Windows 11, version 24H2 won't install

what is mount?

Old mainframe terminology for introducing a drive on a system. If you Google "disk pack" with images. That's your drive. You picked it up and slapped into a unit. The mount was marrying it up.

In this case it's making a pseudo drive so you can "mount" it. Clear as mud. You don't need a DVD drive it makes a pseudo one that is mounted... no heavy lifting. Don't think I've ever lifted one but requested them to be slotted in, in the old days by computer operators. They would love you for it.... snarl look.

what is mount?

I think the real issue with your setup is that, hile its a 'Microsoft' system (Surface) very few machines remain as they were shipped.

We all install programs, tools, etc to do those extra tasks.

Microsoft has no control over that.

Where they did screw up big time was introducing new security/memory integrity rules which all these extra programs/drivers break, without preparing their users for the issues that these would raise.

The update process needed to be much more robust, and helpful in telling people exactly which things were causing the update to bomb out.

Most users would struggle with the extra tools/scans/logs that were needed to diagnose the issues.

My thanks go to ramesh on here who patiently guided me thru these areas.

Great work. If only Microsoft had done that work BEFORE they released the update

I didn't use Ramesh else he'd be overloaded... read many message board posts and learnt to read the log files and the stuff they were asking to see so checked it myself. Really chaotic process of 24h2 since it installs fine on certain PC and laptops fails on others. Had a 75 % success rate on four PCs. That offending driver on that one.

It was one post in 2023 that described the memory integrity check program that was the key that I pulled up by Googling sections of the error log file. It was in there if you knew what it was saying but only the scan identified which driver it was.

You'd think then the Surface equipment would be placed the same at the starting blocks.

Apologies I forgot to mention that my hardware is Surface Pro 9, so MS should already know what drivers my laptop is compatible with and/or what drivers my device needs, I have also upgraded twice (last December 2024) and failed twice so as far as I am concerned this is unacceptable. And accept my apologies again because I did not read your lengthy post because my hardware is from Microsoft and I am expecting all these things you mentioned that I need or do should have been done by Microsoft and not me.

I am very tempted to upgrade to 24H2, can someone from Microsoft confirm that 24h2 is now safe to install, if not what they been doing to get it resolved. I feel like our concerns are just falling into deaf ears and/or blind eyes.

Not many people are technical enough to follow these instructions, the upgrade should be a couple of clicks and then restart and upgrade without any kind of complications.

It is suppose to be by invitation only so if you get the invite appearing then Microsoft have judged it is fine for your hardware / software configuration. Saying that they don't know exactly what programs or drivers you are on. This is where the in release of Windows 11 security tightening can give you a problem. Drivers may be incompatible and lack the security features that they now enforce. Non Microsoft virus programs it can stumble on. When the installation goes wrong you might be on a long road of debugging. This is where the error code given by the ISO upgrade method is helpful to put you in the right ball park but even those errors are not clear. That's why people say wait till circa April but if it's one of those incompatible driver issues of some program you have installed or program itself, Microsoft isn't going to sort that out.

Solutions you find on the net either breakdown into the normal update ones. Stop this, start this, rename etc. Pages of those which is fine if it's the update stumbling as per normal but not if it's the esoteric issues described. The pages of stop, start, rename etc can just be done with an inplace restore of your current system. There is a Windows 11 option for that in 23h2. That effectively sorts out your system if its buggy but won't sort out the issues introduced by Microsoft tightening security in 24h2. That you have to sort out yourself. Solution for those lay in the Insider discussion threads when people were having issues with 24h2 during development. For me my solution lay in there. A duff driver that was known about plus memory integrity of another driver. The first wasn't on my system untill it got upgraded to that, the second was the real one that was stopping the update in the final process. There is a Microsoft program that screens drivers for memory integrity of drivers. Having deleted just one unwanted driver it installed 9 weeks later from start. The first duff driver wasn't an issue until it got introduced, rolled back to get rid of it leaving an Adobe DVD driver as the culprit that was leading to the installation failing. You can get dumped out into the uefi during all of this... the heart rate can increase as you sort out the issues.