Windows updates not working error codes 80073712 and 643

[penguinstead]

I have been unable to get windows updates to work properly for several years now, have failed to find any solution online to fix it thus far, and have wasted many many hours of my life on this

Currently I am getting error codes 80073712 and 643

I have attached a screenshot of the error message and the zip file of the logs

Many thanks in advance for any assistance, I would love for this to finally be resolved

Joe

 

[NoelDP]

You appear to have some fairly major registry corruption.

I need to have a look at your COMPONENTS registry hive

Please copy the C:\Windows\System32\config\COMPONENTS file (no extension) to your desktop and then compress it - upload the compressed file to your favoured fileshare site (preferably Dropbox or OneDrive) and post a link.

 

[penguinstead]

Thanks for helping

https://www.dropbox.com/s/ezf5r9w5sgmd2v1/COMPONENTS.zip?dl=0

is the link to Components file

Thanks again

Joe

 

[NoelDP]

The hive appears to be missing a major chunk of data
Your best option is a repair install - if that works! - see here http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/3413-repair-install.html?ltr=R

If you're unable to do the repair, then a clean install will be necessary.

In either case, you should back up your data to external media before attempting it.

 

[penguinstead]

Thanks again for your help, a couple of questions before I attempt a repair install:
1. my laptop did not come with an installation discs and the only one I have been able to download is win 7 with SP1, but i currently don't (and can't) have SP1 installed - will the repair install still work?
2. I currently have an OEM installation of win 7, will I be able to activate the new installation? (I got it from the link provided in this - How to Use Windows Boot, Repair, Rescue and Startup CDs and USB Flash Drives, the SHA1 checks out with that from msdn, so I assume it's that image)
3. If i have a system image would I be able to revert back to this (flawed but active) version of win 7 if my attempt to do a repair install failed, or would I be stuck with an unuseable laptop if the installation I have downloaded can't be activated?

Many thanks again for any help, I've tried looking around various forums and have seen conflicting answers to all these questions, so looking for some guidance

 

[NoelDP]

If for whatever reason you don't want SP1 installed then there is no point in attempting the repair with a SP1-embedded disk.

I'm sure that I have done repairs using SP1 media on RTM systems in the past - but I have also seen places where it says this is impossible. There's no harm in trying it, as it's designed to fail gracefully at an early stage if it doesn't work.

So long as the COA sticker on your machine is legible, and you input that Key during the install, the machine should activate fine.

A failed repair attempt very rarely causes major problems - it simply backs out of the repair. However, it's always good practice to back up to external media beforehand, in whichever way you feel most comfortable. A full system image on an external hard drive is probably the quickest option - the problem is that it's not easy to prove that the image is a valid one unless you actually test it first, which means that you then have to have another valid copy, or at least a blank drive, to test it on!


See the tutorial here for further details - http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/3413-repair-install.html?ltr=R

 

[penguinstead]

Thanks again for your help, it failed gracefully (and confusingly, said I needed Win 7 SP1 installed to be able to upgrade to Win 7 SP1)

Trying to summon up the courage to do a clean install now!

Thanks again, really appreciate there are people like you willing to help the rest of us!

 

[Layback Bear]

Question Noel.

If one installs Windows 7 (no SP-1) and activates it; should not SP-1 be offered in Windows Updates? Then one could install SP-1 in that fashion.
It would be one big download and take some time.

 

[NoelDP]

Correct - the trick is to get hold of RTM media to do the repair first.