Vista: The update does not apply to your system

With Extended Support for Vista SP2 ending on 11 April 2017, don't expect the Vista/WinXP-specific troubleshooter to be available much longer.

Speaking of moving targets...

This one's still good => http://go.microsoft.com/?linkid=9830262

The original Fix It #50202 we used for years is still available => http://go.microsoft.com/?linkid=966568 [Run it in DEFAULT mode and then ADVANCED mode & reboot]

How do I [manually] reset Windows Update components? [<=used to offer Fix It #50202; manual steps do just about all that the automated troubleshooter does/did]

https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/help/971058/how-do-i-reset-windows-update-components

I've published the Speccy snapshot here.

It does look like Microsoft have been removing instructions relating to Vista from a few places. PA Bear referred to a Windows update troubleshooter earlier, but all I could find were versions for Win7 and beyond. The Vista version must be out there somewhere, but I couldn't find it.

Hi JL3008:

I'm fairly certain the Vista SP2 version of the Windows Update Troubleshooter PA Bear referenced was pulled by Microsoft several months ago, so let's leave that for now.  If you can't successfully install the .msu installers for the Windows kernel-mode driver (Win32K.sys) and graphics component speed-up patches recommended by Dalai then your Windows Update is just going to spin for days searching for available updates, even if your Windows Update components are working correctly, so let's deal with your speed up patches first.

Let's do a quick test and try installing KB3185911 using the 32-bit Vista installer from the Microsoft Download Center (i.e., not the Microsoft Update Catalog).  First, ensure that you have stopped any automatic Windows Updates running in the background [Windows Update | Change settings | Important updates | Never check for updates (not recommended)] and re-boot - the re-boot is critical].  Then download the 32-bit .msu installer (Windows6.0-KB3185911-x86.msu) from https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=53714 and save it to your desktop, close your browser, and then double-click the .msu file to start the installation.

KB3185911 is a graphics component update, so if you see another "The update is not applicable to your computer" warning just move on to the next update on the list, KB3191203.  Download the 32-bit .msu installer (Windows6.0-KB3191203-x86.msu) from https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=53972 and save it to your desktop, close your browser, and then double-click the .msu installer and report back with your findings.

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I've taken a quick look at your Speccy profile and a few things stand out:

• You only have 13% free disk space on your C: drive (260 of the 295 GB used)
• You have MS Office 2007 installed.  See Note 6 in the instructions on page 1 of m#l's thread Updates not working, it has been searching for updates for hours about problems this will cause with Windows Update when Microsoft Updates are enabled.
• You have lots of outdated software on your computer.  For example, you stated that you have Java 8 Build 121 installed (which I can't see) but you also have have four outdated version of the Java Runtime Environment (RE) ranging from Java 6 Build 45 (1.6.0.14) to Java 8 Build 73 (1.8.0.73) .  If you go to https://www.java.com/en/download/installed.jsp or https://www.java.com/en/download/ does it tell you that you already have Java 8 Build 121 installed?
• You appear to have several outdated hardware drivers.  For example, the driver for your GeForce GT610 graphics card is listed as v10.18.13.5850 (a.k.a v358.50, released in April 2012) but according to http://www.geforce.com/drivers, the latest available driver for 32-bit Vista SP2 is v365.19 from May 2016.  Please don't install any driver updates for your hardware while we're troubleshooting, but I'm wondering if you might have an outdated driver for your network adapter as well that is causing a connection problem when you run Windows Update.

It looks like you're connecting to the internet through a TP-LINK Wireless USB Adapter, and link speed is only listed as 351 bps. If you run a connection speed test at http://www.speedtest.net/ (you might be offered Ookla's beta version that doesn't require Adobe Flash installed), what is the maximum download speed in Mbps on your internet connection?

32-bit Vista Home Premium SP2 * Firefox v51.0.1 * NIS v22.8.1.14 * Speccy 1.30.728

HP Pavilion dv6835ca, Intel Core2Duo T5550 @ 1.83 GHz, 3 GB RAM, NVIDIA GeForce 8400M GS

It does look like Microsoft have been removing instructions relating to Vista from a few places. PA Bear referred to a Windows update troubleshooter earlier, but all I could find were versions for Win7 and beyond. The Vista version must be out there somewhere, but I couldn't find it.

Yes, it's been a moving target for several months now but there's still one for Vista:

Description of the Windows Update Troubleshooter:

https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/help/2714434/description-of-the-windows-update-troubleshooter

The Vista-specific download points to http://go.microsoft.com/?linkid=9767096&entrypointid=matskb [MATS = Microsoft Automated Troubleshooter, similar to the now discontinued utilities known as 'Fix Its.']

Note: Running the troubleshooter will delete your Update History but not the list of Installed Updates.

PS: With Extended Support for Vista SP2 ending on 11 April 2017, don't expect the Vista/WinXP-specific troubleshooter to be available much longer.

Hello GWN,

I've published the Speccy snapshot here.

It does look like Microsoft have been removing instructions relating to Vista from a few places. PA Bear referred to a Windows update troubleshooter earlier, but all I could find were versions for Win7 and beyond. The Vista version must be out there somewhere, but I couldn't find it.

Thanks.

Thanks PA Bear.