How-To

Here’s What You Can Do if Windows 10 Upgrade Fails

Updated

When upgrading Windows 10, sometimes the process fails. Here are a few reasons why an upgrade might fail and what you can do to troubleshoot and fix them.

The Windows 10 upgrade is free, but sometimes the installation can fail. If you’re having problems getting the upgrade to take, here are a few reasons why the upgrade failed and what you can do for a successful upgrade.

Make Your Windows 10 Upgrade Successful

Disconnect non-essential devices attached to your computer.

If you have non-essential external devices (printer, scanner, etc.) connected to your computer during installation, these can interfere with the setup engine and prevent the installation from completing because Windows 10 is trying to detect and install them. So, keep only the bare essentials attached, keyboard and mouse.

Disable your Antivirus utility, non-essential services, and startup programs.

If you upgrade from a previous version of Windows or a former Windows 10 build, a typical blocker for Windows setup is security utilities. Disable them; these include Antivirus, AntiSpyware, and Firewall utilities. In most cases, it is strongly recommended you uninstall these security utilities and install versions compatible with Windows 10.

Background programs that start with Windows can also prevent a successful installation. Configure Windows to do a clean boot before upgrading. For more, please read our article: Use Windows 8 Task Manager to Disable Startup Programs.

Disable Startup apps Win10

Faulty RAM (Memory)

Sometimes bad memory modules can be a factor in why Windows Setup refuses to install. Try removing or reducing the amount of installed RAM to a single stick. If you don’t know which RAM module might be faulty, try switching around the memory modules between different memory banks. On my workstation, I noticed an issue after the setup was complete. Windows 10 kept crashing with the error message DRIVER_POWER_STATE_FAILURE, so I switched one of the modules from memory bank 2 to 3, and the system booted the PC without a problem.

If switching memory banks does not work, you might have faulty memory modules. For this, I use memtest86+ to scan them to determine which might be faulty. This process runs from a boot disk or CD and should eliminate or confirm if one or more of your memory sticks are bad or the SPD values in the BIOS are correct. Let it run for as long as you can: 2,4,6,8 or more hours; if no errors by then, your RAM is OK. https://www.memtest.org/

Disconnect multiple hard disks.

If you have more than one hard disk installed in your computer, disconnect all except the target hard disk where Windows 10 will be installed. If you have a RAID (Redundant Array of Inexpensive Disks) configuration, disable your RAID controller. If you have an external hard disk or USB key attached, disconnect those too, I notice those can confuse setup. Also, disable General USB Devices (for example – Smart Card Reader.)

Disable Smart Card

Make sure you have enough disk space available.

Windows 10 requires a minimum of 16 GBs (32 bit) or 20 GB (64 bit) of disk space. If your hard disk is full, this might prevent Windows Setup from completing.

Some things you can do to free up disk space:

– Move older files (Documents, Music, Pictures, Videos) to an external hard disk

– Uninstall older programs

See the following Groovypost articles for the many ways you can free up disk space:

If you are getting an error message that your System Reserved Partition is too small, you will need to enlarge it.

The system reserve partition needs to be at least 300 to 450 MBs.

Press Windows key + R > Type: diskmgmt.msc > Hit Enter

Click the system drive to view the size.

Make sure you select the right partition during setup.

If you are performing a clean install or dual booting, Windows creates additional partitions during setup. Make sure you choose the right one. Some persons will make the mistake of selecting the System Reserved Partition used to store recovery files.

partition

Restore Redirected Personal Folders to Their Original Location

If you keep your personal folders on another partition or drive for storage benefits, this actually might prevent Windows from installing correctly. The recommendation is you restore them to their original location. Although Microsoft officials have said the configuration is still supported, I still come across errors resulting from it.

redirect personal folder

Make sure your system meets the minimum system requirements to run Windows 10.

  • Processor: 1 gigahertz (GHz) or faster
  • RAM: 1 gigabyte (GB) (32-bit) or 2 GB (64-bit)
  • Free hard disk space: 16 GB
  • Graphics card: Microsoft DirectX 9 graphics device with WDDM driver
  • A Microsoft account and Internet access

Even some systems that meet these requirements might not be compatible with Windows 10.

To install Windows 10 on your PC, the processor (CPU) must support the following features: Physical Address Extension (PAE), NX, and SSE2. Most CPUs support these features, so if you receive this error, it is likely because the NX feature is not enabled on your system.

Download CPU-Z https://www.cpuid.com/softwares/cpu-z.html

You can use a free utility such as CPU-Z to determine if your system’s processor supports these extensions. If it does, and you are still prevented from upgrading, you likely need to enable the extension of your system BIOS, or you need to update the BIOS itself. Such updates can often be obtained from your computer manufacturer’s website or the manufacturer of your motherboard.

cpuz

Advanced Troubleshooting Tips

Corrupt Install Media

An ISO file is a digital replica of a DVD. Before you can use it, it must be burnt to a blank DVD or create a bootable copy on a USB thumb drive.

Sometimes a corrupt ISO file prevents the setup from working properly. I personally made a couple of coasters using the new Windows 10 Media Creation Tool. So the best thing to do after downloading the ISO is to verify the file.

Below is the SHA1 hash value, which will help us verify the integrity of the ISO file downloaded using the Media Creation Tool:

SHA1 of en_windows_10_singlelanguage_10240_x64_dvd.iso
29DCBBDCDFD8EC674AF0BDC00083ED4FBC8B9934
SHA-1: en_windows_10_pro_10240_x64_dvd.iso
C42B107CB8930CA82A42BE0F9325A37BE2E8FF64

Download SlavaSoft HashCalc here.

When the download is complete, right-click the zip file and extract it, then run setup.

Verify ISO 1

After setup is complete, launch SlavaSoft HashCalc, uncheck all boxes except SHA1.

Calculated 1a

Click Calculate; when complete, the hash value will be generated. If it matches with the above, then the integrity of the ISO file is valid.

Calculated

How to Resize the System Reserved Partition

My recommended utility for this task is EaseUS Partition Master. It’s small, quick, and easy to use. You can download the free version here or get the Trial Version of the fully enabled Pro edition. Since Windows 10 setup requires that the system reserved partition is at least 300 to 450 MBs, we will allocate that amount.

Would you mind ensuring you create a system repair disc in advance before doing this?

How To Create a Windows 8 Recovery Flash Drive

After installing the Easeus partition manager, launch the program. Select the system partition where Windows is installed. Click Resize/Move button on the toolbar:

Resize 1

Under Decide size and position, use the knob and drag to the right until a desired amount of space is allocated. Look in the Unallocated Space Before: field to see how much. Once the amount you want is reached, release.

Resize 2

You will now see an unallocated amount of disk space created; Click OK

Resize 3

Click Apply and OK to confirm changes. Your computer will be restarted to apply the changes.

Resize 4

After a system restart, log in, and launch Disk Management – press Windows key + R > type: diskmgmt.msc then hit Enter on your keyboard.

Select the System Reserved partition, then right-click it and click Extend Volume.

Resize 5

Select the Unallocated space we created earlier, then click Next, then click Finish.

Resize 6

You should now have a large enough System Reserved partition to accommodate Windows 10 setup.

Resize 7

Fix hard disk and operating system errors using the Check Disk Command, DISM, and System File Checker Utilities

If you have been running Windows for many years now, it’s a possibility that there might still be potential blockers to a successful upgrade even though it’s running smoothly. Broken applications, operating system updates, improper shutdown, power outages, and other factors can corrupt files on the hard disk that could upgrade Windows 10 challenging. Windows for years has included built-in utilities that can fix most of these common problems. Be warned; you will need to get your hands dirty with the command line for some of these actions.

The first one we will start with is the check disk command which scans your hard disk for errors and attempts to fix them. If you upgrade from a previous version of Windows, sometimes corrupted system files can prevent setup from working properly. See the following article for instructions:

How to Check if Your Computer’s Hard Disk Drive is Bad

Also, run the System File Checker utility, which will scan your system and attempt to fix broken operating system files:

Click Start (Windows 8 users, press Windows key + X > Command Prompt (Admin)

Type: CMD, from the results, right-click CMD
Click 'Run as Administrator'
At the Command Prompt, type: sfc /scannow

This will check for any integrity violations

When complete, restart your computer

For computers running Windows 8 or later, another important command-line utility users can run are the Deployment Image Servicing and Management tool used to service a Windows installation. Similar to the System File Checker utility, you can use DISM to correct corrupted system files and determine the system’s status.

Press Windows key + X > Click Command Prompt (Admin)

Type each command at the prompt, then hit enter after each scan is complete)

Dism /Online /Cleanup-Image /CheckHealth
Dism /Online /Cleanup-Image /ScanHealth
Dism /Online /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealth

Hopefully, these solutions can make the upgrade happen smoothly. If you’re still running into issues, please see our article – How to Fix the Most Common Windows 10 Upgrade Issues. Although it’s impossible to capture ALL the various configuration issues out there, it does include the most common issues users are running into while upgrading. If you still run into issues, try posting your issue on our Free Windows 10 Community Forum. We monitor it regularly, at least more regularly than my email inbox. ;)

70 Comments

70 Comments

  1. jerry dodson

    December 9, 2015 at 6:22 am

    my other pc has locked up during the win 10 installation. the message is “working on updates, 100% complete, do not turn your computer off”. the pc has been like that for several days. I have done the “control-alt-del”, “alt-esc”, nothing I do changes the message. I even unplugged the tower, and let it sit for a half day, plugged it back in and got the same message as above……my pc is locked up..what do you suggest?

    • Steve

      December 25, 2015 at 6:51 am

      Trying to upgrade to the “Free” Windows 10 upgrade has been nothing but problems and has consumed many hours of my time. Microsoft still doesn’t seem to get it customers want plug and play easy not a hacker video game to figure out. I ended up losing files and recovering back to Windows 8.1 that is a dog but at least it works sort of and doesn’t go to never-never land. Good luck on your recovery, sorry I couldn’t be more of a help. Merry Christmas.

    • Sharon

      September 19, 2016 at 9:11 am

      This happened to me also. Did all the same as you did but only ‘HP’ insignia comes up. Now what do I do? Wish I’d never downloaded Windows 10. Has only been issue after issue.

  2. Glenn

    December 23, 2015 at 9:50 am

    You state this as a reason why upgrade will fail but then do not provide the method of fixing it only where to look at if it exists: “The system reserve partition needs to be at least 300 to 450 MBs.”

    So, how would a person resolve this issue?
    Also, another issue I have run into is that the reserve partition has no drive letter and it needs one for the upgrade, however, there is no option to give it one like there is on the alt menu for C:. How to resolve this as well would be of great help thank you.

  3. Gary B

    December 30, 2015 at 10:20 am

    I’ve tried everything in this post – as well as others elsewhere on the web and consistently get error 88982F04. I’m trying to upgrade from Win 7 Home Premium (Version 6.1 Build 7601: Service Pack 1). Any help appreciated!

    • Gary Bowering

      January 19, 2016 at 10:34 am

      The solution in the end was a clean install. I took the opportunity to add a GPT HDD to the system and installed to that as the new C drive, copying over files as needed from the old drive which will now become an internal back-up.

      • D. Andy Buffington

        September 5, 2016 at 12:12 pm

        Hi Gary Bowering,

        Would you please EM me what and how you did the clean install? I don’t understand what a GPT means either?

        Would you please EM me a digital voice recording instead of trying to type what and how you did your clean install?

        My EM Address is TexasState32 (at) Gmail.com

        FYI, I have been un-successful during at least 9 install attempts of gong from Windows 7 OS to Windows 10 OS.

        Thanks . . . Andy

  4. Jack G

    January 3, 2016 at 4:13 pm

    My Windows 7 Pro has been re-booting every 5-10 minutes since I started the upgrade a day and a half ago. I did long on in-between and disable my anti virus and firewall, but that hasn’t changed anything?

  5. doseofreality

    January 14, 2016 at 1:55 pm

    It figures that macrosoft can’t pull this off what with all of their other problems. It’s very telling . I think I’m going to go linux . I’m having the same problem with my 7 home premium . What a freaking joke MS is . My lumia sucks too

  6. Will

    January 17, 2016 at 11:40 am

    Hi Andre
    Win 10 ver11099 is not showing as an available update. I am on the fast ring, have been since 10/2014. Today, it is finally available on my X86 laptop but not yet on the X64 desktop.
    I’ve done all the typical things to ‘fix’ WU. I get all the Defender updates but no mention of 11099.
    I’ve checked the registry too
    I thank you for all your quality guidance on the Windows Insider forum at MS. Your help there has been terrific.
    Will

  7. Rob W

    January 19, 2016 at 2:54 am

    I have done everything that is here and elsewhere to prepare for the upgrade. Every time I get the same error 8007002C-2000D. I look up this error and am told to do the same old things I have already done and then I start the installation. It gets to 16 or 17% and then reverts back to windows 7. There must be something else that I need to do but What?

  8. Will

    January 19, 2016 at 12:49 pm

    I bit the bullet. I ran the MS Media tool. It forced me to lose all settings and currently installed applications. It installed build 10240, the RTM. So I reinstalled and reconfigured everything. Four hours, ugh! During this, I put myself back to ‘Insider’ status as the RTM default is to be a regular user. I set it to the fast ring. By the time I was done with all the installations and tweaks, I found I had 11099 ready to be installed. I let it run and I now have Redstone.
    I had been misled in that I had been told the media would install (I think) 11082 (or would it of been 11074, I lose track of the build numbers!) and that I’d have to upgrade to 11088 (or 11082), basically meaning I’d have to go through a series of upgrades to get to 11099. Not the case. 100240 one step to 11099.
    Something I had done was preventing OS upgrades from happening. Regular patches and Defender updates were working fine. Sadly, I have no idea what it was but… if I were to venture a guess, it would be that when I ‘disabled’ telemetry and either did not run it back on correctly or I made the Microsoft server mad at me. ;)

    Other errors I had also went away. The old ‘dontrefresh’ issue that had been around since 7 reared up and is now gone. The sluggish ‘file Save’ is gone (I suspect they were related) and I am happy to see the file copy dialog has returned.

  9. Will

    January 19, 2016 at 12:55 pm

    Rob
    Back up your pc
    Go here:https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/software-download/windows10
    Burn to a DVD
    Run it. It may let you keep your files and programs, it may not. If not, you’ll have to reinstall the programs you want and recover the data from the backup.
    Will

    • ROB

      August 26, 2016 at 12:34 am

      IT GETS TO 4.29GB AND THEN STOPS. DID YOU HAVE THE SAME ISSUE ??

  10. doseofreality

    January 20, 2016 at 6:15 am

    Well , I finally got it installed . I found a thread on microsoft’s website . They all seem to be Indians LOL! Anyway , it said to open up the update manager which I did and right click it and “run as administrator” . I do not remember now exactly what I did but it was basically resetting it . It still wouldn’t work so after restarting the laptop then it did . I hope that works out for you . Even I was able to do it but maybe I got lucky!

    • Ron Pavellas

      February 9, 2016 at 8:27 pm

      How to open the update manager, please…

    • Ron Pavellas

      February 9, 2016 at 8:32 pm

      Holy Moley, I found how to update as administrator and the download is finally in process. Thanks!

  11. pierre forgette

    January 25, 2016 at 11:20 am

    i have problem ‘windows 10 couldn’t update the system reserved partition’. When I try to look, the system doesn’t show a partition with that name, but shows a blank 100 mbs partition.

  12. Eric

    January 31, 2016 at 3:59 pm

    Useless for my problem

  13. Mohammad

    February 1, 2016 at 1:10 pm

    My PC gave me this error 8007025D-2000C, could you help me please

    ty

  14. David

    February 17, 2016 at 6:15 am

    The Windows Store App would not work on the second User Account on my previously up-graded PC. Microsoft tried to correct this on a number of occasions by removing the old account and creating a new one. This worked for a day or two and then reverted back with the original fault. Microsoft have this morning taken control of my PC and downloaded the Windows 10 ISO File and re-installed Windows 10. This all went fine and the Windows Store app now works, the trouble is that Windows Maps no longer works. I have not tried all the other apps on my PC so do not know if they are working or not. Where to now?

  15. Anonymous Coward

    February 29, 2016 at 7:30 pm

    I am homing in on a possible MMX bug in the Core 2 Duo (7300/U7500/etc) used on many older machines as the root cause of most failed installs.
    It looks like some memory notably PC3-8500s also goes bad over time and can cause endless problems but the CPU bug is particularly nasty as it happens only with certain (random) combinations of temperature and core voltage.

    Also worth mentioning, some older netbooks do not work with 10 due to an entirely preventable graphics driver issue which can be avoided for now by doing a fresh install of 10 and then installing the latest driver in Win7 mode.

  16. Bob

    March 7, 2016 at 5:45 am

    My laptop spent 6 ours downloading windows 10 and 8 hours ‘installing’ it. Then it wanted to setup things, and went to a grey screen, with no icons, no cursor, no nothing. IT just sits there. I have rebooted six times, all it does is show the Windows icon, play the Windows chime, then go to a grey screen and sit there. No way to get to anything, No way to access anything….

  17. K Kwan

    March 11, 2016 at 8:06 am

    I have given up. I tried three times and each time I got to the stage when it told me my files are locked and would I try to unlock them and try again. I’m running Windows 7 Pro, I guess I’ll have to wait till this system reaches the end of its lifespan or till Microsoft stops supporting Window 7.

    I had an older computer running Windows 7 Ultimate and Windows 10 was surreptitiously installed overnight without my knowledge without any problem, despite having the update hidden! What about that!

  18. Desperate PC'er

    March 16, 2016 at 1:46 pm

    2nd attempt to upgrade to 10 from 7 pro 64bit FAILED. Spent hours on phone using Remote Assistance and convinced me to buy their “recommended” anti-virus package/scanner… after about $200 later, we tried a install again… and again.. .the install froze my laptop at 32%. Now what?!

  19. K Kwan

    March 17, 2016 at 2:34 am

    If I were you I would give up and stay with Windows 7 Pro. I tried to negotiate Windows 10 in my old system, but it’s so unfriendly I reverted back to Windows 7 Ultimate. My new problem is to stop installation of Windows 10 automatically again. It’s difficult, but I think I’d eventually managed it by hiding the Windows 10 update ( repeatedly! ) and deleting update KB 3035583. and change update setting to let you decide whether to download or install.

    There must be a catch if Microsoft is so persistent in trying to get everyone to have 10. I must add that if you like your Windows 7, you would not like Windows 10. Take it as a blessing when installation failed.

  20. Joseph Byrnes

    March 26, 2016 at 12:23 pm

    I recently upgraded from Windows 7 with McAfee on a Dell PC to Windows 10 and had a problem booting.

    It would boot successfully (POST) and go to the blue Windows Logo screen with circling dots, which would last for a second or two, then just freeze. The only way I could get out this was to hold the power on button in for maybe 8 to 10 seconds, and then the computer would go off.

    I then powered on again, and this time it would not freeze, and continue on to the logon screen and things were swell. When I was finished with whatever I was doing, I powered off normally.

    The next time I powered up my PC, I would go thru the same problem scenario. It would freeze the first time but would come up normally the second time after a forced power off.

    After spending hours troubleshooting this, I finally asked a friend about it and he said:

    “I’d heard some folks were complaining about this when Windows 10 first came out and mentioned disabling ‘fast startup’ resolved the issue for them.”

    Settings > System > Power & sleep > Additional Power Settings > Choose what the power buttons do > Change settings that are currently unavailable > Shutdown settings > uncheck the “Turn on fast startup (recommended)” check box > save changes > reboot”

    It worked like a champ for me.

    Joe B.
    Columbia, MD

    • Si M

      May 14, 2016 at 9:44 am

      worked for me!!! After a year of trying other fixes!

    • D

      May 21, 2016 at 6:25 pm

      That sounds like it would solve my problem but how do i get to settings if windows won’t boot? Thanks for any insight.

      • Bill Peterson

        June 10, 2016 at 1:15 am

        I have a similar problem. Cannot start Windows 10 so I cannot get to Settings.

  21. Stacy Lowe

    April 1, 2016 at 7:22 am

    Nothing here helps me. Our other laptop went to blank screen and stays there. Was running windows 7 before the awful windows 10 update. HELP!!!

    • Joe Byrnes

      April 1, 2016 at 10:44 am

      Stacy. Your problem sounds similar to the problem I had and I received a fix that worked. Did you see my posting directly above dated March 26, 2016? Good luck. Joe Byrnes

      • Stacy Lowe

        April 3, 2016 at 6:05 pm

        Thanks but ours won’t come back up at all so I can’t change anything. Taking it in tomorrow.

      • Linda O.

        July 13, 2016 at 10:04 am

        Any suggestion on how to work it with a desktop? No power button option to hold down, unfortunately. I’d deinstall, but can’t get off the Welcome page!

  22. Pete

    May 24, 2016 at 4:56 am

    I had a problem instllalling from USB, tried sevaral times, then did with fresh downloads, would only ever get to 66% then give a message that some of the files were missing.

    Heard that win 8 had security settings and required security settings change to run from USB. Ignored that at first because I was on Windows 7, could not get to the security settings on the F2 at startup ( is that bios?) as they do not exist on that version.

    Decided to try a DVD, failed twice. On Third attempt with DVD it worked with no difference in procedure.

    Damn near pulled my hair out after a week trying!

    Hope it might help someone else.

  23. Dmitry

    June 6, 2016 at 9:47 am

    Microsoft Windows 10 Setup is a faulty and messy stuff. The article above doens’t improve the situation at all and doesn’t help. I had a chance to install Windows 3.1 by myself and I still remember how fragile Windows Setup was around that time. Windows 10 known to be the best of the breed OS shows up a very similar behaviour failing to get installed all the time on the same hardware where legacy versions do run perfecly. Thanks God Windows 7 keeps being restored back all the time :) Removing hardware from a laptop, uninstalling/disabling Microsoft Security and firewall is all of that what you really suggest to do? What astonishes me is why Microsoft isn’t working on improving the situation … My PC is still there downloading the Windows 10 upgrade like each and every night :)

    • Bob

      June 8, 2016 at 6:23 pm

      After reading the comments above, I’d suggest going back to Windows 7. If you are not tight on HD space (at least 10-20GB), install VirtualBox and install Linux Mint with MATE in a VM. Fairly straight forward on a Windows system. Then whenever you have time, you can play with Linux and learn what is equivalent to what you use on Windows – e.g., LibreOffice, Browsers (Firefox, Chrome, Opera), various utilities accessible via GUI, explore whats available via the Software Manager and WINE (you can port a lot of Windows programs and run them under WINE (including stuff that ran on XP but not on Windows 7) – I use Notepad++, PSP, Nero and others. Plus you won’t be bombarded with constant security updates on the “most secure” system ever. Its a good way to ease into Linux and decide whether or not you like it better than Windows.

  24. Lk

    June 6, 2016 at 8:34 pm

    This upgrade is very poor! My computer has been hung up for hours! I can’t use it and now I may have to bring it to the computer shop for repair. I hope my files aren’t lost. Why is the world do they make it so darn difficult. Simple is the way of the world.

  25. Nigel

    July 4, 2016 at 2:54 pm

    error 0xc1900107 when updating windows 10. wasted 4 hours trying to resolve issue, but microsoft help not very helpful. still do not know how to overcome the problem, and still do not know if my laptop has a security vulnerability. Stopped using my laptop, and only using my mac. If I did not need Office I would never ever touch Microsoft. It has caused me a life time of grief since since windows 95. Would it be too much to ask what the solution to the error codes are, instead of directing people to sites like this where it seems everyone has a problem. Microsoft get it sorted.

  26. Jan

    July 19, 2016 at 9:50 am

    autorun.dll missing or corrupt error code 0xE7 I am trying to intsall windows 10

    • Dave T.

      July 20, 2016 at 3:41 am

      I started the Windows 10 upgrade last night. When I last checked my laptop during the install, it was at about 6%. I went to check it right before I went to bed and the laptop was shut off. I turned it back on, and there was a message that said, “Reverting to your previous edition of Windows.” I checked it first thing this morning and sure enough, Windows 8.1 is back. I didn’t see a single screen stating that the install had failed, or what error had occurred. Any idea how I can find out why the install failed, and how I can try it again? I plan to first follow the advice above regarding detaching all peripherals and disabling Fast Startup and the startup programs.

      • Mark

        July 22, 2016 at 2:59 am

        make sure that your charger is plug in to avoid shutdown while upgrading because it cause the installation failed then it will revert to the previous windows.

        Hope it help.

        • Dave T.

          July 23, 2016 at 8:43 am

          Yes, that did happen to me once. I finally figured out that my computer was overheating. Once when it shutdown I powered it right back up and saw a message that a thermal shutdown had occurred. I blew the dust out and started again, but forgot to plug it back in. After it shutdown from lack of power, I tried again and it finally worked. Thanks for the suggestion.

  27. Fabulous12

    July 22, 2016 at 1:59 am

    error 0x8007002C-0X200D The installation failed during the safe-os during migrate_data operation

    • Wally

      May 10, 2018 at 3:08 am

      Same here – I am going to try to get all data into A default area such as My documents; Now I have stuff saved on flash drives, other usb disks etc. and when it is upgrading, It doesn’t find ALL the data in order to satisfy the Migrate_data operation.
      Either that or save all your data using AEOMI or other software, then DELETE all data except apps on your local hard drive C:\
      I finally got the Latest version of win10pro 1800 series and it nearly finished successfully – until it got to migrate-data operation and failed at 83 percent.
      Will give it a try later since I have already spent close to 1000 hours working on Win10 headaches.

  28. Linda O.

    July 22, 2016 at 9:46 am

    Thanks, all. Geek Squad recommended file backup and restoring to factory settings at cost of $300-400. We’ll be getting a new desktop at that price with factory-installed W 10.

  29. Ken H

    July 22, 2016 at 10:02 pm

    I have given up. WIN 7 will remain on the problem PC until it dies. I have tried all the suggestions only to wait for ever to get a msg that Some sort of error occurred install failed. The phone in went from download the .iso try a clean install. It will take hours to redownload all the apps on the machine and reinstall plus the time on each vendors support line on hold then explaining why I need to reinstall and finding all the numbers they will ask for. I have done win10 installs on 50+ PC’s not all went smoothly but I was able to resolve the problem.

  30. Frank Romanelli

    July 25, 2016 at 5:14 am

    I too have given up. Hours have been spent with all sorts of fixes, turnong things off, disabling hardware etc and even from clean installs to trying from various ISO’s (on disk or DVD). Nothing gets me past the “unknown error” message which is so helpful that I can easily find the problem!

    I’m sure Microsoft doesn’t care as it expects us to pay after the end of the month for an upgrade. I started upgrading last year, trying every couple of months.

    Looks like I will stick to my Windows 7.

  31. Michael P

    July 25, 2016 at 6:14 am

    My problem came up because I had Mcafee installed. I received a message telling me to uninstall it. When it resumed, it only showed a white screen in the Windows 10 Upgrade Assistant box. I left it all weekend and it never did anything. I went through a lot of these suggestions and they didn’t work. Someone may have already posted this and I missed it, but you may want to check if you have a restore point. I’m not sure if the Win 10 upgrade automatically creates one, but my machine had one from the day I started the install. I reverted back to that restore point, redownloaded the Windows 10 upgrade, kicked off the installation and it worked.

  32. Rhonda Lea Fries

    July 26, 2016 at 6:47 am

    A thousand times thank you.

    I got stuck at 99% several times. After I read this article and a few others, I did the following:

    Moved my Downloads and Documents folders back to Users
    Uninstalled NOD32
    Disk Cleanup, including system files
    Stopped Windows Update service
    Set Windows Update to never check
    Deleted the all the files and folders in Software Distribution
    Deleted the entire Windows 10 upgrade folder
    Configured a clean boot
    Restarted
    Returned to this link:
    https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/software-download/windows10/?wa=wsignin1.0
    Held my breath and selected “update now”

    The download took half an hour. By the time I went to bed an hour later, the install was at 26%. When I woke up, four hours later, I was greeted with “Welcome to Windows 10.”

    I’m sure some of what I did was overkill, but you can’t argue with results. I suspect the clean boot was the big one. I’ll do a clean install after the Anniversary Update.

    Thank you again.

    • Don

      July 30, 2016 at 12:16 pm

      Thank you, thank you, thank you, Rhonda! Your steps led my PC to reboot itself and resolve a problem associated with the update service. Then the Windows-10 upgrade process succeeded.

      • Rhonda Lea Fries

        July 30, 2016 at 5:39 pm

        I am so very glad I could help another frustrated user, Don.

        What a miserable experience. (And I say that as someone who has been upgrading software for 32 years. This was just screwy.)

  33. Mickey

    July 27, 2016 at 6:09 am

    non of the answers to the windows 10 upgrade Failures is working, the maximum is restarting the upgrade and getting new errors. This already happened more than 10 times.
    So what do you think : was it helpful ???
    and the worst of all is that the process starts the download each time, lucky I don’t have any limits from my provieder

  34. Lynn

    July 28, 2016 at 9:55 am

    What happens if I miss the deadline for installing Windows 10. I keep getting error code 0x80070005 and I cannot figure out how to fix it. There should be an easier way to do this.

    • Marc

      July 28, 2016 at 10:31 am

      I had this with my upgrade and it was driving me crazy. The answer for me was to download the “System update readiness tool” from Microsoft and run this, it took several hours to run, but must have cleared up the tangled mess of failed updates.

      I also downloaded and ran CCleaner to get rid of registry issues and old redundant files. But they other key thing I did with CCleaner was disable everything from Start up, everything on all 3 tabs. Then the install from ms update to upgrade to win 10 finally ran without issue.

  35. Steven Langhams

    July 28, 2016 at 5:07 pm

    Running install from DVD on a Win7Pro PC, I got through the licence to where it was supposed to start and it just hung at 0%. Tried all ways until I saw your post and the System Reserved partition size. Mine was only 100Mb.
    Re-sized with Easeus and bingo! It’s running now. Many thanks

    • Steve Krause

      July 28, 2016 at 11:08 pm

      Awesome Steven. Glad the article helped ya out! We’re also publishing a full review on Easeus next week. Going to be a free giveaway for groovyPost readers so stay tuned for that next week.

      Thanks for the feedback!

      -Steve
      gPost

  36. Bill

    July 29, 2016 at 4:49 pm

    It’s more than unfortunate the Microsoft repeatedly turns out software which has lots of bugs remaining. I’ve spent about 16 hours now trying to “upgrade” from Win 7 to Win 10. The last 9 hours have produced nothing more than “Preparing for the upgrade”.
    I’m now considering abandoning this whole process. Maybe it would be better to remain with Win 7, which works, and not downgrade to Win 10.
    … and they let computers fly airplanes…
    If Apple computers weren’t so expensive, I’d be giving up on MSFT altogether!

  37. Mark

    July 29, 2016 at 7:10 pm

    Just gave up on an upgrade from Windows 7 Pro to Windows 10. The upgrade assistant sat on 99% in the installation phase for over 24 hours. Eventually I powered the thing off and, of course, after 24 hours ‘work’ I am back where I started. As someone above said, Microsoft should get it into their collective heads that people want something that actually works from the off and doesn’t require multiple visits help sites to discover:
    a) that hundreds of folk are experiencing the same issues; and
    b) there are multiple suggested solutions to the problem.

    Perhaps a little hard work in getting a stable system that works reliably, instead of constantly introducing new features that no one wants, would be a good idea.

    Of course, Microsoft could have got around the issue by giving people the option of doing a fresh install rather than merely upgrading, but that wouldn’t have fitted with sir’s plans and might just have been convenient for users.

    Of course Microsoft will say it was giving out something for free, but then the only reason most of us find ourselves going through these cycles is that Microsoft likes to make its product obsolete on a regular basis. Imagine the outrage there’d be if most consumer products put us through the mill the way Microsoft does.

    And don’t get me started on the joys of Windows 10 and Office 2016. We have a brand new laptop with a fresh install of Windows 10 and a brand new purchase of Office 2016 Professional. What do we find, within less than a couple of months, Outlook regularly refuses to open, and hey presto, when we start searching the web, we find this is a common problem. This is not an old set up that needs refreshing, but a brand new installation with Microsoft’s latest software.

    Note to Microsoft, I might enjoy ‘the experience’ and ‘increased productivity’, if just for once I didn’t find myself having to apply my extremely limited abilities to debugging your wretched product.

  38. Rob

    August 4, 2016 at 7:23 pm

    What do you do when you have Windows 7 installed on your macbook pro through bootcamp, you download the Windows 10 upgrade on the last day, and then in the middle of setting up Windows10 it asks you restart your computer after you remove the antivirus program, and then when your computer starts backup, Windows 7 will not load anymore and you’ve lost all your data, and the opportunity to upgrade to Windows 10 cause its now expired.

    That’s what happened to me. I can’t start my windows because of the windows 10 upgrade, and now I can’t even get windows 10 for free.

    Thanks :(

  39. Michael Gene Muldoon

    August 11, 2016 at 8:11 am

    I have upgraded most of my Windows 7 machines to 10 including 2 old Fujitsu Stylistic tablets without problem. But on one old Dell at home and on my main computer at work I could not get the install to work. The error was 0xc1900107 then it would revert to Windows 7 thank goodness. The old Dell I just gave up on because hey it’s an old Dell and I have other computers for what I do at home and they are fine with 10. But on my main work machine I wasted 2 weeks every day trying to resolve issue. I can’t afford to lose that computer or anything on it so a fresh install is out of the question. I read a zillion posts on the web about this error but none of the few things that worked for other people worked and I still do not know how to overcome the problem. Then of course the free upgrade ran out and I will not pay them for an OS that I couldn’t install for free when I have no idea if it would install at all. Would it be too much to ask what the solution to the error codes are, instead of directing people to sites like this where it seems everyone has a problem. Looks like I will run Windows 7 Pro there until they kill it. Actually looks like I will be retired by the time they quit supporting 7 unless they switch that up sooner.

  40. eskanderatef

    September 30, 2016 at 5:06 pm

    I use windows 10 home version 1511on HP pavilion dv6 laptop for one year without problem but “feature update to windows 10,version 1607” is a nightmare,the update is downloaded then fail to be installed several times once error 0x80240fff and once error 0x800705b4 and every time it started to download again from the beginning.I was advised to use the “media creator tool”but it’s impossible to download while “Update & Security”is downloading the update at the same time and so I was advised to put my WiFi connection to “Metered connection state” to prevent “update & security”from downloading the update and I want to ask,if my WiFi is set to ” metered connection”will it download the update by using the Media Creator tool?please try to help me,best regards.

  41. George Phillies

    October 23, 2016 at 10:03 am

    The upgrade failed to complete. The good techs in support were unable to stop this, through av variety of procedures, including turn off power. There was no warning about disconnecting RAID drives. The main drive was taken out completely, The RAID backup lost its file structure, so we were able to recover the files, all 1.8 million of them, we think, but not the data structure. Fortunately, I regularly back up onto DVDs but there were several gaps. Fortunately, I always pay for backup disk copies of software, so many things could be restored with patience.The third hard drive, not in the raid structure, was intact, but it was used for long term storage of such things as class videos.

    The machine is back on windows 7.

  42. donald

    December 21, 2016 at 9:26 am

    All I did was to uninstall ,Norton. Internet security, and disable windows defender and also disable firewall. And the installation was successful , from windows 8.1 to 10

    • Steve Krause

      December 21, 2016 at 2:41 pm

      Great feedback. Thanks Donald.

  43. Oliver Powell

    March 21, 2017 at 1:06 am

    Hi Andre,

    I have recommended the solutions to a person who is facing the Windows 10 up gradation issue, and luckily after reading the solution, he has resolved his issue. Thanks for sharing an informative post with us.

  44. George Heath

    June 3, 2017 at 10:55 pm

    Code C1900101 fails during some boot phase sysprep…?
    I literally wiped my HD, re-installed Windows 7 Pro and fully updated before trying to upgrade to Windows 10…
    It looks like it installs then fails and reverts back to Windows 7Pro …
    Seriously.. who came up with this crap Operating System…???
    I can not believe most computers and programs are dependent on this shit…
    I’ve been trying everything I could find to remedy this but nothing has worked.
    Seriously about to scrap this shit and go with Linux or buy an Apple..

  45. Ace Krinkelpous

    July 16, 2017 at 6:33 pm

    I administer a small number of computers, around 30. Someone tell me: why do these “major” upgrades to Windows 10 require that Windows mess with the system reserved partition? 8 or 9 of the computers failed Windows 10 major upgrades because something went wrong when the upgrade tries to modify this partition. Most recently, upgrade 1703 caused 2 of the computers to state “missing operating system” after a reboot during the upgrade process.

    Lesson #1: ALWAYS back up your hard drive (image it) before one of these major upgrades–and be prepared to restore from this image. Even Microsoft itself urges you to back up your system before major upgrades (on its website–but of course Windows 10 will automatically perform these upgrades with no backup.)

    Lesson #2: Microsoft does not care about you. Windows 10 is a disaster and I personally hate it with a vengeance, and hate Microsoft as a result. But I am a captive to it. If you aren’t–try a different OS.

  46. oldmrjim

    February 24, 2018 at 4:38 pm

    Solved. I am glad I am not the ONLY geek that forgot something…. Windows 10 has 3 partitions on a hard drive. Windows 7 has 2? I usually setup my drives using Acronis BUT Windows 10 has an excellent disk management software. I discovered that on all the previous upgrades, i DID NOT have to remove the drive and partition it elsewhere as I did here! I discovered after 3 days of doing everything more than once, there must be a simple issue: 1. remove the drive and add a 450 mb 3rd partition on another Window desktop or use Acronis software. 2. Use free disk partitioning s/w on the Internet. I do not recommend any. I use the geek Acronis Disk Manager. I suspect this changed Jan. 1.

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