Some Windows Updates fail to install

Summary

This behavior may occur if the temporary folder of Windows Update has been corrupted. A good example of this is multiple updates will install but a select few always fail.

Symptoms of the problem

Some Windows Update fail to install

This issue can be caused by many factors, the following below are basics steps to try to correct the issue.

Methods to resolve the problem

Rename the temporary folder of Windows Update

1. Click Start, click Run, and type in “cmd” (without quotations) and press Enter. Please run the following command in the opened window to start the Automatic Updates service.
Type in “net stop WuAuServ” (without quotations) and press Enter.

• Note: Please ensure the Automatic Updates service is stopped before we try to rename the folder.

2. Click Start, click Run, and type in “%windir%” (without quotations) and press Enter.
3. In the opened folder, rename the folder SoftwareDistribution to SDold.
4. Click Start, click Run, and type in “cmd” (without quotations) and press Enter. Please run the command “net start WuAuServ” in the opened window to restart the service Automatic Updates.

Start the relavant Windows Update service

The cause of the issue also can be that the relevant Windows Update services were not enabled. Let us try the following steps to verify the relevant Windows Update services.

1. Click Start->Run, type “services.msc” (without quotation marks) in the open box and click OK.
2. Double click the service “Automatic Updates”.
3. Click on the Log On tab; please ensure the option “Local System account” is selected and the option “Allow service to interact with desktop” is unchecked.
4. Check if this service has been enabled on the listed Hardware Profile. If not, please click the Enable button to enable it.
5. Click on the tab “General “; make sure the “Startup Type” is “Automatic”. Then please click the button “Start” under “Service Status” to start the service.
6. Please repeat the above steps with another service: Background Intelligent Transfer Service

• Note: The Startup Type of BITS can be “Automatic” or “Manual”.
• You can also temporarily stop these services, restart the computer, and then start these services again. If one of the services is missing, please let me know.

After the above steps, please try to run Windows Update again to check whether the issue resolved.

Check system files for any corruption

1. Open a command window and run sfc /scannow