Windows 10 is the latest version of Windows available in the market and is probably the best one so far. It has a user friendly interface that’s quite easy to use and it suffers from fewer issues when compared to the previous version of Windows. Updates to this operating system are automatically downloaded and installed into your computer whether you like it or not. There are instances however when your computer has detected an update available but it is not downloading and installing it. In this latest installment of our troubleshooting series we will tackle the windows 10 won’t update issue.
How To Fix The Windows 10 Won’t Update Issue
Before proceeding with the recommended troubleshooting steps listed below it’s best to restart your computer as this will usually fix issues caused by a minor software glitch.
Run the Windows Update Troubleshooter
One of the quickest ways to fix this issue is to let the Windows Update Troubleshooter find out what’s causing the problem. You can download this tool from the Microsoft website. Take note that there is a version for Windows 10 and another version for Windows 7 and 8. Make sure to get the correct version. Run the troubleshooter then when it’s done restart your computer. Check if the Windows 10 won’t update issue still occurs.
Free up disk space
Sometimes the problem can be caused by insufficient disk space in your computer. To check if this is what’s causing the problem you should free up some space in your computer hard drive. One way to do this is by running the Disk Cleanup tool.
- Right-click the Start menu of Windows 10 and choose Run, and input diskmgmt.msc in the box. Then click the OK or hit Enter to continue.
- Enter the main interface of Disk Management. Then choose the system drive and choose Properties from the context menu.
- Click the Disk Clean-up to continue.
- Disk Clean-up will take a few minutes to calculate the free space.
- Tick the files needing to be deleted.
- Click OK to continue.
- You can see a popup message “Are you sure you want to permanently delete these files” and click Delete Files to continue.
Check if the Windows 10 won’t update issue still occurs.
Remove Third-party Security Software
There are instances when your computer is not getting any updates because of a third party security software installed. This software might be preventing any changes to be made in your computer thus preventing the updates from installing. To check if this is what’s causing the problem you should try to disable or uninstall the security software.
- Right-click the Start menu, then choose Control Panel.
- Click Programs and Features
- Choose the third-party software needing to be uninstalled then right-click it and choose Uninstall to continue
- Restart your computer.
Check if the Windows 10 won’t update issue still occurs.
Run the Windows Update utility manually
Although Windows 10 is designed to automatically get updates sometimes a software glitch will prevent it from doing so. You will need to run the Windows Update utility manually to check what’s causing the problem.
- Launch Settings app from the Windows 10 Start Menu or press Windows Key + I key together and click Update & Security.
- A pop-up window will appear. If you see the Fix Issues button then click on it.
- You can also click the Advanced options to know more information. It is recommended to choose Automatic.
- Restart your computer after all the steps have finished.
Check if the Windows 10 won’t update issue still occurs.
Make sure all Services about Windows Update are Running
One of the reasons why this issue will occur is if one or more services connected to the Windows Update are not running. You will need to make sure that all of these related services are running.
- Right-click the Start button of Windows and choose Run or press Windows + R keys. Then input services.msc in the box and click OK to continue.
- In the popup window, choose Windows Update and right-click, and then choose Properties.
- In the popup window, set the Startup type as Automatic. If the Service Status is stopped, click Start to start it, and then click Apply and OK to confirm it.
- Locate and right-click Background Intelligent Transfer Service (BITS), then choose Properties. Here set Startup type as Automatic, and make sure the Service Status is Running. Then click OK to continue.
- Locate and right-click Cryptographic Service and choose Properties. Then set Startup type as Automatic. Then repeat the process to finish the setting.
- Restart your computer.
Check if the Windows 10 won’t update issue still occurs.
Restart Windows Update Service by the Command Prompt
If the issue still persists, then you can try to restart the Windows update services from the command prompt.
- Right-click the Start menu of Windows 10 or press Windows key + X key together, then choose Command Prompt(Admin).
- In the popup window, type the following command and press Enter after each command. Wait for each process to finish before continuing to the next one.
net stop wuauserv
net stop cryptSvc
net stop bits
net stop msiserver
ren C:\Windows\SoftwareDistribution SoftwareDistribution.old
ren C:\Windows\System32\catroot2 catroot2.old
net start wuauserv
net start cryptSvc
net start bits
net start msiserver
- Close the Command Prompt and restart your computer.
Check if the Windows 10 won’t update issue still occurs.