A user's laptop appeared stuck at 0% while installing an update for about an hour. They held the power button to shut it down, but the update seemed to remain at 0% for another 30 minutes after restarting. After a second forced shutdown, Windows finally booted normally. The drive is around 80% full, and running sfc /scannow also appears to stop at 50%. What could cause this, and what should I check or do if it happens again?
1 Answer
Both Windows Update and sfc /scannow can sit at the same percentage for a long time, especially if the system is repairing files or working with a slower drive. I’d avoid forcing the machine off unless there’s been no disk or CPU activity for a very long time. Run DISM /Online /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealth first, let it finish completely, and then run sfc /scannow again. Also check the drive’s health and make sure there’s enough free space for the update.
sfc /scannow has been sitting at 50% for roughly 30 minutes. I started DISM in another command window a couple of minutes ago, so I’m going to let both processes run longer before deciding they’re stuck.