Windows 11 Cumulative Updates (for multiple months) Keep Failing At 38%

Question

Hi,

I've been having failed updates for several months now, at least since the 2025-04 Cumulative Update. For each of the past three updates I get as far as restarting, but the update always fails at 38%. I've followed all the advice I've found from similar threads and the only thing that has worked is doing a Reinstall (Windows Update / Advanced Options / Recovery / Fix problems using Windows Update - Reinstall Now).

This allows me to get my windows version update to a version with the latest cumulative update applied, but for the next Cumulative Update it always fails again, and always at 38%. It doesn't seem right that I need to reinstall windows every month just to stay updated.

Thanks,

Alistair

Answer 1

Hi Xeonzinc,

Which tools you're currently using to manage updates in your environment?

From my experience, when an update fails, a useful trick is to try reinstalling it using DISM. If the update completes successfully this way, it's often a sign that the issue might lie with the update management tool itself.

DISM can sometimes bypass hidden issues that might be affecting the update process. To ensure your system is healthy before applying monthly updates, I recommend running the following commands in Command Prompt (Admin):

DISM /Online /Cleanup-Image /CheckHealth

DISM /Online /Cleanup-Image /ScanHealth

DISM /Online /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealth

SFC /scannow

DISM /Cleanup-Image /StartComponentCleanup /ResetBase

These steps help identify and repair any underlying system issues that might be blocking updates.

Hope this helps your system get back on track!

Answer 2

I have managed to get updates working again by following some of the instructions in here. I'm not sure exactly which issue was blocking the update so have listed everything I did:
https://www.winhelponline.com/blog/error-0x800f0922-windows-update/

• Deleted font files from EFI partition

• Uninstalled Windows Sandbox

• Cleaned Out Any MalwareBytes files

• (Not Specifically listed) - In AOMEI Partition Assistant I noticed I the wrong partition had the recovery label, so removed it from the wrong partition and added it the correct partition (the recovery partition was identified via instructions on the above link