How to I stop MoUsoCoreWorker.exe from running or get it to run & end?

BazzaG said:

It's back.

I had been doing ad-hoc powercfg /requests over the last few days and great nothing listed.

Powered on the PC this morning, then I had to leave to help my elderly father do some shopping, when I came back the PC was still awake.

powercfg /requests now has MoUsoCoreWorker.exe listed.

WU has:

2021-02 Cumulative Update Preview for Windows 10 Version 20H2 for x64-based Systems (KB4601382)

listed as an OPTIONAL update and nothing else.

This is ridiculous ...

---

Update...

I decided to reboot my PC to see if that would remove MoUsoCoreWorker.exe. After entering my PIN code, I went to make a cuppa. Upon my return I had a notification in bottom right-hand corner:

"Your device will restart to update outside of active hours" etc. etc.

Opening WU, we now have:

2021-02 Cumulative Update Preview for .NET Framework 3.5 and 4.8 for Windows 10, version 20H2 for x64 (KB4601554)
Status: Pending Restart

This was NOT listed before I rebooted my PC. Given this is a *PREVIEW* release, I did NOT ask Windows to install it or for that matter any other update.

So it's DAMN .NET AGAIN ...

Seems that I have 2 choices:

1. Reset Windows Update & loose my WU history (which for me only goes back to November 2020), or
2. Change WU to how it worked until Win8.1, ie. tell me, but let me choose when.

#2 is my MUCH preferred option and something that I've been meaning to do ... will just have to find the thread here as to how to do so.

Anyway, time to reboot my PC ....

---

Ok straight after rebooting my PC, powercfg /requests now has:

PS C:\Windows\system32> powercfg /requests

DISPLAY: None.

SYSTEM:
[SERVICE] \Device\HarddiskVolume3\Windows\System32\svchost.exe (Schedule)
Windows will execute '\Microsoft\Windows\.NET Framework\.NET Framework NGEN v4.0.30319 64 Critical' scheduled task that requested waking the computer.
[SERVICE] \Device\HarddiskVolume3\Windows\System32\svchost.exe (Schedule)
Windows will execute '\Microsoft\Windows\.NET Framework\.NET Framework NGEN v4.0.30319 Critical' scheduled task that requested waking the computer.

AWAYMODE: None.

EXECUTION: None.

PERFBOOST:
[DRIVER] Legacy Kernel Caller
Power Manager

ACTIVELOCKSCREEN: None.

A quick Google search returns some items dating back to 2013!!!!

A 2nd powercfg /requests & now the above entries are gone.

-----

Looking at this, I *think* I can understand what's happening & what's MS is trying to do. If this normal monthly update then OK; sort of, but this time it was PREVIEW update that shouldn't have installed automagically.

A problem here is that Windows does NOT tell us that it's installing an update BEFORE it does so, nor did it AFTER it partially installed the update. It took a reboot to announce that ANOTHER reboot was required to finish the install.

Read the post I linked to in my previous reply. Also, it is why I keep my Ethernet connection set to 'metered' connection... too many strange things happening in the night otherwise.

BazzaG said:

It's back.

I had been doing ad-hoc powercfg /requests over the last few days and great nothing listed.

Powered on the PC this morning, then I had to leave to help my elderly father do some shopping, when I came back the PC was still awake.

powercfg /requests now has MoUsoCoreWorker.exe listed.

WU has:

2021-02 Cumulative Update Preview for Windows 10 Version 20H2 for x64-based Systems (KB4601382)

listed as an OPTIONAL update and nothing else.

This is ridiculous ...

---

Update...

I decided to reboot my PC to see if that would remove MoUsoCoreWorker.exe. After entering my PIN code, I went to make a cuppa. Upon my return I had a notification in bottom right-hand corner:

"Your device will restart to update outside of active hours" etc. etc.

Opening WU, we now have:

2021-02 Cumulative Update Preview for .NET Framework 3.5 and 4.8 for Windows 10, version 20H2 for x64 (KB4601554)
Status: Pending Restart

This was NOT listed before I rebooted my PC. Given this is a *PREVIEW* release, I did NOT ask Windows to install it or for that matter any other update.

So it's DAMN .NET AGAIN ...

Seems that I have 2 choices:

1. Reset Windows Update & loose my WU history (which for me only goes back to November 2020), or
2. Change WU to how it worked until Win8.1, ie. tell me, but let me choose when.

#2 is my MUCH preferred option and something that I've been meaning to do ... will just have to find the thread here as to how to do so.

Anyway, time to reboot my PC ....

---

Ok straight after rebooting my PC, powercfg /requests now has:

PS C:\Windows\system32> powercfg /requests

DISPLAY: None.

SYSTEM:
[SERVICE] \Device\HarddiskVolume3\Windows\System32\svchost.exe (Schedule)
Windows will execute '\Microsoft\Windows\.NET Framework\.NET Framework NGEN v4.0.30319 64 Critical' scheduled task that requested waking the computer.
[SERVICE] \Device\HarddiskVolume3\Windows\System32\svchost.exe (Schedule)
Windows will execute '\Microsoft\Windows\.NET Framework\.NET Framework NGEN v4.0.30319 Critical' scheduled task that requested waking the computer.

AWAYMODE: None.

EXECUTION: None.

PERFBOOST:
[DRIVER] Legacy Kernel Caller
Power Manager

ACTIVELOCKSCREEN: None.

A quick Google search returns some items dating back to 2013!!!!

A 2nd powercfg /requests & now the above entries are gone.

-----

Looking at this, I *think* I can understand what's happening & what's MS is trying to do. If this normal monthly update then OK; sort of, but this time it was PREVIEW update that shouldn't have installed automagically.

A problem here is that Windows does NOT tell us that it's installing an update BEFORE it does so, nor did it AFTER it partially installed the update. It took a reboot to announce that ANOTHER reboot was required to finish the install.

Hello BazzaG and thank you for your recent updates ......

M$ is starting to piss me off with this shady crap of shoving preview updates up my "grass". Same thing happened to me as you mentioned above, so here are some thoughts and observations.

1. I had "powercfg /requests" showing MoUsoCoreWorker.exe as you reported.
2. I went to WU and paused updates.
3. MoUsoCoreWorker.exe stopped showing in powercfg output
4. Unpaused WU - and immediately checked "powercfg /requests" and nuisance MoUsoCoreWorker.exe was there again.
5. Paused WU and MoUsoCoreWorker.exe stopped appearing in "powercfg /requests" again.

I think I am going to start pausing WU for the maximum 35 days after every patch Tuesday to stop this M$ forced preview updates BS.

So you could say that I'm now going to take a different approach to "chopping the sore arm off" . I prefer to try the "pausing WU" way at this point vs other more draconian measures, which maybe I'll end up having to take.

According to Pause Updates or Resume Updates for Windows Update in Windows 10 - "Starting with Windows 10 build 15002, you can temporarily pause updates from being installed for up to 7 days (Insiders) or 35 days (non Insiders). Some updates, like Windows Defender definition updates, will continue to be installed. "

and that's good, because I still want AV updates. I'm not sure what else the "Some updates" part includes, but will find out soon enough I suppose.

I suspect this forced updates cat and mouse game with M$ will continue.

PS: I have not rebooted yet and now wondering if that preview update has been sneakily downloaded and will install after I reboot. I'm debating clearing WU downloads before rebooting .........

Hello. I have had this problem for long time. I think it appeared after I updated to Windows 2004. Now I have Windows 20H2 and it still persist.
Sometimes it seems gone, just to realize that it comes back a couple of weeks later.
Just today I was able to find out that the problem was the process MoUsoCoreWorker.exe
And I found this thread and also the MS one.

At last, I applied the solution of overwriting in powercfg:

Code:

powercfg /requestsoverride PROCESS MoUsoCoreWorker.exe AWAYMODE SYSTEM DISPLAY EXECUTION

And now it seems fixed.

Someone could say that it is not a good solution... but I want to make the question: why to prevent the computer from going stand-by (sleep) in the first place?
What thing so important could be doing Windows Update that can't be continued in a later time? (even in the case it is working fine)

Also I want to mention a related issue that most of you might be already aware and it is that Windows wakes up the computer at night to do things. Some time ago I configured this for not happening by disabling wake timers in the power plan options.
Many times I had put the computer to stand-by, went to sleep, was already falling asleep just to hear the computer on... these guys at MS seem to want to make everybody lives harder.

Re: the comment that this issue is not common/infrequent, maybe I should buy a lotto ticket, as it's hit 2 out 3 of my PCs

Are we just left with the powercfg override then? sfc and dsim came up clean for me...

smithron99 said:

Re: the comment that this issue is not common/infrequent, maybe I should buy a lotto ticket, as it's hit 2 out 3 of my PCs

Are we just left with the powercfg override then? sfc and dsim came up clean for me...

IMO yes, it seems to be a bug.

BazzaG said:

I suspect MoUsoCoreWorker.exe is added when Windows does a scan for updates

I just checked for updates several times via Windows Update MiniTool and found no MoUsoCoreWorker.exe on Task Manager.

Matthew Wai said:

I just checked for updates several times via Windows Update MiniTool and found no MoUsoCoreWorker.exe on Task Manager.

I should clarify ... Windows does a scan for updates and FINDS an IMPORTANT update.

I've NOT had a problem with MoUsoCoreWorker.exe for the last week (since post #30 above) and I except that it may occur again on patch Tuesday; which for me is really patch Wednesday.

We'll see what happens over the next few days.....

As I understand you checked for updates, rebooted and it was gone. Yes...
But it will eventually appear again. That was the way I handled it before, but it appeared again several times (after a couple of weeks or so).

smithron99 said:

Re: the comment that this issue is not common/infrequent, maybe I should buy a lotto ticket, as it's hit 2 out 3 of my PCs

Are we just left with the powercfg override then? sfc and dsim came up clean for me...

Hello smithron99 and welcome to TF ,
Yes, without using 3rd party apps to block Windows updates: it's either
1. powercfg override
or
2. Windows Update settings -> Advanced options, and pause updates for the maximum 35 days.

I have opted to do the 2nd.

JEB1 said:

As I understand you checked for updates, rebooted and it was gone. Yes...
But it will eventually appear again. That was the way I handled it before, but it appeared again several times (after a couple of weeks or so).

That sounds about right based on my recent experience.

I noticed that just check for updates, M$ will slide in preview updates. I found that unappetizing and have now chosen to pause Windows Updates for 35 days. Before the monthly patch Tuesday, I make a Macrium Reflect full backup of my boot drive, then unpause Windows updates, then I will check for and install the monthly CU and other updates, then pause updates for 35 days again.