Windows Update hangs on "checking for updates". Haven't been able to install updates since Oct. 2011

Anonymous
2012-01-13T20:52:46+00:00

Hey there everyone,

I'm having an issue with Windows Update on my Windows 7 64-bit computer. My last most recent update check was on 10/3/2011 and my last actual update was on 9/29/2011. What is basically happening is that Windows is telling me that I need to check for updates. I click on Check for updates, and it basically acts like it is checking for updates, but never moves beyond that. I can leave it checking for hours, and nothing will happen. It won't get me to the screen where I can actually select updates, nor does Windows even acknowledge that I checked for updates.

I've already tried using the Windows Update Fix tool, but there was no success with that at all. I thought that maybe it was my firewall or internet settings, and it's not that either. Does anyone have any suggestions. Thanks!

Peter

Windows for home | Previous Windows versions | Windows update

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Anonymous
2012-02-13T16:39:04+00:00

Hi,

Try the following methods

Method 1:

1. Click Start

2. Type ‘cmd’ in the search bar.

3. Right click Command prompt and choose “Run as Administrator”

4. At the command prompt, type the following, commands and then press ENTER after each command:

a. net stop wuauserv

b. net stop bits

c. net stop cryptsvc

Please do not close the Command Prompt window.

Method 2: ****Rename folders pertaining to Windows Update.

At the command prompt, type the following commands, and then press Enter after each command:

a) ren %systemroot%\System32\Catroot2 Catroot2.old

b) ren %systemroot%\SoftwareDistribution SoftwareDistribution.old

At the command prompt, type the following, commands and then press ENTER after each command:

a) net start wuauserv

b) net start bits

c) net start cryptsvc

Close the Command Prompt window and check the issue if issue reoccurs

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  1. Anonymous
    2016-07-06T03:50:57+00:00

    Does KB 3020369 needs to be installed first only on a clean installation of W7 then KB 3161608?

    In other words, on a system that is running W 7 Home x64 with June 2016 updates already installed, does KB 3161608 does the job alone and installs ok or the installation of KB 3020369 is mandatory prior to KB 3161608 ? I'm asking because according to MS's page, about KB 3161608, this patch does not have ant prerequisites other than W 7 SP1.

    Thanks for a more detailed explanation.

    P.S. We'll also need to see, next week, if KB 3161608 does the job or if we'll have to install any W32k.sys related security patch as standalone package prior to check for updates as we did for at least the past 4 months.

    Regards,

    Edit: looks like MS has updated the KB 3161608 webpage info and KB 3020369 is required prior to install.

    " Prerequisites To apply this update, you must install Service Pack 1 for Windows 7 or Windows Server 2008 R2 andApril 2015 servicing stack update for Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2 (KB3020369). ".

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  2. Anonymous
    2016-07-05T20:00:55+00:00

    Wait, wait, wait. The situation has improved significantly as of today. A new update client addressing all known issues has been released. It is part of the June 2016 update rollup for Windows 7 SP1 and Windows Server 2008 R2. This rollup's prerequisite is the April 2015 servicing stack update for Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 R2 (if you know what I mean :D)

    To be able to install these updates on a fresh installation with a search already running, the search needs to be stopped manually. Set automatic updates to "Never check for updates" and restart.

    Regards, VZ

    Thank you, this resolved the issue for me.

    I have been putting off updates since April (2016), and it seems I needed the June 2016 update to fix this problem.

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  3. Anonymous
    2016-06-29T18:05:44+00:00

    Could it be related to dualboot with W10 (which I mostly use now btw) somehow?

    No. What's happening is that a small number of recent updates is inappropriate for earlier update clients. The newly released June 2016 Update Rollup includes an update client that can handle them. You might consider installing KB3161608 in preparation for upcoming patch days.

    Regards, VZ

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  4. Anonymous
    2016-06-29T17:37:16+00:00

    This does most of that with a few key stokes

    Use Option 2 on the list after right clicking it and select run as administrator to reset the update system..

    https://gallery.technet.microsoft.com/scriptcenter/Reset-Windows-Update-Agent-d824badc

    Download it to your downloads folder

    Right click it and select Extract all to the downloads folder.

    Then right click ResetWUEng and select run as administrator

    Follow the rest of the prompts

    Press any key to continue

    Type 2 for that Option on the list and the Enter key

    Press y for Yes I believe twice

    After it has completed

    Type 15 for that option and the Enter key to restart the machine.

    Should say will restart in 60 seconds save your work.... press any key to continue.

    After restart go to windows updates and manually check for updates shouldn't take a few minutes.

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