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