Solved Slow Installion of Updates - Windows Update

slopechz

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Location
NY
I have Windows 8.1 installed. One thing I have noticed is that Update take forever to download and install. I did the following:

Ran Windows Update Repair and found two problems which were fixed;

Ran Dism.exe /online /Cleanup-Image /StartComponentCleanup as errors were reported; and

Ran SFC/ Scannow which showed errors which could not be fixed. So I ran Dism /Online /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealth.

Rebooted and ran SFC/ Scannow. All errors are gone.

Rebooted again. Ran Windows Update and still have a slow update download and installation. I have been running Windows since 3.1 and have never seen anything like this. Is this typical for Windows 8 or is there something else I can do.

Any logs that are needed will gladly be provided. Thanks!
 
Last edited:

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8, 7 & Xubuntu 13.10
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Dell 9000
You have taken the correct steps so far. Is there any slow down when surfing the net. How many updates are you talking about on each event and what anti virus program are you running? Are you dual booting according to your specs?
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    windows 8.1 Update 1 Pro 64bit
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Pavillion H8-1202
    CPU
    I7-2600 @ 3.4 GHz
    Motherboard
    PEGATRON
    Memory
    8 GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    NIVDIA GeForce GT 520
    Sound Card
    Realtek ALC656GR CODEC
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Samsung SyncMaster S22B350
    Screen Resolution
    1920X1080 32 bit color
    Hard Drives
    Samsung 850 EVO SSD 500GB
    Keyboard
    Razer Blackwidow Ultimate 2013
    Mouse
    Logitech M510
You have taken the correct steps so far. Is there any slow down when surfing the net. How many updates are you talking about on each event and what anti virus program are you running? Are you dual booting according to your specs?
No that is what's so strange. The system is quite responsive except for downloading and installing updates. After an update restarts take long and restarts take long, much longer than any previous version of Windows I have used.

Sorry for the sloppy typos earlier!
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8, 7 & Xubuntu 13.10
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Dell 9000
It could also be your AV program or the firewall making extensive checks. What anti virus program are you using and are your drivers up to date.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    windows 8.1 Update 1 Pro 64bit
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Pavillion H8-1202
    CPU
    I7-2600 @ 3.4 GHz
    Motherboard
    PEGATRON
    Memory
    8 GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    NIVDIA GeForce GT 520
    Sound Card
    Realtek ALC656GR CODEC
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Samsung SyncMaster S22B350
    Screen Resolution
    1920X1080 32 bit color
    Hard Drives
    Samsung 850 EVO SSD 500GB
    Keyboard
    Razer Blackwidow Ultimate 2013
    Mouse
    Logitech M510
It could also be your AV program or the firewall making extensive checks. What anti virus program are you using and are your drivers up to date.
I use the Bitdefender Free version. Before that it was Avast. I had the same issue with both.

I always had an issue with Windows Update with whatever version of the ATI driver installed. My rule of thumb with Windows has always been if it ain't broke, don't fix it. So I have not installed any updated drivers for any hardware.

The firewall in use is the Windows Firewall.

Any help is appreciated. I gather this is not typical for Windows 8.1...
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8, 7 & Xubuntu 13.10
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Dell 9000
Agreed, optional driver updates from Windows Update are not the best, I usually hide them and if need be I go to the manufacturers site.

Have Bitdefender Free version and Avast been uninstalled cleanly using their respective uninstall tools?

Windows Defender and Firewall should not cause any problems but you could temporarily disable them when installing Windows Updates as a test.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    windows 8.1 Update 1 Pro 64bit
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Pavillion H8-1202
    CPU
    I7-2600 @ 3.4 GHz
    Motherboard
    PEGATRON
    Memory
    8 GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    NIVDIA GeForce GT 520
    Sound Card
    Realtek ALC656GR CODEC
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Samsung SyncMaster S22B350
    Screen Resolution
    1920X1080 32 bit color
    Hard Drives
    Samsung 850 EVO SSD 500GB
    Keyboard
    Razer Blackwidow Ultimate 2013
    Mouse
    Logitech M510
Agreed, optional driver updates from Windows Update are not the best, I usually hide them and if need be I go to the manufacturers site.

Have Bitdefender Free version and Avast been uninstalled cleanly using their respective uninstall tools?

Windows Defender and Firewall should not cause any problems but you could temporarily disable them when installing Windows Updates as a test.
I will give it a try, although I suspect there is something else going on that is causing the bottleneck.

Edit: Windows Defender is turned off. The Windows Firewall is on.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8, 7 & Xubuntu 13.10
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Dell 9000

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    windows 8.1 Update 1 Pro 64bit
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Pavillion H8-1202
    CPU
    I7-2600 @ 3.4 GHz
    Motherboard
    PEGATRON
    Memory
    8 GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    NIVDIA GeForce GT 520
    Sound Card
    Realtek ALC656GR CODEC
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Samsung SyncMaster S22B350
    Screen Resolution
    1920X1080 32 bit color
    Hard Drives
    Samsung 850 EVO SSD 500GB
    Keyboard
    Razer Blackwidow Ultimate 2013
    Mouse
    Logitech M510
Was it you that turned Windows Defender off?

Bitdefender Free Version removal tool:
Uninstall Tool Bitdefender Antivirus Free Edition - Bitdefender Forum

Avast removal tool
Avast Uninstall Utility | Download aswClear for Avast Removal
Yes I turned it off. I was under the impression that it was in conflict with Avast (or any antivirus program). So I removed Avast and switched to Bitdefender. It works really well with Windows 7. So I switched to Bitdefender with the same problem.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8, 7 & Xubuntu 13.10
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Dell 9000
Windows Defender switches itself off in the presence of a 3rd party anti virus program. You might uninstall Bitdefender Free Version and see if the problem occurs, if it does we'll have to look else ware.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    windows 8.1 Update 1 Pro 64bit
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Pavillion H8-1202
    CPU
    I7-2600 @ 3.4 GHz
    Motherboard
    PEGATRON
    Memory
    8 GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    NIVDIA GeForce GT 520
    Sound Card
    Realtek ALC656GR CODEC
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Samsung SyncMaster S22B350
    Screen Resolution
    1920X1080 32 bit color
    Hard Drives
    Samsung 850 EVO SSD 500GB
    Keyboard
    Razer Blackwidow Ultimate 2013
    Mouse
    Logitech M510
Windows Defender switches itself off in the presence of a 3rd party anti virus program. You might uninstall Bitdefender Free Version and see if the problem occurs, if it does we'll have to look else ware.
Agreed, although I need to wait for updates for this to happen (and I did turn of Windows Defender voluntarily).

So you guys have no problem downloading and and installing updates in the same manner as previous versions of Windows?
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8, 7 & Xubuntu 13.10
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Dell 9000

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    windows 8.1 Update 1 Pro 64bit
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Pavillion H8-1202
    CPU
    I7-2600 @ 3.4 GHz
    Motherboard
    PEGATRON
    Memory
    8 GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    NIVDIA GeForce GT 520
    Sound Card
    Realtek ALC656GR CODEC
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Samsung SyncMaster S22B350
    Screen Resolution
    1920X1080 32 bit color
    Hard Drives
    Samsung 850 EVO SSD 500GB
    Keyboard
    Razer Blackwidow Ultimate 2013
    Mouse
    Logitech M510
Downloading and installing has not changed unless MS servers are overloaded.

I presume you did a full anti virus scan but have you checked with Malwarebytes Free:
https://www.malwarebytes.org/lp/lp4/02/?gclid=CKiSqMXK2sECFeHm7AodBioADg
I did. This has been a problem since Windows 8 and went along with 8.1. Further, I rarely used it so I just put it aside. I doubt if there is some kind of infection but I did intall Malwarebiytes Pro Trial Version and it was clean.

One thing that did occur to me. I was dual booting on the same hard drive. If memory serves, my W8 restore points were being deleted if I logged in to W7 and visa versa.

Having a second hard drive, I deleted W8 on SDA (C) and intalled it on SDB (D). I can't remember if I did anything to W8 regarding System Restore. Having my System Restore points intact was what I achieved. Could that be causing a bottleneck with Windows Update?

I wish I could remember if and or what I did to get restore points intact on W 8.1.

Thanks for all the help.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8, 7 & Xubuntu 13.10
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Dell 9000
When you eliminated the dual boot did you perform a clean install of windows 8?
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    windows 8.1 Update 1 Pro 64bit
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Pavillion H8-1202
    CPU
    I7-2600 @ 3.4 GHz
    Motherboard
    PEGATRON
    Memory
    8 GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    NIVDIA GeForce GT 520
    Sound Card
    Realtek ALC656GR CODEC
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Samsung SyncMaster S22B350
    Screen Resolution
    1920X1080 32 bit color
    Hard Drives
    Samsung 850 EVO SSD 500GB
    Keyboard
    Razer Blackwidow Ultimate 2013
    Mouse
    Logitech M510
When you eliminated the dual boot did you perform a clean install of windows 8?
Yes on the second drive (D).

Win 8.1 is installed on Drive D, but File Explorer indicates it is installed on Drive C. System Restore indicates that restore points are on Drive D. When I went to see my restore points, there were none. Obviously they were erased when I booted into my default OS this morning (W7).

I'm not sure if this has anything to do with the Windows Update issue, but I installed updates yesterday and there is no restore point (it is turned on). I really want restore points as they can come in handy. Do you guys dual boot and if you do, how do you handle System Restore?

It looks like I may have branched out to two different issues while trying to diagnose the Windows Update issue.
 
Last edited:

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8, 7 & Xubuntu 13.10
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Dell 9000

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    windows 8.1 Update 1 Pro 64bit
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Pavillion H8-1202
    CPU
    I7-2600 @ 3.4 GHz
    Motherboard
    PEGATRON
    Memory
    8 GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    NIVDIA GeForce GT 520
    Sound Card
    Realtek ALC656GR CODEC
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Samsung SyncMaster S22B350
    Screen Resolution
    1920X1080 32 bit color
    Hard Drives
    Samsung 850 EVO SSD 500GB
    Keyboard
    Razer Blackwidow Ultimate 2013
    Mouse
    Logitech M510
System restore points are usually created automatically in cases such as critical updates but you can manually create them::
http://www.eightforums.com/tutorials/4690-restore-point-create-windows-8-a.html

You could also create a shortcut to perform it:
System Restore Point Shortcut - Windows 7 Help Forums
I think I figured out the Windows Update issue. I checked the space allocated for restore points and it was set to 0. I bumped it up to 25% and created a restore point. I then went to Windows Update. I usually don't install Microsoft Silverlight so I unhid that optional update and installed it. Windows Update was much faster during download and installation. I checked and saw that there were now two restore points in W8.1.

I rebooted and logged into W7, checked to ensure my restore points were there. I rebooted again to W8.1 and there was an update for Silverlight and installed it quickly. I checked System Restore and two restore points were gone. It was erased when I booted into W7. There was an restore point for the update for Silverlight.

It all is coming back to me. Back when W8 came out, there was a big thing about restore points being deleted for those of us who wanted to dual boot with W7. The only way to make that happen was a Registry hack. Has anything changed on that front? At the time I just decided to stick with W7 as I knew my restore points would always be intact.

By the way, I do have shortcuts on both Desktops for Windows Update, it make life easier.

Thanks!
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8, 7 & Xubuntu 13.10
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Dell 9000

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    windows 8.1 Update 1 Pro 64bit
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Pavillion H8-1202
    CPU
    I7-2600 @ 3.4 GHz
    Motherboard
    PEGATRON
    Memory
    8 GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    NIVDIA GeForce GT 520
    Sound Card
    Realtek ALC656GR CODEC
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Samsung SyncMaster S22B350
    Screen Resolution
    1920X1080 32 bit color
    Hard Drives
    Samsung 850 EVO SSD 500GB
    Keyboard
    Razer Blackwidow Ultimate 2013
    Mouse
    Logitech M510
Your welcome, hope everything works out.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    windows 8.1 Update 1 Pro 64bit
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Pavillion H8-1202
    CPU
    I7-2600 @ 3.4 GHz
    Motherboard
    PEGATRON
    Memory
    8 GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    NIVDIA GeForce GT 520
    Sound Card
    Realtek ALC656GR CODEC
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Samsung SyncMaster S22B350
    Screen Resolution
    1920X1080 32 bit color
    Hard Drives
    Samsung 850 EVO SSD 500GB
    Keyboard
    Razer Blackwidow Ultimate 2013
    Mouse
    Logitech M510
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