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Windows 8.1 update to Windows 10 fails

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Wednesday, November 28, 2018 11:35 PM

I have a computer running Windows 8.1 Pro that we're trying to update to Windows 10.  I have refreshed the computer to make sure of a good starting point.  After clicking "install", it goes to 2% then I get a "Windows 10 Installation Failed" message.  How can I troubleshoot this?  Is there a log file to check somewhere?

Thank you.

All replies (5)

Friday, December 7, 2018 5:13 PM âś…Answered

Thank you for all the responses.  We ultimately found the problem was that the Win10 upgrade USB we purchased was defective.  Fortunately, we had purchased several.  Using a different one worked perfectly.

Once again, thank you.

Thursday, November 29, 2018 1:12 AM

Find a flash drive that you can format ( > or = 8 GB).

Create a bootable Windows 10 iso:

https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/software-download/windows10

https://www.tenforums.com/tutorials/9230-download-windows-10-iso-file.html

See this link to upgrade from Windows 8.1 pro:

https://www.tenforums.com/tutorials/2267-upgrade-windows-10-a.html

When Windows upgrades fail you can start troubleshooting with common troubleshooting steps.

Alternatively you can read log files which may take significant time to see if there is information about the failure.

Many times there are trial error steps unless there is a specific problematic driver, hardware or partition size problem.

Run through this upgrade checklist before upgrading with the Windows 10 iso:

1) remove nonessential hardware
docks
USB devices
printers
headset
speakers
bluetooth devices
USB drives (other than a windows 10 iso if used for the upgrade)
USB Wireless Mouse or Keyboard Receiver, USB Wireless Network Card,

  1. These should be the only attached devices:
    wired mouse
    wired keyboard
    monitor

Any of these that have been done in the past week are not necessary to repeat:

  1. open administrative command prompt and type or copy and paste: (repair file system)
    chkdsk /x /f /r
    This may take many hours so plan to run overnight
    Find the chkdsk report in the event viewer using the information in this link and post into the thread:
    Read Chkdsk Log in Event Viewer in Windows 10 Performance Maintenance Tutorials
    https://www.tenforums.com/tutorials/40822-read-chkdsk-log-event-viewer-windows-10-a.html

  2. open administrative command prompt and copy and paste: (repair operating system)
    sfc /scannow
    dism /online /cleanup-image /restorehealth
    When these have completed > right click on the top bar or title bar of the administrative command prompt box > left click on edit then select all > right click on the top bar again > left click on edit then copy > paste into the thread

  3. update windows (have all recommended updates installed) and reboot after updates

  4. uninstall all non-Microsoft antivirus software
    (This includes always on and manual software.)

  5. Verify that the drive has > 27 GB free space (At least 25 GB is needed for creating dumps)

  6. Place the computer in clean boot:
    https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/...oot-in-windows
    How to perform a Clean Boot in Windows 10 - TechNet Articles - United States (English) - TechNet Wiki
    https://www.eightforums.com/threads/troubleshoot-problem-with-clean-boot-in-windows-8.23382/

9) Remove all unused SATA devices

  1. Uninstall non-Microsoft disk encryption software

  2. Run disk cleanup to clean temporary and system files

There are multiple log files that can be viewed but they may be very challenging to interpret.

The error messages and codes may be ambiguous.

The log files are Panther logs.

The most common files within Panther that are troubleshooted are setuperr and setupact

Thursday, November 29, 2018 4:03 PM

Hi,

Thanks for posting in Microsoft TechNet Forum.

1. When the upgrade fails, try using the troubleshoot in the system first.

2. Reading these logs may help determine at what point installation failed and why.
    $windows.~bt\Sources\Panther (Log location before Setup can access the drive).
    $windows.~bt\Sources\Rollback (Log location when Setup rolls back in the event of a fatal error).
    %WINDIR%\Panther (Log location of Setup actions after disk configuration).
    %WINDIR%\Inf\Setupapi*.log (Used to log Plug and Play device installations).
    %WINDIR%\Memory.dmp (Location of memory dump from bug checks).
    %WINDIR%\Minidump*.dmp (Location of log minidumps from bug checks).
    %WINDIR%\System32\Sysprep\Panther (Location of Sysprep logs). 

3. It is recommended that you try to refer to the following link, maybe the method it mentions will help you:

https://www.reddit.com/r/Windows10/comments/3f5n8u/fix_something_happened_windows_10_installation/

Note: This is a third-party link and we do not have any guarantees on this website. This is just for your convenience. And Microsoft does not make any guarantees about the content.

Best regards,

Hurry

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Saturday, December 1, 2018 1:03 PM

Hi,

Is there anything else I can do to help you on this issue?

Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions.

Best regards,

Hurry

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Monday, December 3, 2018 1:15 PM

Hi,
How things are going there on this issue?
Please let me know if you would like further assistance.

Best regards,

Hurry

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