window update

Question

my pc cannot window update, with 'Download error - 0x80248014 '

please tell me how to fix it ? thanks

Answer 1

Hi Yiu,

Thanks for the follow-up! That message likely means either the SoftwareDistribution folder doesn’t exist, or a folder named SoftwareDistribution.old already exists, preventing the rename.

1. Stop the Windows Update services again with these commands

net stop wuauserv

net stop bits

2. Check if the .old folder already exists

Run this command: dir C:\Windows | findstr /I "SoftwareDistribution.old"

If it shows a match, delete the old backup folder:

rmdir /S /Q C:\Windows\SoftwareDistribution.old

3. Now rename the folder again: ren C:\Windows\SoftwareDistribution SoftwareDistribution.old
4. Restart the update services:

net start wuauserv

net start bits

This should resolve the rename issue and help reset the Windows Update cache. Let me know if anything else pops up!

Best,

Answer 2

when I enter 'ren C:\Windows\SoftwareDistribution SoftwareDistribution.old '

it said A duplicate file name exists, or the file

cannot be found.

how ?

Answer 3

Thanks for the update. Since the issue with Windows Update error 0x80248014 still exists, let's move to the next solution.

1. Open Command Prompt as Administrator

Press Windows + S, type cmd, right-click it, and choose Run as administrator

2. Stop Windows Update Services

Copy and paste these one at a time and press Enter after each:

net stop wuauserv

net stop cryptSvc

net stop bits

net stop msiserver

3. Rename Update Cache Folders

Still in the same Command Prompt window, type:

ren C:\Windows\SoftwareDistribution SoftwareDistribution.old

ren C:\Windows\System32\catroot2 Catroot2.old

4. Restart the Services

Now restart everything:

net start wuauserv

net start cryptSvc

net start bits

net start msiserver

5. Reboot your PC, then go back to Settings > Windows Update and try again.

Let me know how this goes. If it still fails, we can try using the Update Assistant or an in-place upgrade.

Best,

Answer 4

I am sorry that , the problem still exists

Answer 5

Hi there, Yiu! This is Marc. Thank you for reaching out to the community.

Thanks for providing those details. Based on what you've described, here are a few approaches we can try.

First, restart the Windows update services in the Services tool.

> Press Windows + R, type services.msc, and press Enter.

> Find these three services:

• Windows Update
• Background Intelligent Transfer Service (BITS)
• Cryptographic Services

For each one Right-click > click Restart. If it’s not running, click Start.

Alternatively, you can run the Windows Update troubleshooter in the Settings menu. Go to System > Troubleshoot > Other troubleshooters and find Windows Update and click run. Follow the on-screen steps.

If that does not work you can manually clear the update cache in the Command Prompt run it with Administrator rights. Type each command below, pressing Enter after each one.

net stop wuauserv

net stop bits

Then go to this folder > Open File Explorer, type: C:\Windows\SoftwareDistribution

Delete all files and folders inside (not the folder itself).

Head back to the command prompt and now restart the services:

net start wuauserv

net start bits

Try running Windows Update again.

Let me know if the update works after this.

Best regards,