Unable to update

Sometimes you have to be a little wary of Windows error messages - many occasions users have been chasing their tails trying to fix an error based on what is/was shown on the screen only to find it has nothing to do with the problem. I call them erro messages of last resort ... Windows can't specifically identify the problem so pops up the next bext thing it thinks of from the roor message database

After all that, your problem clearly lies with lack of space. Windows needs additional storage space to perform the update process. Normally the temporary files are deleted once complete, but this is far from perfect.

There is a certain amount of responsibility on computer users/owners to conduct maintenance tasks from time to time, including clearing out the drive. This is one task that comes under the common called terminology "house keeping"

Run the built in disk clean-up option. Right-click on the C: drive to select the clean up. Firstly, just do the general cleanup - tick EVERYTHING to delete. Then repeat the right-click cleanup option but this time choose the systems files cleanup option. Repeat the process by again ticking everything.

Just a note, that Build is for Version 1909, 3+ years old. The Version numbers changed, went to twice-yearly Version Upgrades noted as the year, Half the year and which half as in currently is Version 22H2 which incidently is the last Version of Win10 which has an EOL/End of Live of Oct. 14, 2025.

As for space, I had an 11" Dell Notebook with a 32GB drive, couldn't be upgraded about 4-5 years ago as it didn't have the space available and the drive couldn't be changed and use of an External USB drive wasn't allowed then. I try to maintain 20% free space 'just in case'.

You must have at least 20 to 30 G free drive space to to an upgrade as it will save the current on a Windows.old folder in case you want to return to the current version.

Transfer some data (videos and photos) to the external drive. After a successful upgrade run disk cleanup and choose clean system files to delete the old OS and return the videos and photos to the main drive.

Windows can have many issues with low free space on the main drive. It is time to replace it with a bigger drive.

Total 27.8GB

You will absolutely struggle with that. That's the minimum recommended free space for normal use.

The Windows folder alone, never mind installed programs, is typically larger than that.

When a build upgrade occurs, Windows.old is created, for example as Megahertz said. That's pretty much a copy of the existing Windows folder. You have no room for that.

Suggest you consider looking for a new device, assuming the disk in your PC - whatever that may be- no specs given- can't be upgraded.

Scorpanicus said:

I've deleted ....

Deleted??? or Uninstalled?

I've plugged a 186GB external drive in as that was given as an option to produce more space for installation

Not sure who would have given you that advice, but an external drive will only provide more space for your personal files, and not for any system files and/or installed programs.

Where are you getting your figures from about the size of the disks/drives being used, and the amount of storage space used/free??

What is the model of your Lenovo think pad??

EDIT I'm wondering if the OP has a partitioned main drive, one partition for OS and one for personal files, and is not aware of or using the partition space for the latter??

Or Optane perhaps? Or a SSHD? (thinking of the small disk/SSD in both cases). Said to be a notepad, not a tablet...

Agreed, we really need some detail on the disks and layout.
@scorpianus - click 'My Computers' below my post and add specs:
- make/model of laptop, specs of disks in it.
- screenshot of Disk Management
(ideally this would be a screenshot using a 3rd party partition manager e.g, Minitool Partition Wizard as Disk Management doesn't show all, but you have almost no free space).

My Lenovo- Disk Management:

Minitool PW