"Preparing To Configure Windows. Please Do Not Turn Off Your Computer"

Anonymous

Hi. I just got my new laptop yesterday with Windows 7 Home Premium. When I left for school this morning, I shut down my computer and saw that it had 22 Windows Updates to download. When I turned it back on this afternoon, it was stuck at a screen that said "Preparing To Configure Windows. Please Do Not Turn Off Your Computer." I decided to wait but it stayed the same for as long as I waited. Finally, I powered it off by holding on the power button, and just normally booted the system. Will there be any damage done to my new laptop? Is there any way I can prevent this update glitch from happening again? Thanks.

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Anonymous

Hi. I just got my new laptop yesterday with Windows 7 Home Premium. When I left for school this morning, I shut down my computer and saw that it had 22 Windows Updates to download. When I turned it back on this afternoon, it was stuck at a screen that said "Preparing To Configure Windows. Please Do Not Turn Off Your Computer." I decided to wait but it stayed the same for as long as I waited. Finally, I powered it off by holding on the power button, and just normally booted the system. Will there be any damage done to my new laptop? Is there any way I can prevent this update glitch from happening again? Thanks.

I just bought a Toshiba Laptop for a Client with windows 7 home,

As a favour for my clients I usually run windows update for them so they get it all working and are 100% confident that when they get it as up to date as possible,

I ran into the exact same problem as above, i read this thread and read all different reply's but none of them realy worked for me and i didnt have time to wait...

this is what worked for me:

Hold down the power button and switch of your machine
Restart your computer and just before windows boots hit the F8 button
Boot into safe mode
login (if nessecary)
Make sure that any virus scanners at this point are disabled before continuing
Click "Start" > "Accessories" > "System Restore"
Click "Next"
Pick an earlier restore point and then click next, (its best to pick the 1 just before you had problems)
Click next and follow the prompts and it will start a system restore
wait till your computer does this System Restore process
Regardless of whether the system restore process fails or passes it should now get you out being stuck at "Preparing To Configure Windows. Please Do Not Turn Off Your Computer."

Now...

13 Disable Virus Scanner before moving on

Run windows update
now it should run without any problems
if you do have problems and run into a loop Call your Computer Manufacturer or the company that you purchased it off and see if they can help you,

Thanks

Michael

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Anonymous

2010-11-18T07:26:09+00:00

My computer, an HP Pavilion, froze on me with 74 updates to configure. After seeing it hung up at the 7th one and thinking that it must have been a mistake (how could there be that many!?) I did a hard shut down. The next day, yesterday when I went to turn it off I still had 74 updates showing and it was stuck at #10. Again I had to do a hard shutdown because of a severe thunderstorm. Right now I am making the backup disks that I hadn't gotten around to making and then I am going to try shutting the thing down again and going to bed.

I have reset my updates to download but not to automatically install from now on. But that isn't helping right now. And I haven't been able to find where the waiting updates are. I have searched my computer and online in the help pages for the answer and this is the closest I have gotten. I did find the list of the ones that successfully downloaded and installed.

Does anyone know where I can find the list of what is waiting to install? Maybe there is something I can do to change it or divide it or something.

Thanks!
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Anonymous

2010-07-06T17:10:01+00:00

After all these years of making operating systems Microsoft STILL can't get it right. Windows 7 is a pile, just like all the rest. Here I sit with this message on a CLEAN install of win7. Completely unacceptable. I need to work, I don't have TIME for this. Restore doesn't work, because the update just happens again, and the same thing happens. How about tell us which update is causing the issue because as usual nothing is showing in event viewer that could give a hint. Windows = pile of ____. As I type this rant on my roomate's MAC, I am browsing the Apple website for my own new mac. My windows machine just sits there, unproductively waiting for microsoft as usual.
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Anonymous

2010-02-12T08:48:41+00:00

@Cody,

Read the posts - it's not Vista, it's W7 that's the problem.

Very annoying - min has now been hung at "Preparing to configure ..." for 8 hours.

And why "Preparing to configure" when does it start actually configuring? Does it need internet acess (which it has) during the preparing to configure stage - or can I actually go on holiday today with this laptop!

Please provide a basic explanation of what the computer is doing, whether the animated cursor is enough to indicate that the process is still going (given the utterly baffling lack of progress indication - what were Microsoft thinking!), and whether a hard reset would take it completely back to pre-update state, or partially updated but working, or broken.

IMO some tech guys need to actually earn their money here, there must be some way you can investigate this very specific problem and not just give stock replies.

UPDATE

OK, at 10 hours I finally lost patience. Hard reset ... asked it to start normally ... laptop went straight to the "Preparing to configure ..." screen - however lasted only a few seconds, then "Updating Windows ... " and (hey!) - a progress indicator. Eleven updates then applied in a few seconds. And all is now well. Lucky?

So - in my case the update process had actually hung - the animated cursor does not indicate that anything is actually happening. Given the speed, it looks as if some of the updates had been applied (in the background) and these were not undone by a hard reset. YMMV!
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Anonymous

2010-02-01T06:55:05+00:00

I got an HP Desktop on Friday, took it back on Sat. thinking it was broken because it was stuck all day Sat on that "preparing to configure windows" got an even exchange for another HP Desktop.... came home everything was fine on start up/ setup then today Sunday once again "preparing to configure windows" and so I waited... waited... and waited....... then after about 6 hrs... its appeared like it was done "CONFIGURING" and once again asked to be restarted for updates.... and now I still wait......... wait...........wait........... I am so pi*S**!!!!!!!!!

From what I have read its just going to be a waiting game right? or do I have to take my computer back and get my money back!!!!!!!!

What the He** is the point!!!! Getting a new computer and you cant ever use it.... and now I'm stuck with a computer that I have to find a way around the clitch in order to use what the he**??????????? I got a Windows 7 cause I had a Windows vista now I'm thinking Vista wasn't that bad after huh??????? ugh!!!!!! =/

PS.. I really dont feel like calling windows support just to try and understand those indian dudes that always asst. ugh!!!!!! One more question... Will this happen every update after all this waiting today? or is this happening because the computer is brand new? Thanks
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