Cumulative update won't install (KB4571756) (Error 0x800f081f)

Anonymous
2020-09-11T07:31:06+00:00

I am running Windows 10 Home 2004 (Build 19041.450). Windows Update notified me that there was a cumulative update available to install (2020-09 Cumulative Update for Windows 10 Version 2004 for x64-based Systems (KB4571756)). When I told it to install the update, it will download and go up to "Installing - 100%" and then just show this error: 

I've tried the following in an attempt to fix the error:

  • Run "sfc /scannow" in an elevated command prompt
  • Run "DISM.exe /Online /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealth /Source:<Source of clean Windows 10 2004 ISO created using Windows Media Creation Tool> /LimitAccess" in an elevated command prompt
  • Uninstall and reinstall NET framework 3.5 from "Turn Windows features on or off" in Control Panel
  • Manually download the specific update from the Microsoft Update Catalog and install it
  • Stop the Windows Update service and delete the Windows Update cache located in "%SystemRoot%\SoftwareDistrubution", then restart the service

Obviously, none of these worked so I'm looking for any other solutions to this problem. Any help is appreciated.

Windows for home | Windows 10 | Windows update

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  1. Anonymous
    2020-10-16T08:24:04+00:00

    I believe now that this installation bug will not be fixed in subsequent Cumulative Updates.

    So the only remedy is a clean install ( with or without keeping apps and data)  or an in place upgrade. Both require downloading the latest build using Media Creation Tool and that still is Windows 2004 for now. 

    Personally I will wait for the the 20H2 build to become available for download because the current build on my PC is already 2004 which is exactly the build choking at these cumulative updates.

    This maybe explains the fact that re-installing 2004 does not always solve the issue at hand.

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  2. Anonymous
    2020-10-16T04:27:41+00:00

    Agreed

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  3. Anonymous
    2020-10-16T03:01:20+00:00

    They have only done it this way once before. There was speculation that this approach might have had something to do with aligning the Windows and Azure release schedules.

    I think they feel that the impact on business users will be minimized by only having one major Windows version upgrade per year, instead of two.

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  4. Anonymous
    2020-10-16T02:46:00+00:00

    I believe the thought behind installing 20H2 this way is to remove download time by gradually downloading the new features overtime?

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  5. Anonymous
    2020-10-16T02:43:44+00:00

    As much as I'd love to believe the issue started with the August update, I was able to install the August update with no issues. The update failing is only occuring for certain users, and this is the more confusing part of it. We don't know if it is system specific, or whether a part of the OS got corrupted (thus a repair install being able to fix it). This to me is the most irritating part because if you don't know anything for sure, you can't reproduce the situation and you can't troubleshoot the issue without firing random shots.

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