Notebooks rendered useless after latest W11 update - boot loop trying to undo changes

Question

Here we go again ,,, another unneeded IT crisis by Microsoft.

So far, 5 notebooks from our customers have exactly the same symptom after the users allow whatever is the update creating the issue: notebook tries to restart, beach ball appears, brief message about undoing changes and restart. Rinse and repeat.

Anyone else having this issue and more importantly, MICROSOFT, how to break the loop and save the notebook?

4 Dell, one HP

Ps: Can a non-lazy developer fix the VERSION pop-up to include WINDOWS 11? What a joke

***Moved from Windows / Other/Unknown / Windows update, recovery, and backup***

Answer 1

Hello Pedro Hermida,

I'm sorry to hear you're experiencing this issue.

It sounds like the update process is encountering a problem and cannot complete, causing it to enter an endless loop. Here are some steps you can take to try and resolve the issue:

1. **Interrupt the Boot Process**:
   • Turn on the notebook and as it starts to boot, force a shutdown by holding the power button.
   • Repeat this two more times. On the third start, the system should enter the Windows Recovery Environment (WinRE).
2. **Use WinRE to Access Advanced Options**:
   • Once in WinRE, go to "Troubleshoot" and then "Advanced options".
3. **Startup Repair**:
   • Select "Startup Repair" and follow the on-screen instructions. This might fix any issues preventing Windows from booting correctly.
4. **Disable BitLocker Temporarily**:
   • If you can access WinRE, try disabling BitLocker temporarily. Go to "Troubleshoot" > "Advanced options" > "Command Prompt".
   • In the Command Prompt, type manage-bde -off C: (assuming C: is the drive with BitLocker) and press Enter.
5. **Uninstall the Last Update**:
   • From "Advanced options", select "Uninstall Updates".
   • Choose "Uninstall latest quality update" or "Uninstall latest feature update", depending on what was recently installed.
6. **Boot into Safe Mode**:
   • In WinRE, go to "Startup Settings" and then click "Restart".
   • Once your PC restarts, press 4 or F4 to boot into Safe Mode.
   • In Safe Mode, you can try uninstalling the problematic update via "Settings" > "Update & Security" > "View update history" > "Uninstall updates".
7. **System Restore**:
   • If System Restore was enabled prior to the update, you can use it to revert your notebook to a state before the update.
   • In "Advanced options", select "System Restore" and follow the instructions.
8. **Check for Manufacturer's Recovery Tools**:
   • Some Dell and HP notebooks come with their own recovery tools that can help you restore the system.

Hope it helps.

Kind regards,

Lei

Answer 2

BTW, the commonality is that Bitlocker is enabled in all of them