«Failure configuring Windows updates. Reverting changes.» error when you try to install Windows updates

Symptoms

When you try to install Windows updates, you get the following error:

Failure configuring Windows updates. Reverting changes. Do not turn off your computer.

Note If this issue occurs, it may take about 30 minutes to revert the changes, and then the system will show the Windows logon screen.

Resolution

To resolve this issue, use the following methods starting with the first method below. If that doesn’t resolve your issue, click next method.

Method 1: Restart Windows and install Windows updates in a clean boot state

To perform a clean boot in Windows, see how to perform a clean boot to troubleshoot a problem in Windows 8, Windows 7, or Windows Vista. And then, install Windows Updates according to your operating system.

Open Windows Update by swiping in from the right edge of the screen (or, if you’re using a mouse, by pointing to the lower-right corner of the screen and moving the mouse pointer up), then selecting Settings > Change PC settings.

Select Update and recovery > Windows Update.

Try to install Windows Updates again.

Select the Start button. In the search box, enter Update, and then, in the list of results, select Windows Update.

Try to install Windows Updates again.

Note Installing Windows updates in a clean boot state will avoid the Windows updates installation being blocked by some other applications and services that are installed in Windows.

Method 2: Run the Windows Update Troubleshooter

Download the Windows Update Troubleshooter, and then select O pen or Save in the pop-up window. And then, select Next and follow the steps in the wizard to find and fix problems with Windows Update .

If you don’t have an Internet connection in Windows 8, you can open the Windows Update troubleshooter that’s included in Windows 8. However, that troubleshooter does not perform all the troubleshooting steps that the linked troubleshooter above does.

Open the Windows Update troubleshooter by swiping in from the right edge of the screen, tapping Search (or if you’re using a mouse, pointing to the upper-right corner of the screen, moving the mouse pointer down, and then clicking Search).

Type Troubleshooting, tap or click on Settings, and then tap or click Troubleshooting.

Under System and Security, tap or click Fix Problems with Windows Update, and then select Next.

Download the Windows Update Troubleshooter, and then select O pen or Save in the pop-up window.

Select Next and follow the steps in the wizard to find and fix problems with Windows Update.

Method 3: Unplug your removable media from the computer

Check if any removable media is not removed from the computer, such as removable disks (Blu-ray disks, DVDs, CDs), memory cards (CompactFlash card, Secure Digital card, Memory Stick), and USB flash drives.

Unplug all the removable media.

Note These removable media may cause this issue during the restart of Windows.

Method 4: Perform a system restore When you start your computer by using the Windows installation disc, you can perform system recovery options on startup. To do this, follow these steps:

Insert the Windows 8 installation disc in the drive, and then restart the computer.

When you are prompted to start from the disc, press any key.

Tap or click Repair your computer.

Tap or click Troubleshoot, and then tap or click Advanced options.

Tap or click your version of Windows 8, tap or click System Restore, tap or click the restore point you want, and then tap or click Next.

Follow the onscreen instructions to perform the System Restore, and when prompted, restart your computer.

Insert the Windows Vista or Windows 7 installation disc in the drive, and then restart the computer.

When you are prompted to start from the disc, press any key.

When you are prompted, configure the Language to install, Time and currency format, and Keyboard or input method options that you want, and then select Next.

Select Repair your computer.

On the System Recovery Options page, click the version of the Windows operating system that you want to repair, and then select Next.

On the System Recovery Options page, select System Restore.

On the System Restore page, select Next.

Select a restore point at which you know that the operating system was working, and then select Next.

The restore point should be a date before the first time that you experienced the error. To select a date, use the Choose a different restore point option, and then select Next.

If you are prompted to specify which disk to restore, select the hard disk, and then select Next.

On the Confirm your restore point page, select Finish.

When the restoration process is complete, select Restart.

Note You must be logged on to Windows with an administrator account to complete this method. If this is a computer that is part of a network at work, you should ask the system administrator for help. For information about how to log into Windows as an administrator, click one of the following links, depending on the version of Windows that you’re running:

Note If your computer is not configured to start from a CD or from a DVD, or if Windows came preinstalled on your computer without the CDs or DVDs, see the documentation that was included with the computer for instruction about how to continue, or skip to the next method.

Method 5: Perform an in-place upgrade (reinstallation) (Windows 7 and Windows Vista)

Performing an in-place upgrade will restore the current Windows installation to the version of the installation DVD. This also requires the installation of all updates that are not included on the installation DVD. If your computer came with Windows pre-installed, review your computer’s documentation for instructions on how to do an in-place upgrade. Otherwise, follow these steps.

Insert the Windows Vista or Windows 7 DVD in the computer’s DVD drive.

In the Setup window, select Install Now.

Note If Windows does not automatically detect the DVD, follow these steps:

Select Start, and then type Drive:\setup.exe in the Start Search box. Note The Drive placeholder is the drive letter of the computer’s DVD drive, usually D:\.

In the Programs list, select Setup.exe.

In the Setup window, select Install Now.

Select Go online to obtain the latest updates for installation (recommended).

Type the CD key if you are prompted to do this.

Select the operating system in the Install Windows page you want to upgrade.

Select Yes to accept the Microsoft Software License Terms.

On the Which type of installation do you want? screen, select Upgrade.

When the installation is complete, restart your computer.

Note We strongly recommend that you back up all your personal files. For information, see how to back up your files.

If these methods did not fix the issue, you can use the Microsoft Customer Support Services Web site to find other solutions to your problem. Some services that the Microsoft Customer Support Services Web sites provide include the following:

Searchable Knowledge Base: Search technical support information and self-help tools for Microsoft products.

Solution Centers: View product-specific frequently asked questions and support highlights.

Other Support Options: Use the Web to ask a question, contact Microsoft Customer Support Services, or provide feedback.

If you continue to have problems, you might want to contact Microsoft Support.

How to restore or repair your Windows installation

Note These sites include options to use when the manufacturer has installed the System Recovery options on the computer.

How to avoid this problem in Windows Vista

To avoid this problem in Windows Vista, obtain and install update 937287 from the Microsoft Download Center separately from all other updates on the Windows Update site. Install the update that applies to your version of Windows Vista so that you can successfully install future updates.

The following files are available for download from the Microsoft Download Center:

Windows Vista x86-based systems Download the Windows6.0-KB937287-x86.msu package now.

Windows Vista x64-based systems Download the Windows6.0-KB937287-x64.msu package now.

Microsoft has confirmed that this is a problem in the Microsoft products that are listed in the «Applies to» section.

«failure configuring windows updates reverting changes»

My computer has been finding important updates, installing them and after restart receiving the message «failure configuring windows updates reverting changes». I never shut-down or restart my machine when updates are processing.

I have run Fix-it several times to no avail.

I am running Windows 7 Home Premium x64.

The updates that are uninstalling themselves are:

Update for Windows 7 for x64-based Systems	KB2732500
Update for Windows 7 for x64-based Systems	KB2729094
Update for Windows 7 for x64-based Systems	KB2732487
Update for Windows 7 for x64-based Systems	KB2747753
Cumulative Security Update for Internet Explorer 9 for Windows 7 for x64-based Systems	KB2722913
Security Update for Windows 7 for x64-based Systems	KB2705219
Security Update for Windows 7 for x64-based Systems	KB2731847
Security Update for Windows 7 for x64-based Systems	KB2712808

Manually download and install KB2647753 on it’s own and the remaining updates will most likely install with no further problems.

A lot of problems arise from setting Windows Update to automatically update. You may prefer to change this setting. Select Start, All Programs, Windows Update, Change Settings. Under Important Updates is a box showing the current setting. Click on the Arrow down to the right and change the selection to “Check for Updates but let me choose whether to download and install them” and click on OK.

If you encounter problems updating or you are not using the Automatic Update you should manually update by selecting Start, All Programs, Windows Update, Check for Updates. Check the boxes before the updates you want to install, click on Install and click again on Install in the next window and the process of installing starts. You should let the process proceed without interruption. Multi-tasking at the time updating is in progress is unwise. The progress window will tell you what is going on. You need to be patient.

If you have a number of updates to install break the task of updating into two or more tasks.

Stuck on «Failure configuring windows update reverting changes»

Help, Im stuck. I’m running Windows 7 on an HP laptop. Today, when I started up, the computer tried to update. It got stuck on 35% for over an hour. Would not reboot, totally unresponsive. So here’s what I did:

1. Pressed start button to force shutoff.
2. Restarted normally. Got the «Failure configuring Windows updates. Reverting changes.» message. It seemed to work for 5 minutes or so. Then just sat there, no hd activity, for an hour or so.
3. I turned it off and restarted, and pressed f8 and went to «repair computer.»
4. I tried «restore» It did not have any restore points.
5. I tried «Startup Repair». It stopped with the message «If you have recently attached a device to this computer, such as a camera or portable music player, remove and restart the computer.». The computer did have a bluetooth adapter hen it originally hung. It has been removed before this message.
6. Turned off and reboot to safe mode. Works in Safe Mode. Reboots to normal mode and it hangs.
7. I opened a cmd window as administrator, and did sfc /scannow. It reported everything ok.
8. I reinstalled the bluetooth adapter, no change.
9. Remove bluetooth again.
10. Retried again and again. 6 times. No change.
11. Also tried «Last Good Startup». no change, still hangs.
12. Today I tried a Clean Boot. No change.

So, it fails on configuring updates, reverts and hangs, never booting normally. None of the Repair Computer things did anything. sfc /scannow reports everything ok. Clean boot does nothing. But it always starts in safe mode. I can’t get to the Windows Update screen from Safe Mode, and I can’t run Fixit from Safe Mode.

Failure configuring Windows Updates, Reverting changes. Error code: 8007003

• A known fix!
• If not, A technical consultant to remotely access my PC and find the issue
• If he/she cannot solve the issue, A brand new Windows 8 Pro installation disc
• If this does not solve the problem, A full refund + Damage costs to my hardware for running a defective OS (i.e. a replacement SSD)

Important Note: Security software can help protect your computer against viruses and other security threats. In most cases, you shouldn’t disable your antivirus software. If you have to temporarily disable it to install other software, you should re-enable it as soon as you’re done. If you’re connected to the Internet or a network while your antivirus software is disabled, your computer is vulnerable to attacks.

I would suggest you to run Microsoft Safety scanner and scan for any infected files on the computer.

To download and run the Microsoft Safety Scanner, follow these steps:

a) Go to the Microsoft Safety Scanner site at: Microsoft Safety Scanner

b) Click Download Now.

c) If prompted, click Run. Follow the on-screen instructions to download and install the Microsoft Safety Scanner. When prompted, add a shortcut to the Microsoft Safety Scanner to your desktop.

d) From your desktop, double click the Microsoft Safety Scanner icon. When the Microsoft Safety Scanner program launches, click Scan Type, then click Full Scan, then click Next.

e) After the scan is complete, remove all detected malware entries

Note: Any data files that are infected may only be cleaned by deleting the file entirely, which means there is a potential for data loss.

I would suggest you to send us the CBS.log file to get the events that has caused this issue. You can follow the steps to view the log files:

a) Type ‘cmd’ on the start screen and click on Command prompt.

b) Type the following command without quotes and press Enter:

«findstr /c:»[SR]» %windir%\logs\cbs\cbs.log >sfcdetails.txt «

You can post us the log files on Skydrive link.