How to Fix Windows Update When It Gets Stuck Downloading

Published 2026-10-16 · Marion Remote Fix

Windows Update shows a download in progress — stuck at 0 percent, 45 percent, 99 percent, or some other number — and it has not moved in 30 minutes, an hour, or longer. The progress bar sits frozen. Sometimes the update eventually fails with an error code. Sometimes it just hangs indefinitely. Stuck Windows Updates are one of the most common problems on both Windows 10 and 11, and the cause is usually a corrupted update cache, a conflicting process, or a network issue between your computer and Microsoft's update servers.

Before you start: wait long enough

Large cumulative updates and feature updates can take a long time to download and install — especially on slower internet connections or older hardware. Before assuming the update is stuck:

  • A cumulative update (500 MB to 2 GB) should download within 10 to 30 minutes on a typical broadband connection. If it has been stuck at the same percentage for more than 30 minutes with no disk or network activity, it is likely stuck
  • A feature update (3 to 5 GB) can take 30 minutes to an hour to download. The installation phase after download can take another 30 to 60 minutes on older hardware, during which the percentage may appear to freeze at certain points (particularly around 30 percent, 48 percent, and 75 percent) — these are normal pauses while the system processes large file operations
  • Check for activity: look at the network activity indicator in Task Manager (Ctrl+Shift+Esc, Performance tab, Ethernet or Wi-Fi) or watch the hard drive activity light on the computer. If there is network or disk activity, the update is still working even if the percentage is not changing

Fix 1: Restart and try again

The simplest fix for a stuck update is restarting the computer and letting Windows Update try again from where it left off:

  1. Restart the computer (Start menu, Power, Restart — not Shut down, which on Windows 10 uses Fast Startup and may not clear the issue)
  2. After restart, go to Settings, Windows Update, and click Check for updates
  3. Windows resumes the download or starts it fresh, often completing successfully on the second attempt

If the update was stuck during the installation phase (after downloading, during the Preparing to install or Installing step), do not force-shutdown the computer by holding the power button — this can corrupt the partially installed update and cause boot problems. Wait for the progress to complete or fail on its own, then restart normally.

Fix 2: Run the Windows Update troubleshooter

Windows includes a built-in troubleshooter that identifies and fixes common update problems automatically:

  1. Settings, System, Troubleshoot, Other troubleshooters (Windows 11) or Settings, Update and Security, Troubleshoot, Additional troubleshooters (Windows 10)
  2. Click Run next to Windows Update
  3. The troubleshooter checks for pending updates, resets the update cache, restarts update-related services, and clears stuck update states. Follow any prompts it provides
  4. After the troubleshooter completes, restart and check for updates again

Fix 3: Clear the Windows Update cache

Windows stores downloaded update files in a cache folder. If files in this cache are corrupted, the update hangs trying to read them. Clearing the cache forces Windows to re-download fresh copies:

  1. Open Command Prompt as administrator (search cmd, right-click, Run as administrator)
  2. Stop the update services by running these commands one at a time: net stop wuauserv then net stop cryptSvc then net stop bits then net stop msiserver
  3. Rename the cache folders (this preserves them as backup while forcing Windows to create fresh ones): run ren C:\Windows\SoftwareDistribution SoftwareDistribution.old and then ren C:\Windows\System32\catroot2 catroot2.old
  4. Restart the services: net start wuauserv then net start cryptSvc then net start bits then net start msiserver
  1. Close Command Prompt, go to Settings, Windows Update, and click Check for updates

The update downloads fresh files from scratch. This is the most effective fix for chronically stuck updates and resolves the problem in the majority of cases.

Fix 4: Free up disk space

Windows Update needs free disk space to download and unpack update files. If the system drive (usually C:) is nearly full, updates stall during download or fail during installation:

  • Check available space: open File Explorer, look at the C: drive. Less than 10 GB free can cause update problems. Feature updates may need 20 GB or more
  • Free space quickly: Settings, System, Storage, Temporary files. Check the boxes for Windows Update Cleanup, Delivery Optimization Files, Temporary files, and Recycle Bin. Click Remove files
  • Move large files (videos, downloads, game installations) to another drive
  • Run Disk Cleanup as administrator for deeper cleaning: search Disk Cleanup, click Clean up system files, select all categories, click OK

Fix 5: Check your internet connection

Update downloads can stall due to network issues between your computer and Microsoft's servers:

  • Metered connection: If your network is set as a metered connection, Windows limits update downloads. Settings, Network and Internet, select your connection, toggle off Metered connection
  • VPN or proxy: VPN connections and proxy servers can interfere with Windows Update's ability to reach Microsoft servers. Disconnect VPN temporarily and try the update again
  • DNS issues: Flush the DNS cache: open Command Prompt as administrator, run ipconfig /flushdns. If updates continue to stall, try changing DNS to Google (8.8.8.8 and 8.8.4.4) or Cloudflare (1.1.1.1): Settings, Network and Internet, your adapter, DNS server assignment, Manual, enter the DNS addresses
  • Bandwidth: If someone else on the network is streaming, gaming, or downloading large files simultaneously, the update may not get enough bandwidth to progress. Windows Update is designed to use idle bandwidth — competing traffic can make it appear stuck when it is just downloading very slowly

Fix 6: Repair system files

Corrupted Windows system files can prevent updates from installing correctly:

  1. Open Command Prompt as administrator
  2. Run DISM /Online /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealth — this downloads fresh copies of corrupted system files from Microsoft. It can take 15 to 30 minutes
  3. After DISM completes, run sfc /scannow — this verifies and repairs additional system files
  4. Restart and try Windows Update again

Fix 7: Download the update manually

If Windows Update cannot download a specific update automatically, you can download and install it directly from Microsoft's Update Catalog:

  1. In Windows Update, note the KB number of the stuck update (it appears as KB followed by numbers, like KB5034441)
  2. Open a browser and go to the Microsoft Update Catalog (catalog.update.microsoft.com)
  3. Search for the KB number
  4. Download the version that matches your Windows edition and architecture (x64 for 64-bit, which is standard on modern computers)
  5. Run the downloaded file to install the update manually, bypassing the Windows Update download mechanism

This is particularly useful for updates that repeatedly fail through the normal Windows Update process — the catalog download is a direct download that avoids whatever network or cache issue is blocking the automatic process.

Fix 8: Reset Windows Update components completely

If individual fixes have not worked, a complete reset of all Windows Update components clears every possible stuck state:

  1. Open Command Prompt as administrator
  2. Run these commands in sequence: net stop wuauserv, net stop cryptSvc, net stop bits, net stop msiserver, net stop appidsvc. Then delete cached downloads: Del "%ALLUSERSPROFILE%\Application Data\Microsoft\Network\Downloader\*.*". Rename the cache folders: ren C:\Windows\SoftwareDistribution SoftwareDistribution.old2 and ren C:\Windows\System32\catroot2 catroot2.old2. Reset network: netsh winsock reset and netsh winhttp reset proxy. Restart services: net start bits, net start wuauserv, net start appidsvc, net start cryptsvc, net start msiserver
  1. Restart the computer and try Windows Update again

This stops all update-related services, clears the download cache, resets network configuration that may affect update connectivity, and restarts everything fresh.

Specific error codes

If the update fails with an error code rather than just hanging, the code points to the specific problem:

  • 0x80070002 or 0x80070003: Missing or corrupted update files. Clear the update cache (Fix 3) and retry
  • 0x80073712: Corrupted system files. Run DISM and SFC (Fix 6) before retrying the update
  • 0x800f081f: System files could not be repaired. The component store is damaged. DISM with the /Source option pointing to a Windows ISO may be needed
  • 0x80244018 or 0x80D02002: Network connection issue between your computer and the update servers. Check internet, VPN, proxy, and firewall settings
  • 0x80070070: Not enough disk space. Free up space on the system drive (Fix 4)

Remote Windows Update fix

Marion Remote Fix resolves stuck Windows Updates remotely — clearing update caches, repairing system files, installing updates manually, and resetting update components during the remote session.

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