Lots of complaints about Windows 7 Update being broken or not working right. What happens is that when you select to run Windows update, it will just sit their spinning for hours on end. Some people have left it running for 24 hours.
So frustrating. I know. BTDT.
So, here are the steps that I follow to fix the Windows 7 Update issue:
- Set Windows Update to not update
Open up Windows Update, click on Change Settings, then click to NOT update - Stop the Windows Update service
You can do this by running services.msc
Then locate and right click on the Windows Update service, then click to STOP the service. - Delete certain files from the Software Distribution folder
Open up File Explorer and drill down C:/Windows/SoftwareDistribution
Open up the Download subfolder and delete all files within the folder
Go back a level, open up the DataStore folder and delete all the files within the folder - Download the July 2016 Windows 7 Update Rollup (KB 3172605)
Open Internet Explorer and go to https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/kb/3172605
Scroll down to Method 3 (Microsoft Update Catalog)
Click on the link and install the Microsoft Update Catalog utility
Click to select the appropriate download for Windows 7
Click to View Basket in the top right
Verify the selected file then click Download
Select the location to download the file - Install the July 2016 Windows 7 Update Rollup, then Reboot
Use File Explorer, locate the download file, then double click to run/install it
Follow the prompts to install it - Reboot your computer
Rebooting your computer will make sure that the Windows Service is restarted properly - Rerun Windows Update
Hopefully it will now work for you