Win 7 to 10 upgrade fails, no error code, just “Operation Failed”

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Folks,

I volunteer at a Senior Center and help them out with their computer issues. Ive done many win 7 to 10 upgrades and all Ive tried have gone very well as long as I go the website for the manufacturer and get the latest HW driver updates.

But Ive run into 2 systems recently, one a Dell Latitude laptop and an Acer Tower, that failed the upgrade with the message “Operation Failed”. I tried both systems with the DVD I created from the Media Creation tool in Jan, and after that failed, I also tried the MS download method. Both methods on both machines got to the same place – the first reboot, and then the message came up. BTW, these were both 64 bit systems running Win 7 HP – I checked them first so I could use the right DVD.

After that first reboot (when the error box comes up), Im booted into the desktop of win 7. All I have to do is click OK in the box and the system functions normally in Win 7. I do not get the big circle that counts down the % complete for the win 10 upgrade – this would be the next step after the first reboot.

I though it odd that Im not getting an obvious error code – is this stored somewhere on the system for reference? This is unusual for MS in that I dont get any error code on the screen, even a cryptic or generic one.

Its not the end of the world if I cant upgrade them – Windows 7 will be around till these 2 boxes finally die or the owners decide to buy a new one and get whatever build MS is on for Windows. I suppose I could backup their data and try a clean win 10 install since these boxes do have legit win 7 license stickers on the cases, but Im curious as to why the 10 upgrade failed and where I can go to look for an error.

I suspect that Im going to see lots more of these…I noticed that the Windows Update in Control Panel now says (if all critical updates are loaded) that the next update is for the Win 10 upgrade and it looks like its required, not optional or suggested. Many of these people blindly accept whatever MS throws at them in the Windows Update window or from the IE popup, and we are going to get a ton of questions at the Center if these upgrades start failing with no codes. (we have been telling them that their systems are too old for an upgrade, which is probably true because most of these upgrade systems are 5+ years old, although they are running Win 7 legitimately)

Suggestions?

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I have a Dell Latitude E7440. It failed to complete the Win 10 upgrade twice. After the second failure I used the clean install method described on TenForums after using Speccy to save a list of the hardware. The Speccy hardware list came in handy after the installation of Windows 10 (which went very smoothly and activated automatically), helping me to download the right hardware drivers that were missing.

I’ve used the same method several times since and now prefer clean installs rather than upgrades. (I use Macrium Reflect to take a disk image before the clean install, just in case… and another after Windows 10 is installed and all device drivers installed.)

On older kit where the Windows product ID isn’t hard coded in the BIOS/UEFI (i.e. pre-Windows 8), I’ve used this second almost identical method, again without any problems. It’s particularly useful for HP laptops where, for some strange reason, the COA sticker always seems to be attached to the hottest part of the underside and is usually burnt to a crisp.

Hope this helps…

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Hi If Rick’s suggestion doesn’t help, you might try the windows media creation tool.

Both ‘clean install’ methods I referenced use the Media Creation Tool when the in-place upgrade doesn’t work.

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