Windows 10: Destructive Windows update - SSD destroyed - Quite the PITA

I need to share my upgrade experience here as Microsoft has several failures here that need to be remedied and addressed, hopefully this feedback won't fall on deaf ears here on the community forums.


I just completed another custom PC build for myself, re-used my Windows Pro OS installation from my previous PC that I retired. This is my first time utilizing a SSD as I've seen mixed reviews on its performance. The new build installed great and everything installed smoothly until I tried to install my previous purchase of MS Flight Simulator 2020 which would not allow me to install via the MS Store.


Contact the MSFS support team started a VERY frustrating chain of events, which I would eventually learn were all issues from MS Windows. I was finally directed to a link to contact Windows support using their Phone Support service. Some 10 or so link selections later I finally had a phone number to call only to get an automated message stating that phone service is no longer available and that I should use the web support at support.microsoft.com. Going to this website provided nothing but FAQ, nowhere is there any link or option to contact someone about any type of help/support that could be found. Every link that appeared to lead you to help simply redirected you to some FAQ page or back to the support.microsoft.com page.


Since I was left alone to resolve this issue, I did finally notice a few issues that seemed to be the source of my issue. Using the "Check for Updates" feature repeatedly told me my Windows was up to date, but if I used the System Requirements tab on the MSFS store page, it stated my OS needed 18362.0 or higher and flagged me as not meeting this requirement. It also provided me a link to download a Windows10Upgrade9252.exe file that would manage the update, which I did download.


Immediately after running this application, my PC crashed and the screen went black, no blue screen of death. A few reboots attempts did occasionally allow Windows to restart, but only for a few moments. Once reaching the desktop, the OS was unresponsive, couldn't move a mouse, type, and eventually got a Windows fatal error and the system went black again. A web search reveals I am not the only one to have had their SSD destroyed at the hands of Windows and some tips on how to recover. Checking on the SSD with my BIOS revealed the card now intermittent, sometimes recognizing the presence, but usually not. My conclusion is this card has been fried and now unreliable for use. The card being new with only 2 days of constant use till this point can hardly be considered worn out.


Out with the SSD, in with a HDD and another round of Windows install and I'm back up and running to the same upgrade point I had before, to build version 15063.1418 where Windows updates just stopped. I run the Windows updated I downloaded earlier and that finally appears to have everything up to date and I'm now able to install my MSFS; though I'm out a SSD.

So who do I contact to get my $150 to replace my 1TB SSD card? And more importantly, if I install another one, how do I install Windows on it without frying it again?

:)

 

Best SSDs?

Samsung 840 Pro because of its Magician software that lets you:

• Manually purge deleted data (manual optimization), without waiting for TRIM to ruminate on it, getting instant write performance gains
• Set overprovisioning amount, without destroying most kinds of partition records (some kinds will get destroyed)
• Download and update the drive's latest firmware with Windows still running (and running off the drive you're trying to update)
• Detect if TRIM is working like it should

These are things that [insert SandForce SSD maker] told us couldn't be done.

 

Hxtsr.exe PITA

scan sfc nothing...

there is nothing on my computer I don't use except Cortana.. which I can't shut off if I want to do a search.... thanks for that one too.. I keep it as free of crap as I can..

I don't make restore points but do back up on an SSD...

This problem crops up with some updates... not all and it is a real PITA.... 5 minutes "wake up"

 

Win10: windows update stuck at never ending loop ?

When in win10:

• Update&security -> Windows update -> Finding update... .... .... ....

Planning to download the latest Win10.ISO (vers.1803) and manually update:
- Then wait that my ordered new SSD arrives and clone the old HDD to it.