Error message: Updates were not able to be successfully installed

I have just upgraded from Win2K to WinXP SP2. I am logged in as
administrator. I activated the new installation and all was going well
until I went to Windows update.

The update program downloaded the updates and said these were necessary
in order to download update files. After the files were downloaded and
installation was attempted, I received the following message:

"Updates were not able to be successfully installed"
Microsoft Windows Installer 3.1
Update for Windows XP (KB898461)
Windows Genuine Advantage Validation Tool (KB892130)

At no time was I asked to install an Active X controller. There was no
error code given.

Please note that these downloads are apparently necessary for Windows
Update to download the other updates, so I am dead in the water until I
resolve this issue.
I have searched the knowledgebase and google but have not found a solution.

Curiously enough, I wanted to upgrade IE6 to !E7 and that happened after
I downloaded an upgrade and tried to install it but I received an error
message that the upgrade was unsuccessfully installed. After I
rebooted, IE7 was there. Go figure.

Does anyone know what to do to resolve this problem?

Thanks
Ken K

Uninstall IE7 from Add/Remove Programs and reboot the system two times.
Make sure that the system is rebooted *twice.
This should get you back to IE6, if that's what was previously installed.
Next, go to Start, Run, type in

net stop wuauserv

Click OK
Navigate to the WINDOWS\Software Distribution folder
Open it and delete it's contents, not the folder itself.
KEEP the files in the Recyle Bin for now, do NOT empty it, please.
Then go back to Start > Run > type in

net start wuauserv

Click OK
Revisit the Windows Update site by either clicking the shortcut on the
Start Menu or open IE, click Tools, Windows Update.

NOTE: If a 3rd party firewall is installed, suggest you temporarily
disable it and enable the native XP SP2 firewall when accessing WU.
If there's an antivirus program installed that blocks/monitors scripts
or ActiveX objects, suggest you temp disable that, too.

Install these updates first, then restart the system :
Microsoft Windows Installer 3.1
Update for Windows XP (KB898461)
Windows Genuine Advantage Validation Tool (KB892130)

If Automatic Update is enabled, then the updates should start coming
down. If not, use IE to access WU. STRONGLY suggest that you do no more
than 5 to 10 updates at a time. If there's an issue with one of them,
then at least you can narrow down the problematic update.


MowGreen [MVP 2003-2007]
===============
*-343-* FDNY
Never Forgotten
===============



Ken K wrote:

> I have just upgraded from Win2K to WinXP SP2. I am logged in as
> administrator. I activated the new installation and all was going well
> until I went to Windows update.
>
> The update program downloaded the updates and said these were necessary
> in order to download update files. After the files were downloaded and
> installation was attempted, I received the following message:
>
> "Updates were not able to be successfully installed"
> Microsoft Windows Installer 3.1
> Update for Windows XP (KB898461)
> Windows Genuine Advantage Validation Tool (KB892130)
>
> At no time was I asked to install an Active X controller. There was no
> error code given.
>
> Please note that these downloads are apparently necessary for Windows
> Update to download the other updates, so I am dead in the water until I
> resolve this issue.
> I have searched the knowledgebase and google but have not found a solution.
>
> Curiously enough, I wanted to upgrade IE6 to !E7 and that happened after
> I downloaded an upgrade and tried to install it but I received an error
> message that the upgrade was unsuccessfully installed. After I
> rebooted, IE7 was there. Go figure.
>
> Does anyone know what to do to resolve this problem?
>
> Thanks
> Ken K