MS update service error 0x80070424

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Per Woody’s blog “Ask Woody”, I tried to get the April patches he suggested. Went to Microsoft Update, the site checked my computer as usual, but returned Error #0x80070424. I tried the FAQs, and the “find solutions” with a search for that error code, and found several that were close, but no exact match. Google search turned up a bunch of hits, but I have little confidence in any of them because I don’t recognize any of the sites.

Can anybody tell me just what that error code means? I’ve been updating Windows and my Office 2007 programs per Woody’s recommendations for more than two years, and this is the first problem I’ve had at the update site. I have not installed any software or other upgrades/updates since the last time I updated at the Microsoft site.

Thanks in advance.

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MS has posted methods to try as well.

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Ted –

Thanks for your help – here’s what happened.

I went to the Wiki article, and unsuccessfully tried both techniques. I started with technique #1 (system restore point to an earlier date) because I’ve used System Restore a couple of times in the past and it solved incomplete uninstall routines for me. Today it bounced three times in a row – I selected the most recent, and it would not work; I selected the one before that, and it too failed to work. I tried one more, and that also failed. Since all three were “system checkpoints”, which my computer automatically generated, I have absolutely no clue what’s happening. So, I went to technique #2 – download the free scan via the hyperlink in the Wiki article. It found gazillions of “errors” – specifically, 2,629 of them. This included errors in “Active-X/COM”, “Shared dlls”, “File/Path references”, and “Empty Registry Keys” among others. So I clicked on “fix errors” as the Wiki article said to do. It turns out that to get the errors fixed, you have to register the program (ErrorEnd) and pay them for a license. That seemed a bit fishy to me – like some of those come-ons that pop up a window saying you’ve got a malware infection and for only $19.95 we’ll fix everything for you (and instead of fixing non-existent problems, it downloads an infection that totally destroys your computer). I’d never before heard of “ErrorEnd”, so I closed the window and used CCleaner (which I got because several articles in Windows Secrets recommended it) to do a registry clean. CCleaner found about 625 registry errors, which I had it repair/fix. Following that, I rebooted and tried the Microsoft Update website again. Got the same old error – 0x80070424.

I’m in so far over my head here I don’t even know which way is up. I’m a completely self-taught end-user who neither speaks nor comprehends Windows OS, so I depend on places like this and Ask Woody to tell me what to do and when to do it. When something doesn’t work, I’m essentially lost. I have auto updates turned off (per Woody’s recommendation) and as I said in my original post, when he says it’s OK to update, I have always been able to go to the Microsoft update website and get updated. No problems, no hassles, – works like I guess it’s supposed to work.

That was true through and including the March 2011 Black Tuesday patches, but now, after the April Black Tuesday patches have gotten a limited blessing from Woody, suddenly I can’t get there from here. I’ve got auto updates turned off and I guess I’ll just leave it at that, continue to use good anti-virus/anti-malware/firewall products (I’m running XP SP-3) and try to update in a couple of weeks or so. If I can never update again, the heck with it. More than ninety percent of what I do is off-line anyway (digital photography, personal financial records, and correspondence that’s for business or too long to hand-write, etc.) – the only reason I’m on line is for e-mail, Windows Secrets newsletter, and a couple of MINI Cooper interest bulletin boards I follow. If being able to continue doing the 90+ percent work that’s important to me requires I never go back on line again, it’s not gonna seriously bother me.

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I never used the Wiki site and although it looked promising, I also do not pay to fix “problems found” by an unknown scanner. I have removed the link from my original post. Have you looked at the MS article and tried any of these fixes? Have you tried any AM scans to see if you may have already been infected and this is what is causing the original problem? I would try MalwareBytes to start, then perhaps Spybot Search and Destroyor Super Antispyware.

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Ted –

Have tried everything below – unsuccessfully. Conclusion I draw is that something has messed up or deleted my Windows Automatic Updating application, and this is what’s causing the MS update site to pop error 0x80070424. I have been unsuccessful in restoring the Automatic Updates service.

Here’s the sad story so far.

Per the Microsoft link you provided, I have Symptom #1 (error message 0x80070424). Symptom #2 doesn’t apply (I’m running XP SP-3; symptom #2 applies to XP SP-2).

Per the same link, the cause of symptom #1 is “a service that is required for Windows Update or Microsoft Update is not registered.”

MS says “Bits Service”, “Automatic Update Service”, and “Workstation Service” all need to be installed and running. When I ran “services.msc”, I found Bits Service and Workstation Service installed and running, but there was no entry for Automatic Update Service. I went to the Control Panel, changed the setting from “off” to “Automatic (recommended)”, and rebooted just in case that was necessary for something deep in the program to recognize the change.

On reboot, the Security Center popped a warning message saying automatic updates was turned off. I tried turning auto updates on via the Security Center and got an error message that said “We’re sorry. The Security Center could not change your automatic update setting”. I went to the Control Panel/Automatic updates, and discovered the setting is “Automatic (recommended)”. So the Security Center disputes the Control Panel. Huh????????? How can one place see the setting as “off” and the other as “on”????????????? That defies all logic (except perhaps that in Redmond).

So, given that Services still didn’t see Automatic Updates, I went to MS method #3 in the link you provided. There was a link there to KB 949104 that is designed to provide a download of the latest version of Windows Update Agent. I clicked on that to download the program, and got an error message that said I needed to be running a version of Internet Explorer higher than 5. That’s bizarre, since I’ve been using IE 8 for downloading Microsoft updates ever since Woody gave his blessing to IE 8 as opposed to previous versions – and never a problem. Nonetheless, I downloaded a new IE 8, and rebooted. On reboot, I got the same Security Center warning about automatic updates being off, and was again unable to turn automatic updates on from the security center. And, once again, the Control Panel said automatic updates are turned on. Once again, I ran Services, and it didn’t show anything about automatic updates.

So, I went back to KB 949104 to get the updating program. And again, I got the same error message about needing a version of IE more recent than 5. What is going on??????

You suggested I run Malware Bytes (which I’ve been using for quite some time) so I ran a full scan and it found nothing. You also suggested Spybot Search and Destroy (something I used to run but quit about a year or so ago because after having found something when I first used it many years ago, it had never since popped anything). I downloaded and ran it, and it found two registry errors – one concerning the value in the Automatic Updates key, and one in the Firewall key. I had Spybot correct/fix both errors, then rebooted.

On reboot, once again, the Security Center told me that automatic updates is turned off, and I could not change that setting from the Security Center. And, once again, the Control Panel/Automatic Updates shows the setting is “Automatic (recommended)”. I’m going in circles here – and to add to the frustration, somewhere along the way I lost all the icons I had in my Quick Launch toolbar. The toolbar is still there, so I’m gonna put the icons back in, but this is quickly getting to the point where if I weren’t already near bald, I’d be near bald.

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From one who has already gone bald over the same issue, there IS a simple fix to the Windows Update problem. Microsoft has a “Fix it” wizard which, when run, will restore all the services and registry entries that were wiped out by either a) a registry cleaner or b) (as in my case) the removal of “Home Security 2011” fake anti-virus malware. I had the same error messages; run the wizard at http://support.microsoft.com/kb/971058 and your automatic updates functionality will be restored. I ran it in default mode; not aggressive mode and it just plain WORKED! Good luck.

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From one who has already gone bald over the same issue, there IS a simple fix to the Windows Update problem. Microsoft has a “Fix it” wizard which, when run, …

I’ve been trying to update and XP for over a year. Images failed due the image program now being defunct (fred recommended it :P) Fixit says it can’t find an internet connection. I’ve given up.

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I am having the same problem with windows updates in that I get the service error 0x80070424. I have tried a number of fixes without success.

I have downloaded the Complete Internet Repair but AVG identifies it as a threat and says it’s malware. Can anyone advise me if it is safe to download anyway?

Many thanks

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I am having the same problem with windows updates in that I get the service error 0x80070424. I have tried a number of fixes without success.

I have downloaded the Complete Internet Repair but AVG identifies it as a threat and says it’s malware. Can anyone advise me if it is safe to download anyway?

Many thanks

Do you have any issues accessing the internet or are you having problems with Windows Update alone?

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The problems with windows update only. Internet access is ok.

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I originally populated the Quick Launch toolbar with icons per the directions in Woody’s book “XP for Dummies”, so just pulled it out and tried to follow the directions. They don’t work. what is going on?????? This is taking entirely too much time and my ulcers are about at max – I’ve got a lot more important and necessary things to do than screw around with all this when I haven’t a clue what to do. I’ve got a complete image backup from about two months ago, and I may try to restore that, but I won’t have time to do so for at least a week (I figure the way things are going, I better allocate an entire day to the task, not to mention the possibility of some pretty strong beverages).

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I originally populated the Quick Launch toolbar with icons per the directions in Woody’s book “XP for Dummies”, so just pulled it out and tried to follow the directions. They don’t work. This is taking entirely too much time and my ulcers are about at max – I’ve got a lot more important and necessary things to do than fool around with all this when I haven’t a clue what’s causing the problems. I’ve got a complete image backup from about two months ago, and I may try to restore that, but I won’t have time to do so for at least a week (I figure the way things are going, I better allocate an entire day to the task, not to mention the possibility of some pretty strong beverages).

Anybody have any SIMPLE solution for why my quick-launch icons would disappear given what I’ve been trying to accomplish per the above posts? Or why “right-click/drag/copy here” won’t work like it did originally?

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Restoring from an Image takes less than 10 minutes, at least my Images with Acronis do. Since it is 2 months old any updates since then will have to be reapplied. You just insert the Rescue Media for the Imaging app you use, point to the location of the Image and procede. In the case of Acronis and Macrium Reflect, this takes less than 10 mintes to complete.

There is no reason for all the cussing. Please try to keep your replies civil.

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There is no reason for all the cussing. Please try to keep your replies civil.

Apologies for my foul temper; when things go wrong for no obvious reason and I end up going in circles with Microsoft’s “help”, my temper sometimes gets the better of me. I’ll try to calm down a bit before I post again.

I use Terrabyte’s Image for Windows – have never had to restore one so don’t know how long it will take. Given my computer ineptitude, I think it prudent to allow for problems along the way since I find I frequently cannot understand the terminological explanations given in the product’s “help” section or in a manual (if there even is one these days).

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Perhaps someone familiar with Terrabyte can chime in here. I have seen others discussing it at various times. I do not use it so do not know the steps involved in a restoration, but as I stated it is normally a very easy thing to restore from an Image. That’s why I generally advocate for recreating Images whenever I make changes to my PC so the restoration brings me right back to where I was prior to the problem, updates and all.

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Hi download Rizone recovery kit here

http://www.rizonetech.com Scroll down page to Complete Internet Repair 0.9.5.955

Run it and it will fix Windows Update and connection as well.

Rizone’s Internet repair KIT can be used for fixing Windows Update and Windows Automatic Update issues. If you can’t download and install updates, try running this tool, it should help. In addition, it will also fix the SSL, HTTPS and Cryptographic services for when you’re having trouble connecting or using SSL (Secured) sites (Ex. Banking).
Installation:

Rizone’s Internet Recovery KIT is very simple utility and, for this reason, does not demand any installation utility. Simply unzip all files to any folder and run the executable file (usually, “IntRec.exe”).

When running utility, only tick the boxes you would like to fix. I would suggest these ones first “Repair Winsock”, “Flush DNS resolver cache”, “Repair Windows/Automatic updates”, “Repair SSL/HTTPS/Cryptography” and if useing Windows Firewall then also “Reset Windows Firewall Configuration”

Hopefully this will solve your problem.

Pete.

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If Snoopy’s suggestion doesn’t work, you can always contact Microsoft here. They provide free support for Windows Update.

Jerry

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Been away from a computer for a few days; have just read and tried the solutions recommended above.

The Microsoft “Fix-it Wizard” Bo Ritchings recommended seemed like the easiest thing to try, and since it’s from MS and designed to fix issues related to automatic updates, seemed to be the most likely to work.

Wrong. I downloaded the wizard, told it to run in default mode, and got error code 2755 on the installation – it said “The installer has encountered an unexpected error installing this package. This may indicate a problem with this package.”

I closed it down, went back to the link, and tried again. This time the installer attempted to pick up where it had left off, (“the installer will continue. . .” and the two times I tried this, I got the same error code 2755.

So I went to the Rizone recovery kit Snoopy recommended – given its purported ability to solve a variety of issues, I figured it was going to be more complicated because I have virtually no understanding of the various issues it presents on the checklist. (For instance, what’s a “DNS resolver cache”? and why is that important or have anything to do with my inability to get MS updates?) In any case, I took Snoopy’s advice and checked “Repair Winsock” (is that something that guides airplanes to safe crosswind landings?), “Flush DNS resolver cache”, Repair Windows Updates (that’s the one that obviously was aimed at the problem I’ve had), “Repair SSL/HTTPS/Cryptography” (again, what’s this got to do with MS updates?), and “Reset Windows Firewall Configuration” (seems possibly related, since maybe the firewall was screwing up and blocking something that shouldn’t have been blocked). When the utility finished running, I had some messages to read (from Spybot), but before I could read and write them down, the system did a reboot, so I don’t know what they were trying to tell me. After the reboot, I checked the Control Panel to see what, if anything, showed differently on Automatic Updates – the setting was “Automatic”. I checked the Security Center, and it showed my Windows Firewall was turned on. On boot I got the normal box from my AV program showing it was updating its signature database. When the boot finished, I tried to get to Microsoft’s Update site – was successful, got no error messages, discovered a passel of updates, selected the ones Woody recommended, and was able to download and install them.

Thank you Snoopy – you’ve got my permission to paint a dozen Red Baron outlines on your Sopwith Camel!

Thank you also Bo Ritchings for the suggestion – even though it didn’t work, it cut through the maze I find Microsoft’s on-line help to be (I’d been looking unsuccessfully there for even the slightest assistance) and pointed me to something I fully expected would work.

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I have Windows Vista SP 1. My Windows Update has stopped working. I am getting error 0x80070424. I have tried:

Manual download up Windows SP 2. I downloaded the update, and when I installed I get the error “The specified service does not exist as an installed service”. When I click on Details, I get the error code 0x80070424.

I have made sure my Background Intelligent Transfer Service, Windows Update Service and Workstation Service are all started.

I have manually reset the Windows Update component (see steps below). This did not work either

I download the “System Update Readiness Tool for Windows Vista” “Windows6.0-KB947821-v4-x86.msu”. I ran it and got the error message: “The update does not apply to your system.”

So what do I need to do to:

A) Get windows update running

B) Update to Vista SP2
Step1:

Let’s try to reset the Windows Update component.

1. Stop the Background Intelligent Transfer Service and the Automatic Updates service. To do this, follow these steps:

a. Click Start/All Programs/Accessories. Right click ‘Command Prompt’ and select ‘Run as Administrator’. Click ‘Continue’ on the UAC [User Account Control] prompt.

b. At the Command Prompt, type the following commands, and then press ENTER after each command:

net stop wuauserv

net stop bits

2. Rename the “Catroot2” folder and “SoftwareDistribution” folder. To do this, follow the steps below:

Type the following commands, and then press Enter after each command.

net stop cryptsvc

ren %systemroot%System32Catroot2 oldcatroot2

ren %systemroot%SoftwareDistribution SoftwareDistribution.old

net start cryptsvc

3. Register the files that are used by Windows Update and Microsoft Update. To do this, follow these steps:

At the command prompt, type the following commands, press ENTER after each command, and then click OK every time that you receive a verification message:

regsvr32 wuapi.dll

regsvr32 wuaueng.dll

regsvr32 wucltux.dll

regsvr32 wups2.dll

regsvr32 wups.dll

regsvr32 wuwebv.dll

4. Start the Background Intelligent Transfer Service, the Automatic Updates service, and the Event Log service. To do this, follow these steps:

At the command prompt, type the following commands, and then press ENTER after each command:

net start bits

net start wuauserv

net start Eventlog

exit

Restart the computer and perform Windows Update. It should work fine.

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The problems with windows update only. Internet access is ok.

Honestly, I don’t see how Complete Internet Repair will help with Windows Update, since Internet access is ok. I may be wrong, but I doubt it.

Have you tried other ways to solve your issue, like the link in post #2 above, by Ted Myers?

If that one doesn’t work, this linkhas been used by other people experiencing the issue with success.

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I have tried running the suggested commands and I have also tried the fix-it tool from microsoft. None of it is working. I am generally having no problems with the internet but hotmail is playing up as are one or two other websites. Is this likely to be linked to the update issue? I am finding it very frustrating. Any thoughts on why my AVG is seeing the download from rizosome as malware?

Please help!!

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I have tried running the suggested commands and I have also tried the fix-it tool from microsoft. None of it is working. I am generally having no problems with the internet but hotmail is playing up as are one or two other websites. Is this likely to be linked to the update issue? I am finding it very frustrating. Any thoughts on why my AVG is seeing the download from rizosome as malware?

Please help!!

I don’t think the updates would influence that the browsing. It’s likely a browser issue, what browser are you using? You could try with a different browser…

You can test your download by uploading it here: http://www.virustotal.com/

About the updates issue, not sure what else to recommend. What Windows version are you using?

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Am using Explorer 8 and I have Windows XP, Service Pack 3. Downloads are pretty quick – haven’t had any issues there.

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Perhaps a new Windows Updates Agentwill help.

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Submitting the exe in the zip file to Virus Total results in 2 of 30 Virus checkers detecting a Trojan. Curiously, AVG version 10.0.0.1190 doesn”t detect it as a virus. Is your AVG version higher or lower? Given these results, I suspect the your AVG has a false negative and the file is OK. The full Virus Total report is:

Antivirus Version Last Update Result
AhnLab-V3 2011.10.31.00 2011.10.31 –
AntiVir 7.11.16.225 2011.10.31 –
Antiy-AVL 2.0.3.7 2011.10.31 –
Avast 6.0.1289.0 2011.10.31 –
AVG 10.0.0.1190 2011.10.31 –
BitDefender 7.2 2011.10.31 –
ByteHero 1.0.0.1 2011.09.23 –
CAT-QuickHeal 11.00 2011.10.31 –
ClamAV 0.97.3.0 2011.10.31 –
Commtouch 5.3.2.6 2011.10.31 –
Comodo 10616 2011.10.31 –
DrWeb 5.0.2.03300 2011.10.31 –
Emsisoft 5.1.0.11 2011.10.31 –
eSafe 7.0.17.0 2011.10.30 –
eTrust-Vet 36.1.8649 2011.10.31 –
F-Prot 4.6.5.141 2011.10.31 –
F-Secure 9.0.16440.0 2011.10.31 –
Fortinet 4.3.370.0 2011.10.31 –
GData 22 2011.10.31 –
Ikarus T3.1.1.107.0 2011.10.31 –
Jiangmin 13.0.900 2011.10.31 Trojan/Refroso.kjv
K7AntiVirus 9.116.5364 2011.10.31 –
Kaspersky 9.0.0.837 2011.10.31 –
McAfee 5.400.0.1158 2011.10.31 –
McAfee-GW-Edition 2010.1D 2011.10.31 –
Microsoft 1.7801 2011.10.31 –
NOD32 6591 2011.10.31 –
Norman 6.07.13 2011.10.31 –
nProtect 2011-10-31.01 2011.10.31 –
Panda 10.0.3.5 2011.10.31 –
PCTools 8.0.0.5 2011.10.31 –
Prevx 3.0 2011.10.31 –
Rising 23.82.00.02 2011.10.31 –
Sophos 4.70.0 2011.10.31 –
SUPERAntiSpyware 4.40.0.1006 2011.10.31 –
Symantec 20111.2.0.82 2011.10.31 –
TheHacker 6.7.0.1.336 2011.10.31 –
TrendMicro 9.500.0.1008 2011.10.31 –
TrendMicro-HouseCall 9.500.0.1008 2011.10.31 –
VBA32 3.12.16.4 2011.10.25 –
VIPRE 10928 2011.10.31 –
ViRobot 2011.10.31.4747 2011.10.31 –
VirusBuster 14.1.39.0 2011.10.31 –

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I only downloaded AVG a couple of days ago – my McAfee just lapsed and since I had two viruses and was paying £50 a year I decided to ditch it. I imagine my version of AVG is higher than the one you mentioned.

I have tried the Fix-it tool again and it comes up with the following message.

‘Windows Update components must be repaired’ but it failed to fix it.

It also said ‘Default Windows Update locations have changed’ and this is marked as checked. Not sure what that means. If you click into the check icon it says ‘The location where Windows Update stores data has changed and must be repaired’.

It also mentions something about ‘Change Windows Update locations to Windows default settings’ but I don’t know how to do that either. I’m afraid my computer skills are a bit draconian.

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Pamliv,

Have you tried Ted Myers suggestion?
Do you use any backup strategy? I am thinking, after Ted’s suggestion, and you having tried several of the suggestions done before, probably a XP Rebuildmay be the only way to get things back to normal. This shouldn’t be done without backing up first, preferably by creating a system image.

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Ruirib

I have tried Ted’s suggestion – see above for the details.

How would I go about making a system image and XP Rebuild? I assume you are saying I would lose everything on my computer. I tend to just save my important files onto an SD card or flash drive but I have various programmes and stuff on iTunes which I wouldn’t want to lose.

I feel like a total bumbling idiot all of a sudden. Should I just take it to a computer shop?

Thanks for all the help – really appreciate it.

Pamliv

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Do you mean the one about a new windows update agent, in post #22 here?

If this doesn’t solve it, I would indeed think an XP rebuild may be the way out of the current problem.
A rebuild has described by Fred Langa here is what I had in mind: http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/1664082/posts
This rebuild has one huge advantage – none of your information is destroyed and you won’t need to reinstall any apps again, but the operation system will be restore to a pristine condition. So the backup is just a precautionary measure, one that should actually be a regular protective measure.

Imaging makes more sense when you have an external drive, where you can store your image backups. Do you have such a drive?

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I don’t have one but I know someone who does. I will give the rebuild a go and let you know what happens. Thanks again for all your help. x

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Hope all goes well.

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