Serious windows 8 bug - issue reverting updates

snadge

snadge

snadge

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Hi

I work for one of the biggest PC retailers in the UK, everyday i setup counltess laptop and towers, these include pre-set up ones that are ready to use when the customer buys and also software setups for customers (such as personlisation, backup to usb, install all updates, create user names and email addresses, install office and anti-virus and register them)

now on most of the laptops (and it only happens on windows 8) is that when its installed all updates in windows then it needs restarting, what happens is it gets to 99% (on the boot screen) and then states "failure to configure updates. reversing changes please wait! as I say this is not in windows but after rebooting and also does this when using LAN, did last night on an HP PC)

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this can take as long as 1 hour, sometimes more - the strange thing is though is AFTER its happened 9/10 if you retry it and download and install all the updates it will work..its rare it doesn't on the 2nd try

Now this seems to happen more on ASUS LENOVO and SONY laptops and some HP's - the rest like COMAPQ, PACKARD BELL and ACER seen to be ok...as far as i can recall, i only work part-time but its all I do and have done so for 9 months, at xmas 2013 I setup some 400 laptops, and probably do about 30 per week currently, these are all fresh from manufacturers and need setting up.

to me it seems to be some bug in the windows 8 software - MS have confirmed this happens but their only advice is to use system restore or reset...thats passing the buck rather than finding a fix as Im alsmost certain its a fault in windows8

# can anyone help shine some light on this issue>?

when I look online there are litterally hundreds of users with same problem...not too mention customers who didnt buy a setup and brought it back later with the same fault.

Iam looking to get too the bottom of this and wondered if some OCuK experts could help?

many thanks
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I have seen this many times also. However ONLY on OEM installs. I have never had our SCCM or manual installs do this. maybe its a sysprep hangup or some temp files lurking about that cause it.
 
yes i imgaine mine or all OEM install too - so this is a fault with win8 and /or possibly poorly written chipset drivers???

ive read that its possibly to do with automatic updates being set to automatic (trigger) rather than Automatic...and also the BITS service set to Manual instead of Automatic...
 
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the trick will be to find out via trial and error which update is causing the problem. sure its gonna be a right pain and time consuming but worth it in the end,.
 
Ploppy2k3 said:
the trick will be to find out via trial and error which update is causing the problem. sure its gonna be a right pain and time consuming but worth it in the end,.
Click to expand...

thanks...but unfortunately its not an option as we dont have the resources to do so...i work in a store and can not spend hours/daysw installing updates one by one (over 100 of them) and rebooting too see what happens - ive a sneaking gut feeling it would work doing it that way anyway...dunno why just think it might - i think it something to do with a pre-requisite update needed installing first with a reboot BEFORE installing this "affected" update but installing them all then rebooting causes it too crash

like i say they get too 99% complete then this happens...we know its worked if it hits 100%

but like i say EVERYTIME we re-initiate the updates they work this time around? (wonder if any updates did stick and only removed faulty ones???)

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thanks
 
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yep 8.1 too - happened on an 8.1 HP desktop connected via LAN last night and like i say ASUS is the worst one

wierd thing is, before we got fibre installed (this was at xmas time when i was expected to do 70 setups per week) we had just an 8Mb pipe and shared between 100's of devices over 3 wifi networks and the router is a small crap BT thing from 1700's lol... and the connections were like dial up speed (not lying) and regulary just froze) - so I used an offline updater and the same thing started to happen with that and so obviously I thought it was the program but obviously now I know it was nothing to do with that as its now happening over normal LAN/WiFi updating as we have Fibre (66 up /66 down) and a wifi repeater/extender in which has greatly improved it so I dont need the offline updater anymore (maybe at xmas lol)

but yeah its happens on both...

I will see about feedback to microsoft and perhaps the next time it happens to one ask if I can take home and affected laptop (prisitine) and se if it does the same over my home network - I mean network shouldnt come into it if it can connect to windows update anyway? - unless it uses a different IP when updating during boot and thats been blocked on our network - but like i say its when it gets to 99% it does this.... had this problem since Xmas and I may be wrong but seems to be getting worse...
 
Hmm that's really weird we never get that on new machines and we mostly do ASUS, our SOP for laptop setup is;-

-Do not connect to a network
-Run through OOBE
-Remove pre-installed internet security and any manufacturer crap-ware
-Upgrade to Windows 8.1 via USB 3.0 Pen drive selecting the option to keep files, settings & applications
-After the machine reboots to complete W8.1 upgrade plug in the network
-Run through OOBE skipping product key entry
-Use a tool to read the product key from the BIOS and activate
-Install any remaining updates + check for updated drivers
-Install Internet security + any other software

The only time we have had a problem is if the network is plugged in and Windows 8 downloads & installs a couple of updates requiring a restart but then you try to install 8.1 before restarting, so we don't plug the network in until 8.1 is on there.
 
sorry whats OOBE?

sounds like a good setup you have there but ours is simply turn on, setup and update... yours sounds like a full setup from disc on a new build?

we never uninstall crapware...they (company) like all the manufacturer poo on there, we dont activate either...we let the cmr do that, that said ive started to do it from the link as it takes seconds...

this is how we do it

1 . turn on, go through setup, use custome settings, insert our wifi password (or miss if using LAN)
2. get to desktop , create backup to 32Gb USB stick (basically copying rec partition to usb)
3. install pre-setup (customers requests such as itunes, skype, email, office, mcAfee)
4. then update, I prefer to run it from control panel (type in updates in CP) as i hate the PC settings version) - install all 3rd party drivers
5. reboot when requested

I actually VMwared 8 and 8.1 as a tester on my home build and both was fine? I have since removed, my PC is connected by 5Ghz wifi..

its completely annoying and needs sorting..

thanks for your help, im actually off too work now so wont be back until 5 hours
 
I've had the issue with updates before too, but with Windows 7. I found that it worked if I split up the updates and installed them in two batches. I guess there are two updates that cause the whole process to fail when they're installed during the same batch.

Maybe some of the manufacturers have an image with one of the two updates already installed, so it's not an issue in that case.

You know, back-in-the-day you'd have to install the updates/hotfixes and either reboot between them or run a program like qchain.exe: http://support.microsoft.com/kb/296861
 
if I had to guess I would say it likely that on a Win 8.1 machine its KB2919355 that's the issue.

That's Windows 8.1 to 8.1 U1 . its massive and makes a lot of changes. you could try and leave that one until after you've done the rest
 
Not very helpful but Windows 8 has quite a few underlying issues i.e. the hard lock related to wifi, hybrid sleep mode and charging on laptops and tablets. Having seen some of the issues with it since getting my tablet I certainly would not be rolling it out over 7 for business use yet.
 
honestly we rolled it for the Direct Access feature which Win 7 did have but was a pain to get working reliably. Since rolling we haven't seen that many issues overall. The WIFI issue was resolved each time by a driver update (annoying nonetheless) but overall has been just as stable as 7.

also we have found that despite users initial "oh no win 8" the feedback has been positive. OK so its a heavily customised install with most of the crap gadgets and gizmo's gone but Win 8.1 w/ office 2013 and importantly 2012 R2 Domain Controllers it working like a charm.
 
Ploppy2k3 said:
if I had to guess I would say it likely that on a Win 8.1 machine its KB2919355 that's the issue.

That's Windows 8.1 to 8.1 U1 . its massive and makes a lot of changes. you could try and leave that one until after you've done the rest
Click to expand...

hi

thanks again for your help :)

actually ive noticed that U1 installs last... i.e. if/once you get the updates installed, reboot, it works (yay!) then do another "search for updates" THEN KB2919355 appears in the list on its own, this is because all other updates have to be installed before Update 1 can be installed (same with win8 to 8.1)

im posting across a few forums and its nice to see so much help but also so many people in agreement that it DOES happen... I didnt get a chance to mention it too my boss as I was only in 4 hours...but I think he will leave it for us too do, basically we are responsible for everything behind the desk
 
actually ive noticed that U1 installs last... i.e. if/once you get the updates installed, reboot, it works (yay!) then do another "search for updates" THEN KB2919355 appears in the list on its own, this is because all other updates have to be installed before Update 1 can be installed (same with win8 to 8.1)
Click to expand...

To be honest if you are still doing Windows 8 machines you would be best off using the method I posted earlier as this takes you straight from W8 to W8.1 Update 1 GDR without doing any updates in between. (It is not a clean install, more like an upgrade install 15-35 mins depending on the machine)
 
as I say they arent all windows 8, most are 8.1 now and it would not be in our remit too do that either

we would not be allowed to do all this:

-Do not connect to a network
-Run through OOBE
-Remove pre-installed internet security and any manufacturer crap-ware
-Upgrade to Windows 8.1 via USB 3.0 Pen drive selecting the option to keep files, settings & applications
-After the machine reboots to complete W8.1 upgrade plug in the network
-Run through OOBE skipping product key entry
-Use a tool to read the product key from the BIOS and activate
-Install any remaining updates + check for updated drivers
-Install Internet security + any other software

because of (well one i dunnno what OOBE is? lol)
A) the time involved when we serve customers and do cmr setups and pre-setups
B) teaching all other staff what to do
C) its not in our remit

if MS have an issue there then they should be fixing it rather than us or anyone else spending ages trying "get around it"

thanks
 
I have never had any issues with my windows 8 system, and have reinstalled it many times so far.

I do use OOBE aswell to prepare the system to move the users folder to another drive, and a few other things too.
I have had my system hand on installing updates for hours on end before though for some strange reason.
 
because of (well one i dunnno what OOBE is? lol)
A) the time involved when we serve customers and do cmr setups and pre-setups
B) teaching all other staff what to do
C) its not in our remit
Click to expand...

OOBE is out of box experience, this is the wizard you go through when you first fire up a computer (you are going to go through this one way or the other)

A) It takes less time than putting on all of the Windows 8 updates then installing 8.1 through the store then installing the Windows 8.1 updates

B) Fair enough

C) What I listed is just a quicker way to get you up and running (for a Windows 8 machine anyway), you could skip removing the manufacturer crap-ware if you wanted, probably updating drivers as well - we just like to do it properly
 
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