Windows 10: Fails to update to windows 1703

Hello Bree suggested I should start a new thread.............
My W10 updates all "offers" except for feature update to windows 10 version 1703?
It has had several tries at updating it but fails each time, while other updates come in and are completed.
As of 1/6/17 I'm on KB3150513 W10 V. 1607.

Bree asked me to add here a snip of my disc management so here goes. Ok that didn't work I'll try again shortly. Done it.

Do I just let it keep trying until it succeeds or should I be doing something to help.

Best

:)

 

Windows 10 1709 fails to update, 1703 fails to restore...

So the title says it all.

My computer is a Lenovo IdeaPad S400 Touch on Windows 10 1703 and install for 1709 failed. The computer at this point tried to restore the previous version but never stops loading until eventually it restarts and starts the same thing over and over...

Now i am no expert with computers so any advice explained would be appreciated in a very basic and easy to understand way...

 

Windows 10 1709 fails to update, 1703 fails to restore...

Hi,

There may be an issue with the files of version 1709 and that is why it failed to install. There can also be a conflict between the drivers of your computer and Windows 10. This is the reason why your computer is stuck in the restore previous version loading
page. In this case, we need to perform a hard restart to your computer until your computer loads the
Advance recovery options page. To perform a hard restart, follow these steps:

• Press and hold down the power button for 10 seconds.
• After powering off the computer, turn on the computer.
• Observe if it will load the Advance recovery options page. The page will look like this:
  • 
    
    
• If the computer did not load the page, repeat steps 1 and 2. Please take note that you need to perform a hard restart three times, until the computer loads the page.

If your computer is able to load the Advance recovery options page, we need to boot your computer to safe mode to see if you will be able to log in to your computer. Once you're on the
Advance recovery options page, follow the steps below to know how to boot your computer to safe mode:

• Click Troubleshoot.
• Select Advanced options.
• Choose Startup Settings.
• Click Restart.
• After the computer restarts, press the number that corresponds to Enable Safe Mode.
• Observe if you will be able to log in to the computer.

After performing the steps above, let us know the outcome.

 

Good! Where the automatic upgrade via Windows Update fails a manual in-place upgrade can sometimes succeed. Use the Media Creation Tool to 'Make media for another PC' and download the .iso. Double-click on it to mount it then run the Setup it contains to start the upgrade. Try turning off any 3rd-party AV before you upgrade.

Download Windows 10 ISO File

Repair Install Windows 10 with an In-place Upgrade

This may also fail, but at least it will report a reason and an error code. If so, post the results here for further diagnosis.

Your screenshot seems to keep disappearing *Smile but the glimpse I got of it suggests one possible cause of failure. You show two recovery partitions, the first at 11.72GB would appear to be an OEM restore partition. The second partition is C: and the third would appear to be the Windows 10 recovery partition. At 450MB this may be a little too small for the upgrade to complete successfully. If the in-place upgrade points to this as your problem then enlarging it with Disk Management or MiniTool Partition Wizard should help. Mine is 845MB.

If you have to take this step, it would be very sensible to make a system image of the current system before beginning. Most here recommend Macrium Reflect for that.

 

Ekky thump Bree.

I thought W10 did it all for you. You say the windows 10 partition could be a bit small but I've let windows do all its updates etc by itself rather expecting it would get things right.
I'm ok at following instructions but this is going where I've not been before hopefully with you holding my hand I'll be safe as long as I follow your steps.

Ok back to Media creation tool it is, I'll wait until tomorrow morning before I try.

Thanks

 

Always best to try these things on a clear head. In the mean time rest assured your current Windows will stay completely up to date as far as security updates are concerned - there's no need to rush.

When you're ready, try the in-place upgrade and if that fails report back before trying anything else.

 

Thanks Bree will do.

One thing, looking back at the history I can see the first cumulative update KB4013429 installed first time straight off. However the next Cumulative downloading cumulative update KB4015438 manually didn't and tried many times to update, 23 times so far. A security update occurred and it has not tried since but now the feature update as I have said keeps failing.

So Bree there may be more to fix which hopefully doing your manual suggestion will get sorted.

Best

 

Hi, your partition structure would be the first thing I'd consider.

I presume your PC uses legacy BIOS (not UEFI) - a typical size of the recovery partition is 500Mb- you have one of 450Mb.

Now, sometimes Windows, when upgrading - and this includes in-place upgrades- creates a second recovery partition.
You have no unallocated space on your system disk.

I would suggest you shrink C: by, say, 1Gb, which should give you plenty of space.
You can do that by using an appropriate partition manager as mentioned above.

Now, a good way to do this is to download and save a Win 10 iso. If you have that you can
- potentially upgrade multiple PCs
- reattempt the upgrade if ti fails without downloading it again
- create a bootable medium you can use for repairs if necessary.

Also before upgrading, create a full disk image by way of protecting your PC, your time, your data and in the worst case your sanity.
(E.g. Macrium reflect (free) + external storage for disk image sets, option Backup, Windows Backup).
A few people find their PCs are unbootable after upgrading.

You may also want to run a disk check
(e.g. Hard Disk Sentinel (trial) )

then run
chkdsk C: \F
from an admin (elevated) command prompt to check your file system.

This makes sure there should be no disk or file structure problems. (Running chkdsk is routine maintenance).

When attempting the upgrade, disconnect any unnecessary peripherals, esp. wireless.

For more, there are log files you can inspect to determine the cause of failure.

 

For information: I have now looked at the contents of my (legacy BIOS) recovery partition which successfully upgraded to 1703. It has a used space of 490MB so yes, your 450MB is too small.

 

Ok Thanks Gents.
It would seem that I can start this FIX by just changing the partition size or creating a new one.
Is there anywhere "I can try before I do" with the partition manager?

Then the first thing I need to do is make a system image of the current system using Macrium Reflect for that.
I see I have 3 partitions do I just leave them alone and crack on with Disc Management or Mini Tool Partition Wizard, is there a read about in these Forums somewhere?

I'm real worried I'll end up in the deep dodo so slowly slowly.
Does the System Image get me back to how my PC was before I trashed it playing with Partition sizes and should I also have a latest back up ready too?

Thanks again Gents

 

1. Partition- Shrink C: by, say, 1Gb. (You can always change that again later).
You can install a partition manager such as Minitool or Aomei's, set up the shrink which I think you will fin will need a restart to complete.

2. Disk imaging:
Here's my write-up on the value of disk imaging.

Everyone who contributes regularly here uses and recommends disk imaging.

If you use it, you can recover from:
- a failed disk drive (restore to a new one)
- ransomware (which encrypts your disk)
- user error
- unrecoverable problems from failed updates to problem programs
- unbootable PC (hardware faults aside)

Images also act as a full backup- you can extract files too.

You can even use images to help you move more easily and quickly to a new PC.
Can be used with Laplink software to transfer your build automatically to another PC

Imaging can even help you sleep at night knowing you have a second chance.

Creating disk images lets you restore Windows and all your imaged disks and partitions to a previous working state from compressed copies you have created and kept updated on external storage media, quickly and probably without technical help.

Many here recommend Macrium Reflect (free) as a good robust solution and more reliable than some others. It’s
- more feature rich
- more flexible
- more reliable
than Windows Backup and Restore system images.

It's well supported with videos, help and a responsive forum.

There are other such programs, free/commercial, some with simpler interfaces, but Macrium R is one of the most robust and reliable.

How long does it take?
SSD+ USB3 - maybe 15 mins for the first system image, less thereafter
HDD + USB2 - maybe 40-50 mins
That’s with little personal data, few programs installed.
- of course, depends how much you have on C:
(You can and should image all your partitions and disks)

Once you've created your first image, keep it updated with e.g. differential imaging- which images just changes from the first image, more quickly, and creates a smaller image file.

You need a backup medium - say- twice as large as the total amount of data you are imaging to keep a reasonable number of differential images. This will vary dependent on the number of images you keep, so is only a rough practical guide.

Some comment that system restore isn't always reliable; if it works and solves the problem, great. But sometimes restores won't work or fail. And of course a restore point only covers a limited number of aspects of the system. That’s where disk imaging comes in.

(There's a tutorial on Macrium in the Tutorials section, and a couple of videos in the user videos section on this forum)
Backup and Restore with Macrium Reflect Windows 10 Backup Restore Tutorials
Windows 10 instructional videos by Ten Forums members


3. When you have your iso (not on your system disk! and preferably as a bootable DVD/USB disk for future use, try upgrading again.

 

Ditto to everything Dalchina said.

I would recommend the bootable USB. The ISO the current Media Creation Tool makes is just a little too large to fit on a single-layer DVD. Just remember to remove the USB at the first re-boot, your PC will need to boot from the HDD to continue with the upgrade.

 

EEEEK I think I'll take some time to get familiar with this latest information before attempting anything.

Thanks Bree & dalchina for your help so far. I'm wondering if I might be better off having someone remotely do this if they are more familiar than me at doing it. In the mean time Ill print out the relevant information listed here.

Regards

 

There's substantial help, and forums, videos for the partition manager programs and Macrium Reflect if at all uncertain.

Note that you can't join the Macrium R forum unless you buy a license.