Microsoft Fixes Borked Windows 10 Update

Microsoft Fixes Borked Windows 10 Update

Microsoft has issued a script that fixes a borked cumulative update for Windows 10 that gets stuck in endless loop of failed installed attempts. We also have some clarity, finally, on which users are impacted by this bug.

As you may recall, Brad reported last week that KB3194496 was causing problems for some Windows 10 users. The issue? It wouldn’t install but would install get stuck in an endless loop of failed install attempts.

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“The update, when it does fail, is causing some machines to restart, often multiple times, as Windows 10 attempts to remove the failed update,” he explained. “Worse, after a restart, the file will attempt to install again resulting in the loop of failed install, reboot, re-install and failure again.”

The biggest mystery was that this issue only impacted some users. Many were able to successfully install KB3194496, as with most other cumulative updates.

Well, today we know the reason. And, better, we have a fix.

According to Microsoft, an issue KB3194496 only impacted “a small number of customers in the Windows Insider Program that were running a previous build of the OS.” In other words, this bug impacted people who had previously installed a Windows 10 Insider Preview build but then later reverted to the shipping version of Windows 10 version 1607 on that PC.

The fix is available in the form of a new update, KB3197794, which you can download from the Microsoft web site. Obviously, if you’re up to date and everything is working properly, there’s no need to install this update. But if you’re stuck in that endless borked install loop, this should do the trick.

Microsoft first provided information about this fix to ZDNet. For some reason. Hey, guys: Next time you fix something, tell the world. Just a thought.

 

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Conversation 24 comments

  • 1485

    06 October, 2016 - 7:05 am

    <p>Several day’s ago someone posted the complete fix.&nbsp;It was deleting a folder and in the registry 1 key. Then it would install.<br />But I am disappointed that Microsoft could not detect that failed update and&nbsp;tryed to reinstall it anyway instead of marking it as failed and waited for a new update or a fix.<br /><br />Also it took several day’s to create a small script to do it?<br />Come on Microsoft. You can do better.<br /><br /></p>

    • 180

      06 October, 2016 - 7:19 am

      <blockquote><em><a href="#18945">In reply to Rob Jansen:</a></em></blockquote>
      <p>To a degree, this is good news though. If this affected users who were Insiders, it ought to have only affected those with the technical chops to work through it, rather than the average user.</p>

  • 5400

    06 October, 2016 - 8:10 am

    <p>Not sure why we can’t click on the non premium comments, unless they are all testimonials for making thousands of dollars at home by surfing the internet.</p>

  • 5394

    06 October, 2016 - 8:50 am

    <p>Why can’t both Premium and Non-Premium Comments be combined? Makes it easier to read.</p>
    <p>How will those stuck on the endless loops ever install the fix? I suppose that’s why there’s a problem.</p>
    <p>&nbsp;</p>
    <p>&nbsp;</p>

    • 1777

      06 October, 2016 - 12:23 pm

      <blockquote><em><a href="#18981">In reply to glenn8878:</a></em></blockquote>
      <p>I also agree the comments should be combined.</p>

    • 1044

      Premium Member
      06 October, 2016 - 1:38 pm

      <blockquote><em><a href="#18981">In reply to glenn8878:</a></em></blockquote>
      <p>Personally, I would prefer not to have them combined.&nbsp; This way it’s easier to filter out all the trolls who typically won’t bother to pay for the premium membership.&nbsp; I only have to venture into that cesspool if I’m feeling especially masochistic.</p>

  • 442

    06 October, 2016 - 8:56 am

    <p>I already had a good fix:</p>
    <p>Fix&nbsp;KB3194496 Installation Failure</p>
    <p>To fix the installation problem, you will have to delete a folder in the C drive and an entry in the Windows registry. You must have Admin rights in order to do this.</p>
    <p>Step 1: Open Windows Explorer and go to&nbsp;C:\Windows\System32\Tasks\Microsoft\XblGameSave. Delete the folder &lsquo;XblGameSave&rsquo;</p>
    <p>Step 2: Open the Windows Registry editor and go to:</p>
    <p>HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\WindowsNT\CurrentVersion\Schedule\TaskCache\Tree\Microsoft\XblGameSave.</p>
    <p>Delete the&nbsp;XblGameSave key.</p>
    <p>Step 3: Restart your PC and run the update again. It should install without further problems.</p>
    <p>Works like a charm</p>

    • 180

      06 October, 2016 - 8:40 pm

      <blockquote><em><a href="#18985">In reply to Narg:</a></em></blockquote>
      <p>Hilariously, the fix appears to be a series of Powershell commands, wrapped in an MSI, which does just this.</p>

  • 5234

    06 October, 2016 - 9:26 am

    <p>This doesn’t explain the same constant rebooting that people with the Chinese IME are facing with this same update. &nbsp;Someone should be fired over the quality of this update, or just AU in general.</p>
    <p>Get Linus after them!</p>

  • 5610

    06 October, 2016 - 9:28 am

    <p>"only impacted &ldquo;a small number of customers in the Windows Insider Program that were running a previous build of the OS.&rdquo;</p>
    <p>Well thats not at all true, i had more than a few customers that were certainly not insiders, experiencing this issue.</p>
    <p>JF</p>

    • 6176

      06 October, 2016 - 1:22 pm

      <blockquote><em><a href="#18998">In reply to JimmyFal:</a></em></blockquote>
      <p>This issue has effected me on a Surface Pro 3 that has never had a Windows Insider Build installed on it.</p>

  • 6087

    06 October, 2016 - 9:31 am

    <p>Well, on the two computers I have that ran into the AU problem (but were fixed with reboots), they <em>never</em> had an&nbsp;Windows 10 Installer Preview build previously installed and then later&nbsp;reverted to the shipping version of Windows 10 1607. Mmmmmmm.</p>

    • 4009

      06 October, 2016 - 9:42 am

      <blockquote><em><a href="#18999">In reply to Geoworker:</a></em></blockquote>
      <p>I have run into the issue on several computers that did not have the preview build.</p>

  • 6163

    06 October, 2016 - 10:19 am

    <p>I have no earlier Insider Preview Build. My machine just installed th ed updates that Microsoft forced on us. The computer boots in an endless loop of Login, Desktop, then reboot. Safe Mode doesn’t even help because I can’t get any Internet access, nor does Windows Explorer work anymore either. Everything worked fin until the Anniversary Update! I read in some other posts that it might affect my machine because I have Windows running from an SD drive and a second drive for storage of data.</p>

  • 5504

    06 October, 2016 - 11:44 am

    <p>After my daughters laptop was updated a few days ago (not insider build) her PIN was no longer recognized. Now the option to set a PIN is no longer in settings. There’s supposed to be a work-around that involves deleting a system file, but I’m not really interested in going down that rabbit-hole.</p>

  • 5577

    06 October, 2016 - 12:19 pm

    <p>If they’re going to software as a service then they need to get a lot better at the "service" side of things.</p>

    • 5234

      06 October, 2016 - 2:15 pm

      <blockquote><em><a href="#19047">In reply to Winner:</a></em></blockquote>
      <p>"We don’t need to service software – the software is the service!"</p>

  • 5637

    06 October, 2016 - 2:03 pm

    <p>I had this issue on a laptop previously enrolled in the insider program. Worked like a charm.&nbsp;</p>

  • 4690

    Premium Member
    06 October, 2016 - 2:21 pm

    <p><em>hmmm. Insider track? I ran into this problem on a machine that never had an insider install on it.&nbsp;</em></p>

  • 5566

    06 October, 2016 - 5:40 pm

    <p>I’m on the slow ring and KB3194496 failed 3 times.</p>

  • 351

    Premium Member
    06 October, 2016 - 7:32 pm

    <p>My Surface Pro 3 has this problem, but I’m still on the Insider Preview.&nbsp; I’m on the Slow Ring, but I think I switched it to that after my first evening of this update failing multiple times, hoping that it was an update associated with the Fast Ring.&nbsp; Anyway, there explanation doesn’t make sense since I’m an Insider Preview user with this problem.</p>

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