Windows 10 Update Problems with KB5003637

Hello everyone,

I found this forum while having an update problem with Windows 10 (Build 19042.867) and hope that someone here can help me fixing it. I cannot install the current Windows 10 update KB5003637. The update installs and reaches 100% but then stops with the error code 0x800f081f and unwinds the update process.

I tried to analyze the error and found several ressources online that point to different possible solutions.
First, running 'sfc /scannow' and 'dism /online /cleanup-image /restorehealth' and retry the update - no success, same error.

Then I found a few reports that this update produces this error when Microsoft Edge is uninstalled. Indeed I uninstalled several Windows 10 Apps using the PowerShell's Remove-AppxPackage command. I also uninstalled the Edge Browser, still this is impossible using the PowerShell. For this, I used

setup.exe --uninstall --system-level --verbose-logging --force-uninstall

in the 'C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft\Edge\Application\<Version>\Installer' directory and thereafter deleted the Legacy Edge Browser by using

install_wim_tweak.exe /o /c Microsoft-Windows-Internet-Browser-Package /r

called by a batch file to uninstall Edge Legacy that I found somewhere online.
So indeed, both Edge versions are removed from my Windows installation. So might this cause this error?

Anyway, for further testing I tried to reinstall Edge. Reinstalling Edge Chromium works fine, but the update still does not work.
Additionally, I also tried to reinstall Edge Legacy. I copied the package source directory 'C:\Windows\SystemApps\Microsoft.MicrosoftEdge_8wekyb3d8bbwe' from a working Windows 10 installation, thereafter running in PowerShell

Get-AppXPackage -AllUsers -Name Microsoft.MicrosoftEdge | Foreach {Add-AppxPackage -DisableDevelopmentMode -Register "$($_.InstallLocation)\AppXManifest.xml" -Verbose}

generally works at first but stops with an IOException. I did not find out any more whats going wrong.

I know that it is possible to install missing Windows components by using a fresh installation of Windows 10 that keeps all applications and settings, I think this behaves similarly to certain major updates that leave a 'Windows.old' directory. This might be the way to go if nothing else helps, but whats the best way to proceed here? Wait until the update might be fixed by itself? A repair installation seems a bit too much for me here, I think its a pretty simple issue once one know whats going wrong...

Appreciating any comments. Thanks in advance!

Thanks for the fast, competent and comprehensive response, great!
I checked the links and also tried to find Tekkie Boy's solution but did not find it. Thus I did an upgrade repair and it seems to Work, great!
Is this upgrade repair pretty much the same as installing a new major update the leaves a Windows.Old directory or is it something different? It seems to be a pretty useful thing...

Thanks for this information. It seemed to me that this repair upgrade also strips out some stuff, i.e. somehow even cleans the system. Some USB hardware reinstalled the drivers after the update, interesting.
For the moment I think everything is fixed again, still I'm update my question if I encounter any further issues.
Thanks a lot!

I have started win10 and inserted the USB. I started file manager and ran setup. The USB has been blinking for 50 minutes or so, but nothing has appeared on the screen. Is there a problem?
JC

The USB has on it Win10 that I created a month or so ago using the MS Media Creation Tool. I can create a new copy. I now have v20??. Would it be OK to use v21H1?

JC

Thank you so much. I now have a brand new 21H1 USB and will upgrade my 20H2 system in the next day or two. I'll check back when that is done.

JC

- - - Updated - - -

Well, that didn't work. I clicked setup and it started thru the process. It got to the part where it said it needed to check for updates. It did that for a few seconds, then said it needed to reboot, then instantly said something to the effect of it didn't think my laptop could be upgraded. I tried two more times actually doing the reboot, no change. This is rapidly becoming an advertisement for people to switch to linux.

Should I be doing a full re-install? And will I have any problems with re-registering if I do that?

JC