Hi, it's not exactly the same problem - your error number, for which thanks, is different.
It's quite a typical error for WU: 0x800f0845
You can try the tutorial on resetting Windows Update I mentioned above.
However I think you may end up resorting to an in-place upgrade repair install.
Have you made any particular changes to the O/S- removed Edge for example?
Noted: your laptop seems to be from around 2019.
Thanks for your response! There are a number of additional points which can be made:
1.) I have not yet done a complete reset of Windows Update, but I did find a reference (can't recall exactly where at this point) to a kind of limited reset, consisting of A.) stopping the Windows Update service (and a few times I also stopped the Windows Update Medic Service if it happened to be running). B.) deleting the contents of the C:\Windows\SoftwareDistribution folder in order to force Windows to download fresh copies of the KB update files. C.) Restarting the Windows Update service and proceeding with another update attempt. Half of the time I also temporarily disabled antiviral software as well. Saw some websites that seemed to accomplish roughly the same end via scripts.
I intend to try a complete reset tomorrow via a promising looking tool, Fix WU Utility, at Repair & Fix Windows Updates with Fix WU Utility .
2.) It is very curious that 3 of 3 computers easily accessible to me do NOT have a service = wuauserv in the services.msc table of Windows 10 services [see attached screenshot].
After much research, I was finally able to find a reliable source which confirmed that Microsoft at some time in the not-too-distant past renamed wuauserv in the services.msc table to "Windows Update" without bothering to tell the general public: https://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/...7-61e716cdb9a8 , In the Windows 10 registry, however, the relevant folder in the registry at HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\ is still called "wuauserv."
3.) My first post did mention that I have already performed an in-place Windows 10 upgrade repair install, using an .iso file directly from the Microsoft web site. This "upgraded" version and build of Windows 10 has suffered from the same problem with KB5041580 as the version and build on my laptop when the difficulty began. Any other ideas?
4.) There have been no significant changes--additions, deletions, or major version changes--to any major OS components like Edge in quite awhile now.
5.) The laptop embroiled in this situation actually was purchased in 2016, but half of its components have been replaced. It has got a new/upgraded wireless network card, an SSD replacement of the original HDD, new RAM, a new primary ventilation fan, and I'll be replacing the motherboard-to-display screen cable in the very new future. Other than an intermittent display issue and this update snafu, it has been running like a top and should easily perform well right up to Microsoft's abandonment of Windows 10, before which time I will be exploring the virtues of Linux Mint.
I think you'll find that utility probably does part of what the tutorial I mentioned does.
Examine the details: - I've found it for you from the searchable tutorial.
Reset Windows Update in Windows 10
May as well try it... it should clear the pending installation, but may not.
Idea: Use the tutorial, then immediately run the troubleshooter to see if that still reports anything is pending.
However, as you've done an in-place upgrade repair install, everything should already be re-registered.
- sorry missed that in the dense string of continuous text. I find lists are easier for follow.. I had to do a search to find it in your text.My first post did mention that I have already performed an in-place Windows 10 upgrade repair install,
That implies you may have previously made changes to the delivered O/S content e.g. removing Edge.There have been no significant changes--additions, deletions, or major version changes--to any major OS components like Edge in quite awhile now.
I seem to recall this error number was previously associated with removing Edge, but that by no means affected all updates.
That said, I might have expected Edge to be reinstated after the in-place upgrade repair install- but MS changes its stance on things like that. And that's just an example (Edge), and not necessarily a factor here- just a thought.
Thanks once again for your responses. Have pretty much exhausted all possibilities, as over the weekend ran both Fix WU utility and the wureset tool (at Reset Windows Update Tool | Troubleshooting for Windows Update | Repair System Files, Registry, and Winsock), which is a very thorough scripted reset of 114 Windows Update components that was last updated in 2023, with no luck. I should also clarify that Edge was NOT REMOVED at any time since its original installation--has been on the machine continuously since then. Rather than continuing to bang my head against a wall, I took the plunge and have eliminated Windows 10 from the machine in question, which is now running Linux Mint, Cinnamon flavor. It will entail something like learning DOS from scratch again (lots of command line tasks required for file system management), but it IS very compact and very speedy at many things--950 images copied amazingly fast, and 23 post-install updates accomplished in the blink of an eye!
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