubleshooter
This will automatically detect problems with your system, which can take a few minutes to complete. Download the troubleshooter here, then click Advanced Settings and you’ll find an “Apply repairs Automatically” option.
Run the troubleshooter and it should hopefully clear up the problems causing Windows Update to get stuck.
How to fix Windows Update: Use System Restore
If your computer still isn’t responding when installing updates, you can run a System Restore. This will revert your PC to an earlier point in time.
To access System Restore simply type System Restore into the search bar and select “Create a restore point”, which will take you to System Protection in the System Properties window. From System Restore you can pick an appropriate point to revert to.
After you’ve gone back to an earlier restore point, try installing the updates again as normal.
How to fix Windows Update: Delete files in Software Distribution
This trick, thanks to The Windows Club, involves a little more interaction with your computer’s system settings. It shouldn’t cause any damage to your PC – you’ll only really be deleting temporary Windows Update files – but we’d recommend setting up a System Restore point before delving any further.
First you’ll need to stop Windows Update Service and Background Intelligent Transfer Service. Type win+x to bring up the WinX menu, and from here select Command Prompt (admin). There are two commands you’ll need to type:
net stop wuauserv
net stop bits
Press Enter after you type each of these. This will turn off Windows Update Service and Background Intelligent Transfer Service.
Next, you’ll need to delete the files in C:\Windows\SoftwareDistribution. Go to the appropriate folder, select all of the files and press Delete. If the files are in use (and can’t be deleted) you’ll need to restart your PC, so turn off the two Windows Update services and then try to delete the files again.
After the folder has been emptied, either restart your computer or manually turn on the Windows Update services. To do this, bring up Command Prompt (admin) and type:
net start wuauserv
net start bits
Now run Windows Update and you’ll find that your PC needs to download a number of updates, which can take up to a few hours, depending on your system and connection.
After the updates have all been installed, Windows will schedule a restart time, although you can always restart there and then.
How to fix Windows Update: Make a quick fix batch file
Still here? Still wishing that Windows Update would just blinking WORK? Then there is one last resort. The following fix is available on loads of forums and websites, and one of our kind readers brought attention to it with a comment below. Best of all? It really couldn’t be any simpler.
- Open up Notepad and paste the italicised text below.
- Save the file as Fix.bat (the .bat bit is crucial) and make sure to save it to desktop so you can get to it easily.
- Right click the file on your desktop and select Run as Administrator.
- Once the file has done its stuff, restart and run Windows Update again.
- Rejoice.
@ECHO OFF echo This script is intended to stop Windows Update being COMPLETELY and UTTERLY rubbish echo. PAUSE echo. attrib -h -r -s %windir%\system32\catroot2 attrib -h -r -s %windir%\system32\catroot2\*.* net stop wuauserv net stop CryptSvc net stop BITS ren %windir%\system32\catroot2 catroot2.old ren %windir%\SoftwareDistribution sold.old ren “%ALLUSERSPROFILE%\application data\Microsoft\Network\downloader” downloader.old net Start BITS net start CryptSvc net start wuauserv echo. echo Windows Update should now work properly. Thanks Microsoft. echo. PAUSE