Windows 11 Update Failure fixed. (KB5070733) (26100.6901)

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So over this weekend, I further solidified my decision to move back to Linux (in this case, Ubuntu 24.04 LTS+ESM) as my daily workflow heavy lifter.

So, a brief story. I was setting up a new Beelink Mini S (referral affiliate link).

Here’s a photo showing its size compared to a ginger mint from my wife’s sweets dish:

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16 GB DDR4 | 500 GB M.2 SSD | Intel N100 CPU

This Beelink device came with Windows 11 Pro preinstalled. However, while adding a new Microsoft user account and running updates, the system ended up locking me out completely! :downcast_face_with_sweat:

Turns out, Microsoft recently made a few changes without testing out all the posible sanarious and bugs (IMO):

Likely related issues also popped up:

Official Microsoft page for similar problems:

Unlike Linux, it was very tedious to figure out what was actually happening in the background during updates. Honestly, I still cannot tell you because all we can see during updates are screens like this one below, which isn’t very helpful in real time:

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I will leave the explanation to the Windows experts. Anyway, after a reboot, the below “Updates failed” screen showed up:

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(KB5070733) (26100.6901)

To be fair, the machine also lost power during the update as I mistakenly plugged it into the wrong power strip. :laughing: But that happens many times on Linux, and it’s no biggie.

After hours of searching online since the logs seemed tedious to find, I found this command:

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Running it finally fixed the failed Windows 11 update issue:

DISM /Online /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealth

I haven’t had an issue like this on Windows 10 or 11 a few years. This was an important reminder for me of how painful it can be when something breaks and how long it takes to dig yourself out! Well, at least it took me ages.

That DISM command alone took about two hours to reach 85%. I left it running overnight, and thankfully, it completed successfully by morning.

All in all, it was a good reminder of why I trust Linux most for work. It offers better control when things go wrong and easier access to logs to pinpoint issues.

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I could try out at least three, maybe four Linux distributions in the time it took to fix that system, but maybe you are the type that relishes fixing systems like that.

I made a lot of money a few times, going around and fixing viruses and systems needing updates. One time I spent at whole day, maybe two, updating all systems in a medical complex. It happened to be where my own medical team worked so I was happy to fix things and get paid almost as much as many of the medical staff!

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I did not enjoy the experience. Haha.

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Even more Windows bugs:

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Yet ANOTHER reason among numerous others to stay away from Windows and other commercial software!

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I’ve been relearning this lesson @Brian_Masinick :grinning_face:

It feels like a cycle. I was pretty happy with Windows XP, then Windows Vista came next and ruined lives, lol.

Then Windows 7 rebuilt some confidence in Windows until I upgraded to Windows 8. Then it was goodbye Windows again!

When I first wrote this article at the start of this year, I was using Windows 10, and it was pretty solid. Now I’m on Windows 11, and it’s been a lot of these bad headlines and issues that have cost me hours of my life I will never get back.

As a systems analyst, which has over many years amplified my ability to find patterns, it was actually @shybry747 who made me see the pattern here! He said this week that Microsoft always has one good release followed by a bad one, then it repeats. His advice was to look out for Windows 12. :smile:

However, there is no official announcement or confirmed release date for Windows 12, and it is currently considered a rumor.

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I doubt that I will ever “look out” for any version of Windows. Right now I’m actually using a Beta 1 test version of the one I mention most often, antiX Linux, so this is antiX 25 Beta 1.

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