You dont have to try all of them.

The following instructions are primarily intended for Windows 10 installed on physical hardware.

In many cases, simply rebooting your rig and rerunning the update will fix your problem.

Unplug your peripherals and reboot.

If rerunning the update doesn’t do the trick, you may have a hardware or driver conflict.

Try unplugging all of yourperipherals, like webcams, microphones, and scanners, before you reboot.

Once only the bare minimum of a keyboard and mouse remain connected, run Windows Update.

Check your available drive space.

One of the most common causes of failed Windows 10 updates is a lack of drive space.

Use the Windows 10 troubleshooting tool.

Windows 10 includes a troubleshooter app that can help fix a lot of update problems.

Try running the troubleshooter, and see if the update can complete.

To execute the Windows 10 update troubleshooter:

Pause Windows 10 Updates.

Manually delete your Windows Update files.

The previous step will typically delete your Windows Update files, including any potentially corrupt files or stuck downloads.

If it doesnt, you will need to delete your SoftwareDistribution directory manually.

Download and load the latest update manually.

Save the update file to your setup, and run it after it finishes downloading.

This process will only work if youre attempting a major feature update.

Use the System File Checker.

At this point, there may likely be a problem with your Windows 10 installation.

spin up the System File Checker to check for, and hopefully repair, any issues.

After it has finished, you could reboot your setup and attempt to update it.

Repair your Windows 10 installation.

There may be a problem with your Windows 10 installation that the System File Checker cant fix.

It’s one step short of a clean install of Windows, so its a pretty drastic move.

In a worst-case scenario, you’re able to restore your backup and hit it one more time.

Is It Okay to Skip a Windows Update?

As a general rule of thumb, you should always install Windows updates.

However, there are some exceptions.