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The Windows Update feature, while an immensely important one, can be a source of pain sometimes. Users have complained that at times Windows Update simply stalls at 0% when downloading and refuses to budge forward.

Are you encountering this issue as well? The good news is that you can relax because in this we’ll show you five simple fixes to resolve this problem for once and for all.

Solution #1 – Run Troubleshooter

The good thing about Windows operating system is that it usually includes a troubleshooter, which can prove handy when in distress. You can use the inbuilt troubleshooter in Windows 7 to flick off this pesty error.

Here are the steps to follow:

• Click the Start menu. Next, type “troubleshoot” in the start search bar. Click Troubleshooting in the displayed results.
• Navigate to the System and Security section inside the Troubleshooting window, click Fix problems Windows Update
• Click the Next button in the Windows Update window

Solution #2 – Reset Windows Update Service

This is the built-in service that allows Windows users to use Windows Update. In case you encounter a problem with Windows Update, we recommend you can reset this service to check if that does the job.

Here are the steps to follow:

• Simultaneously press Windows key + R key on the keyboard. In the Run dialog box, type msc and then click the OK button
• In the Services window, browse through the list on your right to locate Windows Update Single-click on this service and then click Restart in left pane.
• Wait for the restart of Windows Update to complete

Solution #3 – Update Windows Update Agent

An inbuilt agent program, Windows Update Agent helps identify updates that your computer requires and then download them. Many users have reported they were able to fix Windows Updates not downloading issue by updating Windows Update Agent, so it’s definitely worth a try.

You first need to download and install the program and then update it. You can download it from Microsoft website.

Important: You need to have Service Pack 1 (SP1) installed on your Windows 7 computer before you can update Windows Agent. Refer to the Microsoft official guide for downloading and installing Windows 7 Service Pack 1.

Once you have Windows 7 SP1, perform the following steps:

• Go to Microsoft support website
• Click Stand-alone packages for Windows 7 SP1 and Windows Server 2008 R2 SP1. Now choose the installation package that is appropriate for your Windows operating system and then download it and save it to a suitable location on your computer
• Now open this file and follow onscreen instructions to complete installation
• Once the program has been installed, reboot Windows. Check if the problem is fixed

Solution #4 – Download Updates Manually

What if Windows Update isn’t able to download these Updates? What should you do then?

It is very much possible download updates manually and install them. This way you can keep your Windows 7 system up-to-date and fix the titled error.

Here are the steps to follow:

• Click the Start menu
• Type “update” in the start search bar
• Now click Windows Update in the displayed results
• Choose updates available. Windows will now show you a list of updates that are available for download
• Go through the list and check the update code (You should look for code starting with KB) of Windows updates you need to download
• Now head to Windows Download Center and look for the code you need
• In the search results, you may see multiple Downloads Click the result that you need to download
• Now click the Download button to start the downloading process and save the downloaded file in an appropriate location on your PC
• Once the download process is complete, open the file and follow the instructions on your screen to complete the installation process

This way you can install all important system updates one by one. For sure, installing multiple updates manually is likely to require a lot of time, but the tradeoff is that it can fix the titled error and ensure the smooth functioning of your Windows computer.

Solution #5 – Perform a clean boot

In case the problem persists in spite of completing the proposed solutions above, check if any particular is interfering with Windows Update.

You will need to perform a clean boot to do that. This basically means starting Windows with as few drivers and startup programs as possible. This way you can locate the application that is triggering the issue.

Here are the steps to follow:

• Simultaneously press Windows key and R key on your keyboard
• In the run dialog box, type msconfig and then press the OK button
• In the System Configuration box, click the General tab. The default setting here is Normal startup. What you need to do is choose Selective startup and unselect the checkbox in the front of Load startup items
• Now click the Service tab (third from left)
• Select the box in the front of Hide all Microsoft services. Now click Disable all (It is necessary that you first hide all Microsoft services and then click the Disable all button. Otherwise, you may disable some secure services, which in turn can trigger unexpected and severe consequences.)
• Click the OK button
• Reboot Windows. Now your system will boot into clean boot state. Once Windows has booted, check if you are able to download updates the normal way, that is, through Windows Update. In case you are, use the steps listed above to enable the services separately, that is, one by one. This will help you identify the application that is causing the problem. Once you have identified the application that’s at fault, you can either uninstall or disable it.

Important: Once you have finished troubleshooting, don’t forget to restore the original System Configuration settings.

 

 

 

Microsoft offers regular updates to make Windows more secure and fix any bugs that affect the performance of the Windows system. Though Windows updates are designed to run smooth, there is no guarantee that this will be the case. Many Windows users have encountered error 80072EE2 while attempting to update Windows. Look at the reference image shown below.

We have provided you with two simple fixes that can resolve the Windows update error 80072EE2 and update Windows without any hiccups. Here are the solutions you need to try.

Solution One – Run Windows Update Troubleshooter

Windows has an inbuilt update troubleshooter that can fix issues related to Windows updates. When you run the Window update troubleshooter, it will detect any problems in updating Windows and resolve the issue. Here are the steps you need to follow.

• Click Start and type Control Panel in the search box
• Click Control Panel from the list of results
• In the control panel window, scroll down and click Troubleshooting

• Under System and Security, click Fix problems with Windows Update

• Click Next

• You should see Windows Update Troubleshooter launched on the screen. The troubleshooter will detect problems and fix them

• If the Windows Update Troubleshooter is not able to fix the Windows update error 80072EE2, try the next solution.

Solution Two – Delete problematic Windows update content and registry keys

 Corrupt Windows updates files and registry keys could be the reason behind Windows update error 80072EE2. To resolve this problem, you need to delete problematic Windows update content and registry keys.

Deleting wrong registry keys can cause a serious problem that can make Windows unstable or even non-bootable in some cases. We recommend to backup registry before making any changes.

Here are the steps to make registry backup.

• Click Start and type regedit in the search box

• Click Registry Editor from the list of results
• In the Registry Editor window, click File -> Export

• Type an appropriate name for the Registry backup and click Save

Now that you have backed up Registry, you can go ahead and perform the troubleshooting steps given below

• Press Windows logo key and R simultaneously on the keyboard to bring up the Run command console
• In the Run command box, type msc and click OK

• Find Windows Update service. Right-click on it and click Stop on the context menu

• Open C:\Windows\SoftwareDistribution folder and delete all contents in the folder

• Come back to the Services window and right-click on Windows Update Service and click Start on the context menu

• Open Registry Editor. You can refer the steps given above to open the Registry Editor
• In Registry Editor, navigate to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\WindowsUpdate.

• In the right-pane, you will find keys WUServer and WUStatusServer

• Right-click on each key and click Delete
• Go back to Services window and see if the Windows Update Service is started.
• If the Windows Service is stopped, right-click on it and click Start

Registry Errors: Causes and Solution