ROBERT OWEN — Technology Leader & Musician
Technology leadership, music, and the space where they overlap

Error – A problem on your computer is preventing updates from being downloaded

Ok… You find your Windows computer needs some updates. So, you go to Windows Update and download the needed fixes. Windows goes to install them and fails immediately giving you this error:

Error: A problem on your computer is preventing updates from being downloaded

Here's what to do to solve the problem:

  1. Click “Start” then “Run” and type cmd to open a command window
  2. At the command prompt type regsvr32 wuapi.dll
  3. You should then receive the message that the DLL has been registered. When you receive the message click OK.
  4. Still with the command window open, type each of the following commands clicking the “OK” button after each.
  5. regsvr32 wuaueng1.dll
  6. regsvr32 wuaueng.dll
  7. regsvr32 wucltui.dll
  8. regsvr32 wups2.dll
  9. regsvr32 wups.dll
  10. regsvr32 wuweb.dll

Now, return to Windows update, re-download the updates. They should now install perfectly.

© 2008, Robert Owen. All rights reserved.