Using CheckSUR and update packages to fix corruption
My last post was on CheckSUR and I wanted to follow it up with how you can use the CheckSUR utility to fix corruption errors that CheckSUR might detect, but that cant be fixed with the utility.
Typically, the way that CheckSUR works is that it takes the information included with its payload, loads it locally to your machine into the \Windows\CheckSUR directory and then runs the actual executable on the system. As this executable runs, it detects discrepencies in the package store and corrects the errors that it carries a payload for. But, what do you do when you have a package manifest that shows up in the CheckSUR log but doesnt have the payload with it? If you were to call my team we'll typically try to walk you through getting the files from another server, taking ownership of the servicing directories and moving the files. But what if this is an isolated server? Worse, what if you only have one PC at home and you're having issues? Well, there is an easier way.
What you should do is identify the package(s) that CheckSUR was not able to fix, they're usually listed at the end of the log. From there, you can take that information and go the Microsoft Download site and pull down the KBXXXXXX.MSU that corresponds to the package that you're seeing failures on. Since you've already run CheckSUR to get to this point, you can copy that .MSU to the \Windows\CheckSUR\packages directory (NOTE: This directory does not exist by default and must be created) and then re-run CheckSUR which will take care of the rest. If you're still having issues afterwards, that just means that something else is going on with the system that is going to require more than CheckSUR can accomplish. Typically, this is true corruption and it may be unrecoverable.
As a side note, CheckSUR doesnt have a command line interface component, so you cant rerun it once its been downloaded and installed, you just need to re-run the downloaded MSU package.
Hope that helps.
--Joseph
Comments
Anonymous
January 01, 2003
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January 01, 2003
Look for those keys in HKLMComponents branch, export them and then rescan the system for updates.Anonymous
January 01, 2003
No problemAnonymous
January 01, 2003
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January 01, 2003
You should only need to right click on the service name and choose Start. You dont need to change any of the permissions.Anonymous
January 01, 2003
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January 01, 2003
@Amy; Did you create the packages directory and put the MSU in there? If that didnt work for you, then manual copy will be your only other option.Anonymous
January 01, 2003
@Jacob; No, there isnt a way to point it to SCCM as a source.Anonymous
January 01, 2003
Glad to hear that worked for you Jose. This functionality is now built into Windows 8, just so everyone knows :)Anonymous
January 01, 2003
No problem, glad that worked for you.Anonymous
January 01, 2003
Not really new, just easier. In reference to the documentation above, we still use that method to fix certain types of corruption in the event that this workaround doesnt work. But, I've had good success with this method and it doesnt require users to hork around with system permissions (yes, hork is a technical term <G>)Anonymous
January 01, 2003
LOL, no worries Falcon, it's a great comment. I might try to find a way to have a discussion on CBS related stuff once I have a little more free time. Right now, I'm doing some work that is taking up a lot of my time and that's one reason I havent been able to do more than keep up with comments right now. I think one thing that would be a good idea, potentially, is to have the "geek out" here on the blog in a post/comment type format. Someone asks a question about a particular piece of CBS and I will do what I can to give answers to that. Rinse and repeat. --JosephAnonymous
January 01, 2003
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January 01, 2003
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January 01, 2003
LOL, no problem. Try starting the Windows Modules Installer service. Open services.msc, find that service and right click on it. Choose Start and you should see the hive load.Anonymous
January 01, 2003
@Rahul; Not really. Corruption is one of those things that just happens on PCs. I can tell you the most common cause from what I have personally seen is dirty shutdowns. Other causes I have seen, bad memory, bad segment on disk and malware.Anonymous
January 01, 2003
Gotcha, that can happen sometimes during a servicing operation. I wouldn't worry too much about it unless it was rampant.Anonymous
January 01, 2003
Captain, correct, Windows Modules Installer is a portion of the trusted installer. Have fun on the trip. When you get back, I'd like to know what you mean by you dont have the right permissions? You should be able to modify that value unless you arent an administrator on your machine.Anonymous
January 01, 2003
You could audit the directory but it could potentially get pretty busy. Was the package manifest (MUM) that was corrupted the same both times?Anonymous
January 01, 2003
No problem, glad that helped.Anonymous
January 01, 2003
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October 21, 2010
Thanks you so much for that. Copying the msu to the packages directory and running checksur solved a problem I had with an update that wasn't installing properly. Tried a ton of things and only this fixed the issue.Anonymous
February 17, 2011
This is great information, and i would suggest the SURT description article could be updated to reflect this. support.microsoft.com/.../947821 The following page refers to the SURT for fixing an empty Windows Features dialog. www.raymond.cc/.../fix-blank-or-empty-list-in-vista-turn-windows-features-on-or-off-optionalfeaturesexe Could you please comment on this page, in particular, point 7? Aaron Stebner links to this page, in this post: blogs.msdn.com/.../9303167.aspxAnonymous
February 21, 2011
Joseph, is the method of adding MSU files to WindowsCheckSURpackages relatively new? I ask after finding this article: technet.microsoft.com/.../ee619779(WS.10).aspx This recommends adding *.mum and *.cat files to %windir%TempCheckSURservicing, and *.manifest files to %windir%TempCheckSURmanifests for 'Unavailable repair files' errors, and a more complicated fix for 'Payload File Missing' errors. Article dated Sep 2009. Are these essentially redundant methods, or is the point to avoid having to download .MSU files, or just an alternative method to that decribed in this blog?Anonymous
February 22, 2011
Ok, thanks. What exit codes does CheckSUR return?Anonymous
March 21, 2011
My log shows these missing packages. Since they are all the same KB, I downloaded that kb's .msu file but nothing happens. The checksur tool doesn't pick it up. :( (f) CBS MUM Missing 0x00000002 servicingPackagesPackage_3_for_KB980182~31bf3856ad364e35~x866.1.1.1.mum (f) CBS MUM Missing 0x00000002 servicingPackagesPackage_4_for_KB980182~31bf3856ad364e35~x866.1.1.1.mum (f) CBS MUM Missing 0x00000002 servicingPackagesPackage_for_KB980182_RTM~31bf3856ad364e35~x866.1.1.1.mum (f) CBS MUM Missing 0x00000002 servicingPackagesPackage_for_KB980182~31bf3856ad364e35~x866.1.1.1.mumAnonymous
May 15, 2011
Thank you so much for this. Worked for me :-)Anonymous
July 21, 2011
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July 26, 2011
Hi Where do I find the keys and how do I export and where to. ThanksAnonymous
July 28, 2011
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July 29, 2011
Joseph Windows Modules Installer I presume is the trusted installer I dont have the right permissions to open and haven't time to spend altering, I am enjoying learning and finding my way around. Off to Budapest to catch a cruise down the Danube to the Black Sea and her indoors won't let me take the PC with me. Thanks again catch up when I get back. BobAnonymous
July 29, 2011
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August 16, 2011
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October 25, 2012
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January 09, 2013
I had servicing issues last month and ran chksur it fixed the problem to resurface again this month on 2k8r2 machine. On both occasions there were different MUM files that were corrupt... Is there a way I can know what is corrupting the MUM files?Anonymous
January 09, 2013
Since it happened twice I was concerned... Can I setup Auditing on the winsxs folder? Would it be too heavy to log? Only one MUM file got corrupted on each of the instances.. Is it co-incidence or something wrong ?Anonymous
January 09, 2013
Nope.. unfortunately different on both occasions :( Something like name did not match the expected name for different MUM files on both occasionsAnonymous
January 09, 2013
Thank you!!Anonymous
February 14, 2013
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May 29, 2013
What does the word "payload" mean in your MS jargon? I have been knowing English for about 45 years and I have worked in ICT for over 30 years, but "payload" does not mean anything to me. Can you explain?Anonymous
May 29, 2013
Summary: Seconds executed: 5768 Found 2 errors 15 minutes is 900 seconds in my book.Anonymous
July 20, 2013
microsoft/john, can someone please respond!!!!!!! i've performed two fresh install/restores (didn't restore from backup as it's appears to be corrupted) and dell has been useless so far. system will not let me update/install most of .NET framework 3.5 and 4 stuff - resulting in a number of the error codes described above: Code 80073712, 643, 935. because of this problem, i can't install the MS Office 2010 that i bought! none of the proposed solutinos haven't worked for me. please help!Anonymous
July 20, 2013
update: i'm only seeing these error codes: 80073712, 643. oh, just fyi - i don't have any hardware issues