Windows Update - Why so slow?

Spacedad2

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Sep 23, 2014
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I'm trying to run Windows Update for a friend. It looks like MSoft is trying to download 148 multi-megabyte updates simultaneously, which is why it is so slow. Is that what is really happening? Can't they send them 5 or 10 at a time and speed the progress up? Cant they prioritize which ones are more important?
 
Solution
In reality, there is only a few downloading at any particular instant. The rest are just lined up waiting.
5 or 10 at a time It will take the same amount of time, because it's the same amount of data. This just removes the need for you, the user, to click on "OK, send the next batch"

And they are ALL important.
But you could go through and unclick the ones you don't want 'right now'. Do you know which ones are important or not? Which ones have to go before or after others? No, you don't.
Just let it run.

USAFRet

Titan
Moderator
In reality, there is only a few downloading at any particular instant. The rest are just lined up waiting.
5 or 10 at a time It will take the same amount of time, because it's the same amount of data. This just removes the need for you, the user, to click on "OK, send the next batch"

And they are ALL important.
But you could go through and unclick the ones you don't want 'right now'. Do you know which ones are important or not? Which ones have to go before or after others? No, you don't.
Just let it run.
 
Solution

Spacedad2

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Sep 23, 2014
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Ah, in researching this question, I found a remark on another service that the person had disabled the proxy server setting in IE, and that had helped. Yes it does. Remarkably so. It is actually making visible progress in downloading and installing the updates. It is still taking hours, but is not stuck at 0% anymore.
 

ambiense

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Dec 27, 2014
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Basically it is because windows sucks. They try to do stuff in the background so it doesn't interfere with you working but the reason for this disappeared when they invented broadband. I am currently downloading 899Mb which if it were a web page takes about 1 second with my current speed. So even if they downloaded via a broadband server you might have a 1 second delay in your responses.
Compare this with the time an Apple operating system takes on an Iphone and junk windows for just about any other OS



 

fabian_667

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Feb 25, 2016
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What?.... 899Mb in one second? unless you live in the pentagon I think not. The highest average speed is around 55Mbps (give or take a few Mb). Could you let me know which provider you're with, I would also like 900Mbps speeds.

An iPhone? OK I will compare - iPhone, 4G at most, not capable of high speed data transfer, Wifi capable of a few Mbps. Windows - limited only by the hardware it's on. Not to mention a phone or any hand held device does much less than a computer/mac.

 

Just4You

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Apr 21, 2016
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Well actually, here(the netherlands) they offer 1gbps internet for 40euro.

https://www.tweak.nl/glasvezel/1000-mbit-voor-maar-e365-per-jaar.html

1 euro a day.
 

Denis_22

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Jul 3, 2016
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In Holland internet speed suck big time for the price I pay 50 euro/14mb download/month comparing with Romania for ex 10 euro/40mb download/month.
 

darkflux

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Oct 18, 2008
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there are 40 days in a Netherland month? lol
seriously though, unless the website ALSO supports Gigabit speeds, you will not be downloading any websites at 1Gbps. few webs offer THAT fast a speed, and even the ones to DO have to split it among the many visitors to their site.
unless you are on at 4am, i doubt you will ever see that kind of speed in everyday use...just saying.
 

timmoseus

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Apr 7, 2016
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I refurbish computers for a living and have been battling slow updates for months now. Two identical machines, identical hardware and software, start at the same time. Machine 1 gets its updates in a few hours, machine 2 takes days... There is no rhyme or reason as far as I can tell. There are some downloads that one can acquire from Microsoft to manually install certain updates. People claim that the right updates in the right order will solve the "slow update" problem, and I have had mixed results with all of them. What I do know is that the updates that appear to be causing the problem are related to Windows 10 app compatibility with non-Windows 10 operating systems.

Manual updates that I have found so far:
From a clean install---
Windows6.1-KB3020369-x64 = Stack Servicing Update April 2015 (required to search for updates)
windows6.1-kb3125574-v4-x64_2dafb1d203c8964239af3048b5dd4b1264cd93b9 = Conveniance Rollup April 2016 (approximately 480MB worth of "really important" updates
Windows6.1-KB3168965-x64 = MS16-090 Security Update Kernel Drivers July 2016 (this was a reported fix to earlier kernel updates in Q1 and Q2 2016 that had issues on some machines)
From an install slightly out of date (say two months)
Windows6.1-KB3138612-x64 = Windows Update Client March 2016 (another required update to receive updates, much like KB3020369 above)
Windows6.1-KB3145739-x64 = MS16-039 Security Update Risk Graphical Vulnerability April 2016 (reported to work with KB3138612 in one solution to fix the slow updates)
Also helped in some scenarios---
Windows6.1-KB947821-v34-x64 = System Update Readiness Tool October 2014 (as far as I can tell, this is the update that a fresh install requires in order to see anything past October 2014 in the way of updates)

I am using 64 -bit operating systems, hence the "x64" at the end of the KB number. These should all have an x86 version for 32-bit operating systems as well, iknow for a fact most do I just have not tried all of them on x86. And as far as I can tell, they are not version specific to Windows 7. Meaning that they work for Home, Professional, and Ultimate the same.

Again, I have had mixed results using identical hardware and software. Worst case scenario, it has dropped my search time from literally weeks, to hours, sometimes over night. One machine literally took two weeks. I did a clean install August 15, 2016, and yesterday, August 29,2016, It finally had its updates. Other cases, updates were running over night with no success, I restarted and applied the manual downloads, and then updates were found within two hours.

I am still looking for a solution that will work all the time. In fact, I am still battling this problem on many devices. I hope you have better luck. And that this Windows 10 app compatibility nonsense gets resolved soon.
 

timmoseus

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Apr 7, 2016
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Yes, that would be nice. And eventually I will have to. I have been running a not for profit shop with a staff of me for several years now, and between teaching basic computer troubleshooting/building classes, coordinating volunteers, and keeping the shelves stocked, I am surprised that I am able to get as much done in a week as I do. My first year here was writing up a new database front end and updating very old and incomplete SQL tables. Last year's big project was to create a custom Linux fork as an affordable Chrome Book alternative for schools that had no budget thanks to our state not being able to get it's act together. A couple weeks ago we finally got some half way decent servers donated (HP Proliant DL380 G7) that I am currently working on in my spare time. Our original server when I started was an old Gateway P4 w/HT with WAMP installed and running our DB off of a 250GB IDE drive. And once the Windows 7 refurbisher program gets pulled, about a month away, I will have to have my Microsoft Deployment Toolkit server up and running because our six year old ghosting software does not handle Windows 10. At which point I will have a WSUS running.

In the meantime, for all of those out there that are experiencing the dreaded "slow updates" right now, I think one of my volunteers found a solution last night.

https://www.thurrott.com/windows/67305/convenience-rollup-makes-big-difference-windows-7-updating-still-broken

What we did was to disconnect all network interfaces then manually install the following updates:
Windows6.1-KB3102810-x64
Windows6.1-KB3083710-x64
Windows6.1-KB3172605-x64

The result was to the effect of cutting down search times from hours to less than five minutes.

Hope this helps anyone experiencing this problem right now.