Windows update will not download updates - stuck at 0% downloading

Anonymous
2010-04-17T03:45:39+00:00

Everytime I start windows update it won't download the updates. The bar keeps on running but nothing downloads and the percentage stays at 0%.

Whats wrong? Anything I can do to fix this?

Windows for home | Windows 11 | Windows update

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Anonymous
2011-11-10T19:59:39+00:00

I found a solution to my problem when Windows would search for updates, but then when it started downloading it would stay at 0% forever. I started by stopping the Windows Update service (in my case the service proved to be frozen so I restarted my computer and disabled the service before it starts) and the Application Experience service. After that I went to the C:\Windows\SoftwareDistribution folder and pressed ctrl+a and shift+delete to empty its contents. Mine contained more than 70,000 files so it took a while. I started Application Experience and enabled Windows Update. I let it check for updates and try to download them. It worked perfectly.

Do not worry about deleting important windows files in this case. The contents of SoftwareDistribution is used as a cache and data for Windows Update. When Windows Update starts again it rebuilds the cache repopulating it with up-to-date versions of the files and chewing up a ton of harddisk space again.

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Anonymous
2010-04-23T13:09:40+00:00

sash123,

    If this issue is still happening, then take a look at article: Vista Update stops at stage 3 of 3 

Then let us know the results.

*** edited

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  1. Anonymous
    2016-11-26T18:51:22+00:00

    Thanks https://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/profile/7bc40762-4d06-4b15-ab2f-ffd970ac92ffmeh2k;

    I have two PC's that have the same problem.

    My Vista and Win 7 PCs running at 1GHZ Wifi connection doesn't work, so I tried the Windows 7 PC on Road Runner at 50GHZ Wifi and it didn't work either.

    Now I just set them to auto Update and I get one single update per month....at least that lets me run Security Essentials once a month.

    So I give up.

    dano

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  2. Anonymous
    2016-11-25T00:25:43+00:00

    Thanks for your story. Might work for some, but the problem is with Microsoft. I have been connected to fibre for couple of years with no problems ever updating original Vista and later Win7 on my old, very reliable Sony VAIO laptop.

    Just a couple of months ago, the zero% download problem appeared and it just won't fix itself. Same computer, same network, same speeds. Just Microsoft!

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  3. Anonymous
    2016-10-01T16:17:06+00:00

    I have been following this thread now for months I think 4 or 5 months. Something to be aware of is that if you look back on the thread there have been multiple so call answers. I have to wonder do any of these actually work? If they did then why are there new solutions?

    In re: Windows Download Stuck at 0%

    My solution turned out to be about the speed of my internet I had at home...

    Here is the story:

    For months I had the same problem of Windows being stuck at 0%, and I thought that someday it would just work itself out, and into my computer. 

    On an unrelated quest to see if we could get our Smart TV to stream, I started investigating what our  home internet speed was, because all I'd get from the TV was endless buffering.   I thought I had an outdated router, called ATT to see if they had newer hardware, and here was the information:

    My router had capacity of up to 125 Mbps.

    My internet capacity output ( from our landline plug connection ) was 6Mbps at maximum rate...

    So it was not a router/hardware problem.

    ATT had installed Fiber Optic capability in our bldg. several months ago, and the rep said that we could get Fiber Optic internet for the same price we were paying from the -landline- type service, but the Fiber Optic speed would be up to 24 Mbps.

    We proceeded with the change as it was a no brainer. 

    More speed for same $ per month.

    The next time I turned on my laptop, guess what... Windows started downloading, and successfully completed the whole installation... this took a couple of hours to run its course, but there it was.  No hang ups, no problems, it installed itself like a charm.

    Also to note, my laptop is about 8 years old... which at some point I thought could be the reason for being stuck at the 0% dowload ...  it is a Toshiba that came with  Windows XP,   2 GB of RAM,   32 bit,   1.33 GHz,   CPU Intel Core 2 , and I think a hard drive of about 140 GB...

    My old laptop works like a champ with the new Windows Anniversary upgrades and updates.

    So in my case, internet speed capacity was the problem.

    If you don't have high speed internet at home, and you have a laptop, maybe you can go somewhere that does have those speeds, just make sure you can be there for the hours it takes to download...

    Good luck to all !

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