Microsoft download problems

[Carrot44]

Say I want to download something from Microsoft. Like DirectX they validate my xp as genuine and then when I hit download the window that pops up says can not connect. Generic no server found message.

I have searched these forums and Microsoft knowledge base to no help.

Ken

 

[jkresh]

are you trying from firefox or IE and do you have all the recent hotfixes installed?

 

[Carrot44]

IE of course and yes I have all the current updates according to their update site.

 

[gcy]

I don't know if this will help.
I was having problems downloading any updates on XP pro. I sent an email to MS support (Link on download page) and received this reply. I tried up to Suggestion 2 and it cleared up the problem, was able to download all the updates then.
Hope this will help you.

From the problem description, I understand that when trying to update Windows from Windows Update website, it failed with the error code 0x80072EFD received. Please feel free to let me know if I misunderstood.

I understand the inconvenience you have experienced. Please be assured that I will do my best to resolve the issue.

This issue can occur if any of the following conditions are true:

1. Some third party background programs, such as anti-virus programs or firewall block access to the Windows Update website.
2. The proxy settings are incorrect.
3. The Host file is corrupted.
4. There is a problem with the server of the Internet Service Provider (ISP) that blocks access to the Windows Update website.
5. The driver for the network card is not working properly.
6. The network card is damaged, impacting the Internet connectivity.

At this point, let's try the following steps to troubleshoot the issue.

Suggestion 1: Disable firewalls or other Internet browser programs that can affect the Internet connection
==========================================================
The following programs can affect the connection to the Windows Update site and I suggest we remove or disable them:

Download Accelerator
GetRight
Browser Blaster

BitTorrent
eMule
Sygate Personal Firewall

Norton Internet Security
Freedom Firewall
Zone Alarm Firewall

If you have any other similar programs such as a pop-up blocker, please also temporarily remove or disable it to test the issue. Please understand that we are disabling these programs only for the purpose of troubleshooting and we can re-enable these programs after we finish troubleshooting.

Note: Please understand that Windows Firewall is on by default and is used to protect the system when the third party security programs were turned off or removed.

For detailed information, we can refer to this Microsoft Knowledge Base article:

You receive an ""Error 0x80072EE2"" or ""Error 0x80072EFD"" error message when you try to use Windows Update
http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=836941

If this issue appears to be related to a firewall program, I also recommended that you contact the firewall manufacturer to obtain the information to configure the firewall options to allow the access to the Windows Update site.

If the issue persists after we disable the third party firewall program, we can check the following items.

Suggestion 2: Reset the proxy list (and bypass list)
===============================
This issue can occur if the proxy has not been configured correctly. Let's first reset the proxy list.

1. Open Internet Explorer.
2. On the Tools menu, click Internet Options.
3. Click the Connections tab, click LAN Settings, and then click Advanced.

4. Delete any entry in the Exceptions section.
5. Quit Internet Explorer.
6. Click Start, click Run, type cmd, and then click OK.
7. Type the following commands. Press ENTER after each command.

proxycfg -u
proxycfg -d
net stop wuauserv
net start wuauserv

Note: If any proxy is necessary to the Internet connection, please contact your ISP (Internet Service Provider) before using the above command to remove the configuration.

After finishing these steps, please go to the Windows Update site to check the issue again. If the issue still persists, we can try the following suggestion.

Suggestion 3: Rename the Hosts file
=====================
The Hosts file is used for host name resolution. If this file has been modified, we cannot access the Windows Update site properly and can receive the error code.

1. Click Start, Run, type "%SystemRoot%\system32\drivers\etc" (Without the quotation) and then press Enter.
2. Right-click on the file "Hosts" (without quotations) and choose Rename
3. Rename the file to "hostsold" (without quotations)

4. Then, clear the DNS (Domain Name Resolution) cache:

1). Click Start, Run, type "cmd" (Without the quotation) and press Enter.
2). In the opened window, type: "ipconfig /flushdns" (Without quotations) and press Enter.

Note: The Hosts file will be generated automatically after being removed.

Please try the steps above and let me know the results. If the issue persists, to provide more effective support, please assist me in collecting the following information.

 

[Carrot44]

No luck with any of that 🙁 Also updated all the windows stuff that I could find.