How to Fix Windows Update Stuck Downloading, Installing or Restarting
Windows Update looks stuck in three different ways: a download that sits at the same percentage, an install that fails and starts over, and a restart screen that says Working on updates for a long time. Each has its own usual cause, so the first job is to tell which one you have, then try the fix that matches it, from the gentlest step up. Deleting the update folder is near the end of that list, not the start.
Which kind of stuck
| What you see | Usual cause | Start with |
|---|---|---|
| Download at 0% or one percentage for a long time | Paused updates, a metered connection, low disk space, a slow or blocked download | Settings, free space, one restart |
| Install fails, then the same update downloads again | A damaged download, a pending restart, damaged system files | Update history error code, the troubleshooter |
| Working on updates or Getting Windows ready after a restart | Windows is still applying the update offline | Waiting, with the PC plugged in |
Check Settings before anything else
Open Settings › Windows Update. If it says updates are paused, choose Resume updates. Then open Advanced options: if the PC is on a metered connection, Windows downloads only some updates over it unless Download updates over metered connections is turned on. Whether a network is metered is in Settings › Network & internet, under that connection's properties.
Feature updates need several gigabytes free on C: to download and unpack. If the drive is nearly full, C drive full on Windows covers what can safely go first.
Read the error in Update history
In Settings › Windows Update › Update history, a failed update shows Failed to install with an error code, often in the 0x8… form. The same update failing with the same code several times in a row points at the update itself or the files Windows Update keeps for it, not at your network. Search that exact code with the update's KB number; Microsoft's additional resources for Windows Update page collects Microsoft's troubleshooting articles for update errors.
If Windows Update itself says a restart is required, restart first. An update waiting for a restart can block the next one, and no repair helps until it has finished.
Run the troubleshooter, then restart
On Windows 11, Settings › System › Troubleshoot › Other troubleshooters › Windows Update runs Microsoft's own check of the update services and settings. On some recent builds the button opens the Get Help app instead. Either way it is Microsoft's supported path, and it does not change settings you did not choose.
After it finishes, restart and check for updates again. A restart on its own fixes many stuck downloads, because it restarts Windows Update, BITS and the services they depend on.
Working on updates after a restart
This screen means Windows is applying the update while it is offline, and a large update can take a long time on a slow disk. Keep the PC plugged in and leave it. If it is still on the same percentage after a couple of hours with no disk light, hold the power button, start the PC again, and Windows normally rolls the update back and starts as before; the update is offered again later.
Do not cut power repeatedly in the first minutes. Cutting power during the offline step is the usual way a stuck update turns into a PC that does not start, and then Safe Mode in Windows 11 is where recovery begins.
Reset the download, then repair system files
When the same update keeps failing, the files it downloaded may be damaged. Stopping the update services and emptying C:\Windows\SoftwareDistribution\Download makes Windows download them again; Delete Windows Update files walks through the exact commands and what not to remove beside that folder.
If downloads are fine but installs still fail, the Windows image may be damaged. DISM /Online /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealth followed by sfc /scannow in an administrator terminal repairs it from Windows Update; Windows Modules Installer Worker high CPU explains how those two work.
Last step: reinstall Windows in place
Windows 11 can reinstall its current version while keeping your apps, files and settings: Settings › System › Recovery, then Reinstall now under Fix problems using Windows Update. Microsoft describes it on its reinstall the current version page. It takes about as long as a feature update, so back up anything you cannot lose first.
What not to do
- Do not delete
C:\Windows\SoftwareDistributionas a whole, orcatroot2, while the services are running. Empty onlyDownload, with Windows Update and BITS stopped. - Do not disable the Windows Update service to stop a stuck download. It also stops security updates, and the stuck update is still waiting when you turn it back on.
- Do not run "update fixer" tools that reset policies and registry keys in bulk. You lose track of what changed, and some of them leave updates managed by a policy nobody set.
Where Mole fits
Mole for Windows has one narrow repair for this under Optimize, Reset stuck update downloads. It is offered only when the same update has failed to install at least twice in a row within the last 30 days, never while Windows is installing an update or waiting for a restart, and at most once every 30 days. It asks for administrator access, stops Windows Update and BITS, empties only the Download folder and starts again whichever of the two services was running. A second Optimize task, Check and repair system files, asks Windows for the same health verdict DISM gives and offers Repair system files only when the image is repairable. Doctor, opened from the Mole mark at the top left, reports when Windows is waiting for a restart to finish installing updates. Mole does not change update settings, policies or pause state.
FAQ
Why is Windows Update stuck at 0%?
Usually because updates are paused, the connection is metered, C: is nearly full, or the download service needs a restart. Check Settings › Windows Update and its Advanced options, free space, then restart.
How long should Working on updates take?
Large updates can take an hour or more on a slow disk. If the percentage has not moved for a couple of hours and the disk light is off, restart once; Windows normally rolls the update back.
Is it safe to delete the SoftwareDistribution folder?
Empty only its Download folder, with Windows Update and BITS stopped. Deleting the whole folder also removes the update history database.
What if the same update keeps failing?
Note the error code in Update history, run the Windows Update troubleshooter, reset the download, then repair system files with DISM and SFC. Reinstalling the current version is the last step.