Error 0xC1900101 – 0x40017 when installing Windows 8.1

Anonymous
2013-10-24T00:28:08+00:00

Hello everyone,

We would like to thank all those who have helped us to collect data by sending us logs.  The cause for error 0xC1900101 – 0x40017 is known to be faulty drivers, however it can be difficult to identify exactly which drivers are creating the error.

Note: Please double-check the error code before reading further.  There are many variations of error 0xC1900101, each with a different location code -- the error extension, located after the dash.  The information in this thread is intended only for location code 0x40017.  If you are receiving a different location code, these steps are unlikely to resolve your issue.

There have been reports of a USB driver causing this error.  Until a specific USB driver can be determined as a root cause, if you receive this error, we recommend you unplug all USB devices (other than your mouse and keyboard) as a troubleshooting step and try the upgrade again.  If the upgrade is then successful, you can plug the devices back in and they should function normally.

We have identified a few drivers associated with the following hardware or software that could be causing this problem:

1.  SteelSeries – Mouse and keyboard manufacture.  The SteelSeries Engine is currently not supported on Windows 8.1.  Please see their FAQ for more info and updates.

2.  NVIDIA -- Video card manufacture.    Check to make sure you’ve upgraded to the latest video drivers.

3.  ESET - Antivirus and security-related products.  Please see the ESET Knowledgebase to learn how to safely upgrade to Windows 8.1 with ESET Smart Security or ESET NOD32 Antivirus installed.

4. Trusteer Rapport -- Credit card fraud protection software.  Trusteer recommends installing the latest update for Windows 8.1 compatibility.

If you have any of these programs installed, please let us know if disabling, uninstalling, or upgrading the software or drivers allowed you to install Windows 8.1 successfully.

We are sorry for any inconvenience and appreciate your help and understanding while we continue to investigate this issue.

Windows for home | Previous Windows versions | Install and upgrade

Locked Question. This question was migrated from the Microsoft Support Community. You can vote on whether it's helpful, but you can't add comments or replies or follow the question.

0 comments
Answer accepted by question author
Anonymous
2014-01-07T21:10:26+00:00

Hello,

Microsoft is aware some customers are unable to install Windows 8.1 due to error 0xC1900101 -0x40017. 

This error indicates a failure to boot Windows 8.1 occurred during the final parts of the update, causing the system to roll back to Windows 8.  The most likely cause of this error is an incompatible driver or hardware defect. Unfortunately, due to the timing of this failure, there are often no logs, crash dumps or other diagnostic information available to investigate the issue easily, which makes it difficult to determine which, if any, of the drivers or system components are causing the update to fail.

We are currently working with the companies that develop these drivers to help them update their problematic drivers whenever they are identified.  Some of the identified drivers have been listed in the original post, however due to the sheer number of drivers constantly being created by other companies all over the world, this is a daunting task.  We understand that the inability to easily identify the incompatible driver can be incredibly frustrating and we are sorry for the inconvenience. 

Make sure you’ve installed all the latest Windows Updates and latest drivers from your hardware and software manufacturers.  You can also try uninstalling any unnecessary hardware or software prior to updating to Windows 8.1.

If your hardware and software manufacturers do not have updated drivers and you are experiencing this error, the best method for upgrading to Windows 8.1 is to clean install Windows 8, and then update to Windows 8.1 before allowing any additional drivers or software to install.

To do this:

  1. Back up all of your personal documents and data to an external drive.
  2. Disconnect your computer from the Internet.
  3. Perform a clean install of Windows 8 using Windows 8 installation media (DVD or USB).  For help performing a clean install of Windows, see How to perform a clean install of Windows.

Note:  If you do not have media and Windows 8 was pre-installed on your PC, please contact your PC manufacturer for assistance.  Otherwise to get help obtaining installation media, contact Microsoft Support. 4. Once you’ve reinstalled Windows 8, change your hardware settings so that you do not automatically install driver updates.      

**>>**From the Start screen, type “System”, and then click on “View advanced system settings” in the search results.  This will open the System Properties dialog.      

**>>**Click on the Hardware tab, and then click Device Installation Settings.      

**>>**When the Device Installation Settings window appears, click the “No, let me choose what to” button, and then “Never install driver software from Windows Update”.  Click Save Changes to save the setting. 5. Reconnect your computer to the Internet. 6. Install Windows Updates.  Restart the computer when prompted. 7. Open Windows Store and install Windows 8.1. 8. Afterwards, be sure to restore your hardware settings so that your device drivers once again install automatically.  (Repeat Step 4, but restore this setting to “**Yes, do this automatically (recommended)”**and Save changes.)

Was this answer helpful?

3 people found this answer helpful.
0 comments

149 additional answers

Sort by: Most helpful
Most helpful Newest Oldest
  1. Anonymous
    2015-01-29T01:48:00+00:00

    I'm still not having any luck and I've tried many different things I've read on the internet.  I've compiled a list of things here: http://www.rbrussell.com/2014/12/28/windows-8-1-windows-10-update-error-0xc1900101-0x40017-solved/

    I only run Windows Defender for AV, so it is not a third party AV software problem for me.

    But, you did have luck with Windows 8.1.  At least that is what you stated in the article you linked.  You now are having another issue with Windows 10 Technical Preview installing between builds.  The newest build is 9926.  Have you tried that one yet?

    I have also seen issues with installing an update on Windows 7 that actually was also caused by Windows Defender (and this sometimes can translate over to Windows 8.1 and Windows 10).  Try turning off Real Time protection and try upgrading again.  That said, this same memory management error also can be caused by a driver, including certain types of updater software that comes with Samsung tablets.  Without knowing your detailed system specs and what software you actually are using it is impossible to give suggestions as to what else to look for or to try.

    Was this answer helpful?

    0 comments
  2. Anonymous
    2015-01-28T21:16:55+00:00

    I'm still not having any luck and I've tried many different things I've read on the internet.  I've compiled a list of things here: http://www.rbrussell.com/2014/12/28/windows-8-1-windows-10-update-error-0xc1900101-0x40017-solved/

    I only run Windows Defender for AV, so it is not a third party AV software problem for me.

    Was this answer helpful?

    0 comments
  3. Anonymous
    2015-01-27T09:30:27+00:00

    If this thread, and the pages and pages of discussion and failed attempts to fix the problem, and then Microsoft's "helpful" suggestion to just reinstall Win8, doesn't convince you to switch to an Apple, nothing will.  Long-term Windows person here, but shopping for my first Apple notebook now.

    You should visit the Apple Support forums one of these days.  Issues can happen with any OS on any hardware.  I've seen them on both Apple and PC hardware, and in Mac OS X as well as in Linux and other OSes.  I used to make very good money spending hours of my time fixing Macs, often more than I made with PCs.  But, that is just my experience.  Well, there is that and witnessing the sometimes long lines of upset people at the local Apple Genius Bar.  You not infrequently hear the suggestion to reinstall Mac OS X after several failed attempts to get an upgrade installed. :-)

    Long-term Windows (since before Windows 3.0), Mac OS (since System 6.0.3 and every version of OS X), Unix (since Sun Solaris 8, etc.), and Linux (Fedora, Ubuntu, Caldera, Redhat, etc.) user here.

    Was this answer helpful?

    0 comments
  4. Anonymous
    2015-01-27T09:18:01+00:00

    One day, you will be hit by some rather serious bug in Apple software.  You have been lucky.  I was not so lucky when I installed Mavericks.  My webcam ceased to function half the time until several updates later, and even now sometimes will not come up with Facetime.  I have to reach back and unplug it and plug it back in sometimes.  And, my webcam is certified Mac compatible, and has Mac drivers.

    Two updates in a row in Mavericks rendered my video card incapable of full acceleration until I found the problem.  Support for my card's personality was removed from one of the kexts, requiring me to edit the plist just to make it work at all (it still doesn't display the proper model number of the card although it still works).

    Some years back, I once had an update that rendered an entire Mac lab incapable of using the network.  An update was required to fix the problem but you could not download the update to fix the problem.  So, had to find a computer that did not yet receive the update to download the fix as almost every single one of the Macs on campus no longer could get onto the network after that update.

    You've been lucky.  Hopefully that will remain the case but if you surf the net for complaints about Apple software suddenly not working after upgrade, or upgrades failing, and so forth, you will find complaints aplenty.  All software can have bugs and create issues, even on Apple hardware.  Many friends and acquaintances have had the misfortune of having their Macs crash and take their work with the crash.  A number of them have had the misfortune of having an upgrade go wrong, as I have. But, as I wrote a couple times already, you have been lucky.

    As to the bloatware that is installed on some computers from the manufacturer, that often is the cause of failed upgrades like what people are seeing with upgrading to 8.1.  The first thing I do when I buy a computer is remove most all of that sort of thing.  Microsoft cannot control all the sorts of hardware drivers are out there that might interfere with an upgrade.  They can try their best but that does not guarantee 100% success with all hardware/software configurations.  Memory management problems can have many causes and there can be no universal solution for such things.  All that can be done in a number of cases is to remove several third-party applications and drivers to prevent this problem in the first place.

    Was this answer helpful?

    0 comments