Windows 7 Windows Update Notifications of new updates not working

DonnyDave

Since around July/August time my Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 PC has not been notifying of new Important updates, as it used to do, by putting the icon in the tray.

It is set to "Check for updates but let me choose whether to download or install them", as it has always been.

The same problem also besets two other computers in my household, both of which have the same operating system.

Reading forums this does seem to be a common issue and is a great annoyance. What steps could I take to try and pin down and rectify the issue?

forgotmyname

Bring it upto date manually and see if that fixes it.

GunJack

It's probably down to the W10 updates & notifications. Mine were the same - uninstall the W10 nag updates (ending 2664, 5583 and 1917) and hide them, untick the optional W10 update and hide it, re-check for updates and you should be ok

Oblivion

GunJack wrote: »

It's probably down to the W10 updates & notifications. Mine were the same - uninstall the W10 nag updates (ending 2664, 5583 and 1917) and hide them, untick the optional W10 update and hide it, re-check for updates and you should be ok

It might possibly be down to that ... I did allow the W10 nags onto my computers when they first came out, as I'm sure many people did. But they've long been removed and yet I've still lost the Updates Available notification on all the machines. So I doubt your 'fix' will work I'm afraid.

Since the main Microsoft Updates are released on the second Tuesday of each month, I've resigned myself to checking manually on the following Wednesday morning to see what is waiting to be installed. I also check at least once a week in case there are any extra updates.

GunJack

Oblivion wrote: »

It might possibly be down to that ... I did allow the W10 nags onto my computers when they first came out, as I'm sure many people did. But they've long been removed and yet I've still lost the Updates Available notification on all the machines. So I doubt your 'fix' will work I'm afraid.

Since the main Microsoft Updates are released on the second Tuesday of each month, I've resigned myself to checking manually on the following Wednesday morning to see what is waiting to be installed. I also check at least once a week in case there are any extra updates.

..and yet I've been getting them through since I removed the nags... last couple have been Win Defender updates (not that I use Defender)....

teddysmum

I've had them turned off for a while, as the last one used switched off the internet to my laptop off, another computer, on a different operating, system being unaffected. (Backdating allowed access again, but the updating switched it off again).

Oblivion

teddysmum wrote: »

I've had them turned off for a while, as the last one used switched off the internet to my laptop off, another computer, on a different operating, system being unaffected. (Backdating allowed access again, but the updating switched it off again).

If you can identify by a process of elimination which particular update caused that problem, you can right click on it and select 'Hide Update' so it doesn't get selected for installation again. Then you can continue using WU again as normal.

DonnyDave

GunJack wrote: »

It's probably down to the W10 updates & notifications. Mine were the same - uninstall the W10 nag updates (ending 2664, 5583 and 1917) and hide them, untick the optional W10 update and hide it, re-check for updates and you should be ok

It is funny you mention this because I previously did unistall the Windows 10 nag updates as well as those connected with the so-called "customer experience and diagnostic telemetry".

Those I took out were:

KB3021917
KB2952664
KB2990214
KB3068708
KB3022345 (replaced by KB3068708)
KB3075249
KB3080149


I also removed KB3050265 Windows Update Client for Windows 7: June 2015 with the thinking that this would remove the latest WU after which it would prompt me to reinstall and that that would cure the problem. It didn't prompt me but I have just manually downloaded and installed it and it hasn't fixed the problem.

Oblivion wrote: »

If you can identify by a process of elimination which particular update caused that problem, you can right click on it and select 'Hide Update' so it doesn't get selected for installation again. Then you can continue using WU again as normal.

Many many updates have gone under the bridge since then so I think that's a bit too late.

_____________

I have wondered whether there it could be something in the Task Scheduler, as presumably WU notifications are executed from there but it looks very very complicated.

Quite why Microsoft cannot (or has not) issued a fix for this I do not know. I can only think its mind is swayed (some might say tainted) by the interest of getting Windows 10 installed.

LazyD

Have you tried renaming the C:\Windows\SoftwareDistribution folder? (you have to stop the windows update service running first, then do a restart).

Another thing is that the bluetooth support service can sometimes mess with everything (particularly if you have loads of USB devices connected), make it automatic and make sure it's running and restart.

Finally:
http://ultimateoutsider.com/downloads/GwxControlPanelSetup.exe

DonnyDave

Well, I've had some success...sort of.

On one of the machines I don't tend to use the WU notifications works properly – the icon appears in the tray as it should.

It had the Windows 10 nag program installed. I uninstalled the relevant updates (3068708, 3075249, 3080149 and 3035583). The WU icon still works!

The only difference I can see is that within Windows Update there is a prompt to "Get updates for other Microsoft products" which I have tried using in order to get other updates, but on this particular machine it doesn't seem to have the desired effect.

On the machine I generally use and another one it is set to get updates for other Microsoft products. Could the issue have something to do with this?

Within Windows Update > Change Settings I unticked the box for getting updates to other Microsoft products on my main machine, as a test. Whilst it has reverted back to giving me the prompt "Get updates for other Microsoft products" it hasn't fixed the issue with the tray icon.

DonnyDave

I have had a look at the Windows Update logs (C:\Windows\WindowsUpdate.log) and compared it with the one which works with one that doesn't.

The working one says:

2015-12-29 18:35:01:974 352 131c AU Successfully wrote event for AU health state:0
2015-12-29 18:35:01:974 352 131c AU Initializing featured updates
2015-12-29 18:35:01:974 352 131c AU Found 0 cached featured updates
2015-12-29 18:35:01:974 352 131c AU Successfully wrote event for AU health state:0
2015-12-29 18:35:01:974 352 131c AU AU setting pending client directive to 'Download Approval'
2015-12-29 18:35:01:974 352 131c AU Successfully wrote event for AU health state:0
2015-12-29 18:35:01:974 352 131c AU AU finished delayed initialization
2015-12-29 18:35:01:974 352 131c AU #############
2015-12-29 18:35:01:974 352 131c AU ## START ## AU: Search for updates
2015-12-29 18:35:01:974 352 131c AU #########
2015-12-29 18:35:02:005 352 131c AU <<## SUBMITTED ## AU: Search for updates [CallId = {49BDA314-D9FC-46D2-9C81-2361B4140840}]

But the non-working one says:

2015-12-29 19:32:07:611 260 1300 AU Successfully wrote event for AU health state:0
2015-12-29 19:32:07:611 260 1300 AU Initializing featured updates
2015-12-29 19:32:07:627 260 1300 AU Found 0 cached featured updates
2015-12-29 19:32:07:627 260 1300 AU Successfully wrote event for AU health state:0
2015-12-29 19:32:07:627 260 1300 AU Currently AUX is enabled - so not show any WU Upgrade notifications.
2015-12-29 19:32:07:627 260 1300 AU Evaluate OSUpgrade Notification already. Skip the regular notification
2015-12-29 19:32:07:627 260 1300 AU Successfully wrote event for AU health state:0
2015-12-29 19:32:07:627 260 1300 AU AU finished delayed initialization


What does the emboldened statement mean? Does "AUX" mean "Automatic Update 10" (as in something to do with Windows 10) or does it mean something else?

Note that the working one says "AU finished delayed initialization" and then proceeds to "## START ## AU: Search for updates".