vista wont stop shutting down. ug (pulls hair out)

Community Forums/General Help/vista wont stop shutting down. ug (pulls hair out)

Nate the Great(Posted 2009) [#1]
well I have had this computer about a year and it worked great until one day, my vista updates started failing to work. So every time my computer decides to shut down on its own (yes it doesnt ask first :( ) it ends up spending 30-40 minutes being really slow and laggy trying to install updates and failing... then trying again and again till it finally gives up. So my question is why do updates always fail? is there a way to get my updates to work? and can I make my computer ask me before shutting down so I dont lose so much work?


xlsior(Posted 2009) [#2]
So my question is why do updates always fail?


That's an easy one -- the planets must not have aligned properly when you first initated the update!

Seriously though, it's impossible to say without a whole lot more information.

first of all: Check the logs. Normally the reason for a failure is recorded.
If you open Event Viewer (eventvwr.exe) you may see more information.

In the mean time, you can change your automatic update settings to tell windows not to automatically install them for you, which should at least keep you out of your current reboot cycle.

Finally, what is the update that fails? If it's a very large one (e.g. a windows service pack) then you may simply be out of space on your C:\ drive

Another possibility that I've seen with updates that continue to fail is bad data / corrupted patch. The easiest way to force a re-download is to either manually download the fixes from microsoft after looking up their ID's, or you can stop the automatic updates service, delete the c:\windows\softwaredistribution\ folder and then restart the automatic update service -- that way it will re-download the updates fresh from microsoft instead of trying to reinstall the copy it already downloaded earlier.


ubergeek(Posted 2009) [#3]
it worked great until one day, my vista updates started failing to work.

I've found the root of your problems! ;)

Seriously - do what xlsior said. I would add that if you have any data on the computer that you care about, it should be backed up off of the computer, just in case.

If xlsior's instructions don't work, reinstalling the OS should fix it.

Also check for viruses - shutting down without your approval sounds fishy to me.


Hotcakes(Posted 2009) [#4]
Sounds to me like Windows is saying it needs to restart to install updates, then fails during the post or pre-install processes, then comes back up at boot saying it needs to restart to install these updates.

In which case, xlsior pretty much covered everything. Good post.


Nate the Great(Posted 2009) [#5]
thanks xlisor.

Its service pack 2 that fails so I guess I will just figure out how to download it and install it manualy. And I have enough space, 20 somethin gigs should be way more than enough.


xlsior(Posted 2009) [#6]
Another suggestion: Check your PC for virusses and spyware first. Some low-level infections can really cause problems with the servicepack updates which want to touch a lot of system files.