9 Best Ways to Fix Windows 10 Update Error

Windows 10 continues to be on the fastest growth trajectory of any Windows release to date. Don’t read all the negative rumors about Windows spying on you or violating your privacy. There are always legitimate reasons behind the upgrade like better performance, new features, superior user experience and more. However, you may encounter Windows 10 update error during the process.

Microsoft delivers major Windows 10 updates every six months. Depending on the update size and location, Windows 10 updates take time and any kind of update or installation process frustrates users after long hours.

If you frequently encounter Windows 10 update error on your PC or laptop, you have come to the right place. In this post, we are going to talk about the nine best ways to fix Windows 10 update errors.

1. Check Internet Connection

If you are not connected to the Internet, you cannot download and install the update.

Open the web browser and try to query on Google, you will notice if the internet connection is working properly.

2. Have Enough Space on Device

As I mentioned above, Windows 10 updates are large in size and thus require free storage on PC or laptop for successful completion.

On average, your device needs at least 16GB of free space to upgrade to a 32-bit operating system or 32GB of free space for a 64-bit operating system. You can delete irrelevant files or use cloud storage like OneDrive or Google Drive to free up local storage.

Follow the steps below to free up space on your Windows device.

Stage 1: Open settings. Click System and then select Storage.

Step 2: Under the “Local Disk C:” section, click on the Temporary files section.

Stage 3: Select the items you want to clean to free up space.

Step 4: Click the remove files button.

You can free up some storage space so that your computer has enough free space to download the Windows update service.

3. Pause Windows Updates

Here’s an interesting trick that’s a little counter-intuitive. If you are dealing with issues downloading updates, Pausing and Resuming Windows updates may fix it.

To pause and resume updates in Windows 10, use these steps:

Stage 1: Open Settings and go to Windows Updates.

Step 2: Click the Pause updates button for 7 days.

Stage 3: Restart your device.

Step 4: Open Settings and go to Windows Update. Click the Resume Updates button.

After completing these steps, try checking for updates again.

This is much easier and less stressful than deleting the SoftwareDistribution directory, which is my next suggestion.

4. Use the Windows Update Troubleshooter

Windows offers a troubleshooter that can diagnose and fix a wide variety of Windows update and installation problems.

If you encounter a problem or error (for example, 0x80070020, 0x80240438, 0xC19001E2, 0x80070424, 0x80242006, 0x8007000E, 0x80D02002, 0x80070070, 0x80096004, 0x80080005, 0x8007000D, or 0x80240034), you can use a Windows troubleshooting steps. Update on your setup.

Stage 1: Open settings. Next, select Update & Security.

Step 2: Under the Additional troubleshooter section, select Windows Update.

Stage 3: Click the Run the troubleshooter button.

Step 4: Click the close button.

Once you have completed all the steps, the troubleshooter will diagnose and find problems with Windows updates. After that, you can update your device without any hassle.

5. Reboot Device

Sometimes a simple restart of the system can resolve the Windows 10 update error on the device.

Use these steps to restart your device:

Stage 1: Open Start.

Step 2: Click the power options menu.

Stage 3: Click the Restart button.

After completing the steps, try updating your device again from the Windows Update settings page.

6. Start the Windows Update Service

The Windows Update service is designed to handle Windows updates and all their related processes. If the Windows Update service is stopped, error code 0x80070422 may appear when installing Windows updates. Therefore, you should make sure that your Windows Update service is running with the autostart type.

Follow the steps below.

Stage 1: Press the Win + R keys on the keyboard to invoke the Run dialog. Then type service.msc into the box and press Enter.

Step 2: Inside the service window go to Windows Update and double click it.

Stage 3: In the window that opens, select Automatic from the drop-down menu of the Startup Type section. Then click the Start button if the service is stopped.

Step 4: Click the Apply button and select OK to save the changes.

After starting your Windows Update service, you can check if the Windows Update error persists while installing Windows Updates.

7. Remove Extra Hardware

Microsoft’s official troubleshooting guide recommends removing any external storage devices and drivers, slots and other hardware that you may have installed in your device that are not needed for basic functionality.

Now go ahead and try the Windows Update service one more time.

8. Check Device Manager for Errors

If the current drivers are not compatible with the newer version of Windows, it may affect the installation process.

Go through the steps below.

Stage 1: In the search box on the taskbar, select the Start button, type device manager.

Step 2: Select Device Manager from the results.

Stage 3: In the window that opens, search for any device with a yellow exclamation mark next to it (you may need to select each category to switch to the device list).

Step 4: Press and hold (or right-click) the device name and select Update or Uninstall Driver Software to fix errors.

9. Check Windows Update Later

There are over a billion Windows 10 devices out there. When Microsoft releases Windows 10 update for all devices, millions of users are requesting the latest update of their Windows servers. The app is jamming servers sometimes and you may encounter Windows 10 update error on your device.

In such cases, you have no choice but to wait a few hours to use the Windows update service.

Keep Your Windows Device Updated

It’s always important to keep your Windows 10 device up to date. However, the update process is not smooth for all users. If you encounter Windows 10 update error on your device, review the above troubleshooting guide and fix the issues. Let us know which trick worked for you in the comments section below.

Next: You can also update Windows 10 offline. Read the post below to learn how to easily update Windows 10 offline.