I have three machines all saturating a CPU core forever with Windows Update

[mikeymikec]

Two Win7 SP1 64, 1x Vista SP2 64. One of the Win7 machines is in regular use and AFAIK this problem only just began to occur with this one in the last 24 hours. AFAIK the Vista box started doing it in the last few days, and the other Win7 machine has been doing it for much longer (though isn't in use often).

The error that all three throw if I eventually stop the service is 0x8024000B (in windowsupdate.log). I suspect this might be WU saying, "hey, I was in the middle of processing updates, why did you stop me?". Googling for that error code suggests renaming system32\spupdsvc.exe but that doesn't exist on any of these machines (XP only?). Googling also suggests installing an update that came out back in March (KB3138612), but that update is already installed on the two Win7 machines (I haven't checked the Vista box).

I've left one of the Win7 machines to chew over WU overnight (sleep disabled) and during the day, no difference. The Windows Update fixit gets caught with the same problem as WU does (I left that running for 1.5 hours before I gave up on that). The Vista box has also been left to chew on it all day, and my Haswell i5 Win7 box was doing it for at least 4 hours from first thing this morning.

The other big WU-fixing update is already installed on the two Win7 boxes (I haven't checked the Vista box).

Is anyone else having WU on Vista/7 taking forever to check for updates?

 

[Ketchup]

What is the most recent Windows update the machines installed? Do you got the "install updates" prompt on the Shut Down button?

 

[bruceb]

My Dell 8200 does the same thing when Windows Update decides to run.

 

[mikeymikec]

What is the most recent Windows update the machines installed? Do you got the "install updates" prompt on the Shut Down button?

All three computers have MSE installed, so the latest will always be that, but aside from that, mine has:

KB3177467
Oct rollup KB3185330
MSO 2k7 KB3118301
Windows Malicious Removal Tool Oct 2016
MSO compatibility pack update
.net rollup October KB3188740

No 'install updates' shut down prompt on any of them. Office 2007 is a factor in common, though on the Win7 laptop I tried disabling Microsoft Update so that should rule that possibility out I would have thought. I also removed MSE from the laptop in case its poll for updates was interrupting the check already in progress.

The laptop doesn't have any of these updates as the last ones it picked up (aside from MSE updates) were back in May. The Vista 64 box last picked up updates for September IIRC.

 

[Ketchup]

So, did the core saturation start when you checked Windows Updates, or as soon as you boot the computer?

 

[dave_the_nerd]

Honestly? Install Linux if you can, Windows 10 if you can't. Otherwise you'll just be fighting WU forever.

 

[mikeymikec]

So, did the core saturation start when you checked Windows Updates, or as soon as you boot the computer?

Either, but it always stops if the WU service is stopped.

 

[VirtualLarry]

See, stuff like this is why I don't run Anti-Virus software. Oftentimes, the cure is as bad or worse than the disease.

I say, shut off Windows Update totally, and just live with it.

 

[Ketchup]

Well, the most recent update catalog was just released, so you could always install that and see if the issue gets better (https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/kb/3197868). If not, there is always what VL said and just leave it off between update cycles.

 

[mikeymikec]

Well, the most recent update catalog was just released, so you could always install that and see if the issue gets better (https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/kb/3197868). If not, there is always what VL said and just leave it off between update cycles.

That worked on my PC Thanks.

The Vista box won't be that difficult to catch up on (two months worth of updates I think are missing), the Win7 laptop is going to be a pain though if it needs all the updates since May installing manually.

 

[mikeymikec]

~23 updates later manually downloaded and installed by script, the laptop is behaving itself as well. I just hope that I don't have to spoon-feed them updates in future.

The Vista box probably needs a similar solution.

- edit - spoke too soon maybe with the laptop - I had disabled MS Update previously and just re-enabled it by installing MSE again. MSE's first update went on fine after I stopped WU for taking ages. I've now started up WU again to see whether it'll sort itself out or whether I have to spoon-feed it Office updates.

 

[dave_the_nerd]

See, stuff like this is why I don't run Anti-Virus software. Oftentimes, the cure is as bad or worse than the disease.

I say, shut off Windows Update totally, and just live with it.

 

[VirtualLarry]

LOL. Signature-based detection is worthless. It has been that way for a number of years.

And my experiences with running an AV haven't been good. System hanging when trying to do Windows Update, etc., lots of garbage happening.

A (now late) friend of mine, had his HDD, in otherwise fine shape, slow down to 2MB/sec reads, due to driver conflicts, with AV installed. (Granted, I think he had two of them installed.)

And, have you seen the reports on the "attack surface" possible when an AV is installed? I read an article that effectively said that Norton had so many holes in it, it was making systems MORE insecure, by having it installed.

http://www.techradar.com/news/softw...hole-found-in-norton-antivirus-engine-1321508

That's not to mention, that before Windows 10, AV programs were the "telemetry" weapon of choice. They calculated hashes of all of your files, and transmitted the filenames and hashes back to motherbase.

 

[Kaido]

Download the updates yourself:

http://download.wsusoffline.net/

Older video explanation, but still (mostly) applicable:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aXAOvbNJYyE

 

[mikeymikec]

In time for this month's patch rollout, the two Win7 boxes are saturating a core again trying to run a WU check. I left both on for three hours this morning without sleep mode.

Can someone give me the update numbers for this month?

 

[tidy]

.

 

[mikeymikec]

Thanks, I installed that and the .net update you mentioned and now my own PC can do its own WU checks again. Doing the same on my laptop should get it going again. Just installing the first update you mentioned got my laptop back into gear.

I've just found this ('recommended') in the optional updates list on my PC: KB3172605

I seem to remember an update rollup mentioned for July 2016.

 

[lxskllr]

LOL. Signature-based detection is worthless. It has been that way for a number of years.

And my experiences with running an AV haven't been good. System hanging when trying to do Windows Update, etc., lots of garbage happening.

A (now late) friend of mine, had his HDD, in otherwise fine shape, slow down to 2MB/sec reads, due to driver conflicts, with AV installed. (Granted, I think he had two of them installed.)

And, have you seen the reports on the "attack surface" possible when an AV is installed? I read an article that effectively said that Norton had so many holes in it, it was making systems MORE insecure, by having it installed.

http://www.techradar.com/news/softw...hole-found-in-norton-antivirus-engine-1321508

That's not to mention, that before Windows 10, AV programs were the "telemetry" weapon of choice. They calculated hashes of all of your files, and transmitted the filenames and hashes back to motherbase.

I suspect uninstalling out of date avast hosed the printer settings on my boss' xp machine, but I'm unsure of the chronology of events. I couldn't figure it out, so I fixed it by installing xubuntu. I think the tears are over now, and it's working for him fine.

On the win10 machine, I just set it up with mse, or whatever they call it now. Low hassle/impact, so why not?

 

[Kaido]

In time for this month's patch rollout, the two Win7 boxes are saturating a core again trying to run a WU check. I left both on for three hours this morning without sleep mode.

Can someone give me the update numbers for this month?

I just installed Win7 SP1 on a couple boxes, same deal. Left them overnight, didn't go anywhere. Obsolescence by M$ I'm sure. /tinfoilhat

 

[Schmide]

I just installed Win7 SP1 on a couple boxes, same deal. Left them overnight, didn't go anywhere. Obsolescence by M$ I'm sure. /tinfoilhat

Listen all ya all it's sabotage.

https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/kb/3200747

 

[Kaido]

Listen all ya all it's sabotage.

https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/kb/3200747

FYI, did all those, no luck.

My OS update prep list (aside from offline updater tools, WSUS, etc.) is huge. Have found nothing that consistently works lately off-domain, outside of patched installers.

 

[postmortemIA]

Same here with a few family PC. Last successful update was done in July. Ever since, one core produces heat...

Same thing happened with XP back in the day, just before it went out of the extended support.

Looks like computation difficulty for evaluating which updates are needed grows exponentially as new ones are released. So at some point the time needed to compute what's needed is greater than time it stays on. Then that PC is SOL. You may mitigate the issue temporarily, but it is gonna come back...

 

[lxskllr]

Looks like computation difficulty for evaluating which updates are needed grows exponentially as new ones are released. So at some point the time needed to compute what's needed is greater than time it stays on. Then that PC is SOL. You may mitigate the issue temporarily, but it is gonna come back...

LoL!

I don't understand why WU is so terrible. Hammers the disk, hammers the cpu, takes forever, and outright fails sometimes... This stuff really isn't that complicated. It's easily the worst updater I've used, even comparing it to marginal individual software products.

 

[daveybrat]

All of our pc's at my work are running Windows 7 Pro and were also suffering from high cpu usage. It was really bogging down all of the POS pc's in the lobby. I went in and set Windows updates to 'Never Check' and disabled the Windows update service on all of them. Cpu usage is now normal again and the systems are much faster. Screw the updates at this point.

 

[ninaholic37]

edit: postmortemIA beat me to it.