How to Fix Windows 7 Update Service not Running?

Windows Update Service is necessary to keep you up-to-date and get you the latest technologies available in the digital world. Moreover, it protects your system from major web threats and other possible conflicts as well as enhances the device’s longevity. But, the Windows Update Service is not free from the major technical glitches. Many times, you get stuck with the unexpected error “Windows 7 Update Service Not Running”. As a result, the active programs start to crash immediately and the system freezes automatically on a frequent basis. However, we are going to discuss the effective steps to overcome this technical error permanently.

Major Issues behind “Windows 7 Update Service Not Running” Problem

There are lots of technical glitches that are responsible to create a problem in running the Windows Update service. Here, we are going to identify them that help you to resolve the “Windows 7 Update Service not running” issue very quickly:

• If any of the .dll files involved with the Windows Update Service is not registered correctly, then you can face the Windows Program Update Error very often.
• Software Distribution folder stores all the temporary as well as the Windows Update program files. The error associated with those files creates the Windows Update error.
• An obsolete RST driver causes this kind of annoying issue.
• Strong firewall protection or using of the outdated system security software is another issue responsible for this critical error.
• Enabled automatic Windows Update program is a harmful factor that prevents performing the actual Windows Update.

Resolve the “Windows 7 Update Service Not Running” Problem in a Flicker

Some of the effective ways play a crucial role to fix the “Windows 7 update service not running” problem easily. Here, we are going to talk about those technical steps and run the Windows Update Program without any technical flaws:

Restart the Windows Update Service

You can stop the Windows Update service first and re-enable it by troubleshooting the technical glitches. So, use the following steps and overcome the Windows Update Service issue immediately:

1. Press the Window key from the keyboard and type “services.msc” in the search box. Click on the OK button and launch the Services window.
2. Now, locate the Windows Update Service from the list of services activated for your system and Stop it by tapping on the Stop option.
3. Next, open Command Prompt in Administrator Mode and run the following commands one by one. “regsvr32 wuaueng.dll”,”regsvr32 wups2.dll”, “regsvr32 wucltux.dll”, “regsvr32 wuwebv.dll”, “regsvr32 wups.dll”, “regsvr32 wuapi.dll”.Press them to execute them sequentially.
4. It will show you a successful message regarding the Windows Update Service and hit the OK button when it is prompted.
5. Re-open the Services window and right-click on the Windows Update Service window. Click on Start and re-enable the service.
6. Finally, restart the device and verify whether the Windows 7 Update Service not running problem still appears or not.

Disable the Windows Update

By turning off the Windows Update Service temporarily, you can easily avoid the Windows Update Service not running error:

1. First, type “windows update” in the search box and hit the Enter key on the keyboard to launch the Windows Update window.
2. Now, click on Change Settings from the Windows Update Settings window.
3. Next, you can see a list of important updates under the Update section and choose the option that says, “Never Check for Updates”. Click the OK button and apply new changes.
4. After that, go to the Windows Update Settings window again and select the option that says,
   Install Updates Automatically”.
5. Confirm the new changes by tapping on the OK button and saving it.
6. Finally, restart the System and verify whether the “Windows 7 Update Service not running” issue got fixed or not.

Run the Windows Update Troubleshooter

Windows Update Troubleshooter is an effective troubleshooting program that can easily resolve any Windows internal issue very quickly. So, run this software and remove the Windows Update error as soon as possible:

1. First, press the Windows key from the keyboard and lunch the Start menu on the display.
2. Now, type “troubleshooter” in the search box and open the Windows troubleshooting window by tapping on the Troubleshooting in the result.
3. Next, click on Fix Problems with the Windows Update option from the Windows Troubleshooter window.
4. After that, follow the on-screen instructions and start to troubleshoot the internal bugs of the system.
5. After finishing the troubleshooting program, click on the Windows Update icon from the resultant window.
6. Run the Windows Update again and it will take a few minutes to complete the Windows Upgrade operation.
7. When done, try to reboot and verify whether the Windows Update Service not running issue is fixed or not.

Clear the Windows Update History

To remove the recently used apps from your Windows Update history. Especially, you need to focus on the problematic files of this history and delete them accordingly:

1. First, press the Windows and R together from the keyboard and launch the Run dialog box.
2. Type “services.msc” in the search box and click the OK button.
3. You can see the list of services activated on your system in the Services window.
4. Next, Right-click on the Windows Update service and choose to Stop from the pop-up menu that appeared on the screen.
5. Go to the This PC or My Computer folder by double-tapping on its icon from the desktop. Navigate to the Windows folder under the Local Drive(C:\).
6. Type “Software Distribution” in the Find box and locate the file easily. Now, right-click on it and choose to Remove to delete this folder.
7. After closing that window, open the Services window again and right-click on the Windows Update Service. Choose Start and enable it again.
8. Finally, restart the PC and run the Windows Update program successfully.

Turn Off System Security Temporarily

By disabling the antivirus software and turning off Windows Firewall temporarily, you can fix the Windows Update Error easily:

1. Press the Windows key and choose the Settings icon from the appeared Start menu.
2. Choose the Update and Security app from the Windows Settings page.
3. Next, select Windows Security from the left side of the Update and Security window and launch the Windows Defender Security Center from that window.
4. Now, click on the Virus and threat Protection Settings link from the Windows DefenderSettings page and disable the Real-time Protection by turning it off.
5. You need to turn off other services like Cloud-Delivered Protection and Automatic Sample one after another.
6. After disabling the real-time protection package, close the Settings window and try to launch the Windows Update Program to fix this problem quickly.

Update the RST Driver

You can fix the Windows Update service issue by performing the RST driver update process manually:

1. Type “devmgmt.msc” in the Cortana Search box and hit the Enter key from the keyboard to launch the Device Manager window.
2. Expand the IDE ATA/ATAPI Controllers from that device list and here you will get a list of system trees.
3. Now, right-click on the Intel SATA Controller line and choose the Update Driver option from the pop-up menu that appeared on the screen.
4. Click on the YES button and start to install the RST driver with the latest version.
5. Reboot the device when the upgrade program is finished. Run the Windows Update Service program to verify whether the Windows Update Service error still appears or not.

Reset the Windows Update Repository

1. Tap on the Start button and type “cmd” in the search box. After locating the Command Prompt right-click on it.
2. Next, choose Run as Administrator from the pop-up menu that appeared on the screen and verify the account by entering the correct Credentials.
3. After opening the Command Prompt in Admin mode try to run the following commands by using the batch file. Type ” net stop bits”, “net stop wuauserv” one after another and execute them by hitting the Enter key ending of each command.
4. Now, open the Windows folder from the C:\ drive and locate the Software Distribution folder.
5. Right-click on that folder and choose Rename option. Now, set the folder name as “SoftwareDistribition.old”.
6. Again, return to the Command Prompt(Admin) window and run the commands “net starts bits” and “net start wuauserv” respectively.
7. Once done, reboot the system in Normal Mode and try to run the Windows Update program manually to verify whether the same issue still persists or not.

Perform the System Restore

System Restore is one of the important steps to resolve the Windows Update problem immediately. Moreover, it protects your device from an unexpected errors and enhances the Operating System longevity:

1. Click on the Start button and type “System Restore” in the search box. Hit the Enter key to launch the System Restore window.
2. Next, select the “Restore my computer to an earlier” option and hit the Next button from the bottom section of the window.
3. It will take a few minutes to complete the system restore operation and when done, try to perform the Windows Update and check whether the “Windows 7 Update Service not running” problem got resolved or not.

Wrapping It Up

In this article, we have discussed some of the effective troubleshooting steps to overcome the Windows Update Service not running issue permanently. Moreover, we have defined the significant issues responsible for this annoying issue along with the possible symptoms. So, we hope this content is useful to understand the problem easily and fix it quickly without any technical hassles.