If you are trying to upgrade your computer but encounter the Windows Update Error 0x800F081F – 0x20003 instead, then read on as this post will guide you in fixing this Windows Update error. This kind of error is commonly encountered when upgrading your copy of Windows 10 and is caused by errors with various developer-related settings that are being enabled in the system.
When you encounter Windows Update Error 0x800F081F – 0x20003, you will see either of these error messages:
“We couldn’t install Windows 10. The installation failed in the SAFE_OS phase with an error during INSTALL_UPDATES operation: Error 0x800F081F”
“The installation failed in the Safe_OS phase with an error during apply_image operation: Error: 0x800f081f – 0x20003”
To fix this kind of Windows Update error, you need not use external programs but you can try to disable the Developer Mode, run the Windows Update troubleshooter or restart all the Windows Update-related services and components. For more details, refer to the options provided below.
Option 1 – Try to disable Developer Mode
You might have to disable Developer Mode to fix the Windows Update Error 0x800F081F – 0x20003. How? Refer to these steps:
Tap the Win + I keys on your keyboard to open the Settings app.
Next, go to Update & Security > For Developers.
From there, select the toggle for Sideload apps or Microsoft Store apps located on the right-side panel.
If you get any prompt, just click on Yes.
After that, navigate to Apps > Apps & features and then click on Optional features on the right-side panel.
Then scroll down to locate the Windows Developer Mode entry and select it and click on Uninstall.
Once you’re done uninstalling the Windows Developer Mode component, close the Settings app and restart your computer to apply the changes made.
Option 2 – Try to run the Windows Update Troubleshooter
You should also try to run the built-in Windows Update troubleshooter as it could help you resolve the Windows Update Error 0x800F081F – 0x20003. To run it, go to Settings and then select Troubleshoot from the options. From there, click on Windows Update and then click the “Run the troubleshooter” button. After that, follow the next on-screen instructions and you should be good to go.
Option 3 – Try restarting various Windows Update-related services and components
Tap the Win + X key combination and select Command Prompt (Admin) to open Command Prompt with admin privileges.
After opening Command Prompt, copy and paste each one of the commands listed below one by one and tap Enter right after you enter each command.
Once you’ve entered all the commands given above, they will stop all the Windows Update services that are running on your computer as well as clear the SoftwareDistribution folder, and reset the Catroot2 folder. Now you have to start all these Windows Update services you’ve just stopped by executing the following commands:
net start wuauserv
net start bits
net start appidsvc
net start cryptsvc
After that, restart your computer and try to run the setup again, and see if the error is now fixed.
These days, Google Chrome is definitely one of the most used browsers in the browser. Google has almost created a nearly perfect product that rarely experiences problems. However, a lot of users have reported an issue where some files they’re downloading or their downloads in their Google Chrome browsers are stuck at 100%. So if you are one of these users, read on as this post will guide you on what you can do to resolve the problem.
This kind of problem could be caused by several factors. It is possible that the file download process could be blocked by a third-party antivirus or it could be that the content-length header could be missing from the server. Aside from that, a Google Chrome extension could also be the culprit or it could be that the current installation of the browser could be corrupted. This kind of problem can get really annoying as the download process has already utilized system resources as well as take up your time. Thus, you need to fix the problem using several suggestions. You can try to clear the browser cache, disable the Chrome virus scan, whitelist the file on the third-party antivirus program, put your browser in Incognito mode and download the file again. On the other hand, you could also try to reset or reinstall the browser. For more details, follow the options provided below.
Option 1 – Try to clear browser cache and try downloading again
There are times when some data in the browser is conflicting with the loading of the website and triggers some problems like download getting stuck at 100%. And so you can try to clear your browser’s data. This might be a very basic solution but oftentimes it works in fixing this kind of error in Google Chrome. Follow the steps below to clear the data in your browser.
Open your Google Chrome browser.
After that, tap the Ctrl + H keys. Doing so will open a new panel that allows you to delete the browsing history and other data in your browser.
Now select every checkbox that you see and click on the Clear data button.
Then restart your Chrome browser and check if you can now complete the download again.
Option 2 – Try disabling Chrome virus scan
The next thing you can do to resolve the problem is to disable the Chrome virus scan. It is possible that the virus scan is the one that’s preventing the download to be completed, thus, try to disable it and see if it works.
Option 3 – Whitelist the file you’re downloading in your antivirus program
The download getting stuck might also be caused by your antivirus program which could be interfering it from running. To fix this, you have to whitelist dism.exe. How? Refer to these steps:
Open the Windows Defender Security Center from the system tray area.
Next, click the “Virus & threat protection” option and then open the “Virus and threat protection settings”.
After that, scroll down until you find the “Exclusions” and click on the “Add or remove exclusions” option.
Then click the plus button and select the type of exclusion you want to add and from the drop-down list, select Folder.
Next, navigate to this path and select the WinSxS folder: C:/Windows/WinSxS
When a User Account Control or UAC prompt, just click on Yes to proceed.
Option 4 – Try downloading the file in Incognito mode
There are certain browser extensions, especially those security programs, that prevent any suspicious files from being downloaded. So the easy way to fix the problem is to launch the Chrome browser in Incognito mode and then try to download the file again. Additionally, you might want to consider disabling the problematic extension.
Option 5 – Reset Chrome
Resetting Chrome can also help you fix the problem. This means that you will be restoring its default settings, disabling all the extensions, add-ons, and themes. Aside from that, the content settings will be reset as well and the cookies, cache, and site data will also be deleted. To reset Chrome, here’s what you have to do:
Open Google Chrome, then tap the Alt + F keys.
After that, click on Settings.
Next, scroll down until you see the Advanced option, once you see it, click on it.
After clicking the Advanced option, go to the “Restore and clean up option and click on the “Restore settings to their original defaults” option to reset Google Chrome.
Now restart Google Chrome.
Option 6 – Try to clean reinstall Chrome
There are instances when programs leave files behind after you’ve uninstalled them and the same thing can happen to Chrome so before you reinstall Chrome, you have to make sure that you have deleted the User Data folder. To do so, refer to the following steps:
Hit the Win + R keys to open the Run dialog box.
Next, type “%LOCALAPPDATA%GoogleChromeUser Data” in the field and hit Enter to open the User Data folder.
From there, rename the default folder and name it something else, e.g. “Default.old”.
After that, install Google Chrome again and check if the issue is now fixed.
As of late, a number of users reported experiencing a problem where their Windows 10 computers get stuck on Airplane mode for some unknown reason. According to the affected users, they were unable to turn off the Airplane mode which means that their computers are also not able to connect to the internet. One of the possible reasons why this kind of issue occurs is that there could be a bug with the airplane mode or it could also be the doing of faulty network drivers or physical switch that’s turned on, and so on. If you are one of the few users who experience the same issue, then read on as this post will guide you on what to do if your Windows 10 computer gets stuck on Airplane mode.
There are a couple of suggestions you can check out to resolve the problem. You can try to check the status of the Radio Management service, flush the DNS cache or you could turn off the airplane mode via system settings. You could also update the network drivers or turn off the physical switch for airplane mode or make some adjustments in the Windows Registry. For more details, refer to each one of the suggestions provided below.
Option 1 – Try to check the Radio Management Service status
First, tap the Win + R keys to open the Run dialog box and type “services.msc” in the field, and hit Enter to open the Windows Services Manager.
Next, look for the Radio Management service and select Properties.
From there, change its Startup type to Disabled and click on the Apply and OK buttons to save the changes made.
Once done, restart your computer and check if you can now turn off the airplane mode.
Option 2 – Flush the DNS cache
You could also try to flush the DNS cache to fix the “ERR_ICAN_NAME_COLLISION” error. All you have to do is open Command Prompt as an administrator and then execute each one of the following commands sequentially to flush the DNS cache:
ipconfig/release
ipconfig/renew
ipconfig/flushdns
Option 3 – Try turning off the airplane mode via System settings
If flushing the DNS cache did not help in fixing the problem, then you might want to turn off airplane mode via system settings.
In the Windows Search bar, type “airplane mode”.
From the search results that appear, click on Airplane mode.
After that, a window will appear where you have to turn off the toggle button for Airplane mode.
Option 4 – Try to update, rollback or reinstall the Network adapter drivers
The next thing you can do to resolve the problem is to update the Network Adapter drivers by following these steps:
Tap the Win + R keys to launch the Run window and then type in the “devmgmt.msc” command and hit Enter to open the Device Manager window.
Under the Device Manager, you will see a list of drivers. From there, look for the Network Adapters and expand them.
Look for the Broadcom Network Adapter and right-click on it, as well as other network adapters that have an exclamation icon, and update them all.
Restart your PC and see if it helped in fixing the problem.
Note: If updating the network drivers didn’t help in fixing the problem, you can also try to roll back the very same drivers from their previous versions and restart your Windows 10 PC. After that, the system itself will reinstall the drivers you just uninstalled. Alternatively, you can also download and install the drivers from the manufacturer’s website directly.
To reinstall the network adapter drivers, refer to these steps:
Open the Devices Manager from the Win X Menu.
Then locate the device drivers and right-click on them to open the Properties.
After that, switch to the Driver tab and click on the Uninstall Device button.
Follow the screen option to completely uninstall it.
Finally, restart your computer. It will just reinstall the device drivers automatically.
Option 5 – Try to turn off the physical switch for Airplane mode
If your computer has a physical switch to turn on or off the airplane mode, then you might want to check that switch if you have one. Chances are, it could be the reason why you’re unable to turn off Airplane mode on your computer.
Option 6 – Try to make some adjustments in the Registry
Tap the Win + R keys to launch the Run utility.
Then type “Regedit” in the field and hit Enter to open the Registry Editor.
Next, navigate to this registry path: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINESystemCurrentControlSetControlClass
From there, edit the registry value of “RadioEnable” to “1”.
Exit the Registry Editor once done, and restart your computer.
We have all experienced Windows errors over time and that can range from simple ones that will do very little to no harm and can be even system breaking making us lose our work or completely making the PC unusable. No one likes them but they happen, and usually, they happen once we least expect them.
No matter how frequent and unpleasant they might be there are ways to keep them at the minimum and even avoid them.
We will discuss steps that you can take in order to do this, simple tips and guides on how to keep your computer in top form and eliminate not just Windows, but any kind of errors altogether.
Keep your hardware clean
Believe it or not, some serious Windows errors like the dreaded blue screen of death can come from hardware issues not from the software at all. It is very important to keep your computer clean and with enough air flow so it can function properly.
Keeping applications on the drive might seem harmless but sadly that is not the case. Some applications have a certain impact on the system itself after all most of them are tweaking registry entries in Windows and sometimes having too many applications means an increased possibility of conflict over certain resources even when they are not running.
Some applications like adobe creative suite, for example, will have certain services always running in the background, and more of these kinds of applications you have, more services, more places for unexpected errors when they collide. Some of them will also install certain dependencies that could be problematic.
The general idea is: if you are not using it, uninstall it and you will be safer and more resilient to errors inside OS.
Do not use pirated or cracked software
Besides moral and law implications that using pirated or cracked software might bring you there are also certain other things that might be problematic. Certain "free" software might come packet with some problematic malware, for example, it is not uncommon for attackers to use some popular software to pack their malicious application with it.
Other things might be wrong and incomplete tweaking with application in order to bypass security and thus bringing some instability due to scripts needed to run in order to achieve this goal.
Keep your drivers updated
Errors can also come from old drivers or bad drivers, device manufacturers are not all-knowing and perfect, and sometimes drivers can wreak havoc on the system. Having updated drivers can minimize any kind of unexpected behaviors inside the operating system making it more stable and reliable.
You can check your driver version in the control panel inside the Windows OS and then compare it to the ones found on the manufacturer's site, if there are newer available it is recommended to download and install them,
Keep software updated
Applications can have bugs, and bugs can lead to certain errors both in the system and when using the app as well. It is in your best interest to get the latest patch or newer version of the software in order to avoid these unpleasant experiences.
Also, certain codecs and extensions that are installed directly in Windows can also have some unpredictable behavior, updating is the best solution to keep them in line.
Keep Windows updated
Same as with drivers and applications, Windows itself is not immune from bugs and some unpredictable issues. Luckily Microsoft is always working on fixes and features of Windows but in order to actually have benefited from that work, you will need to keep Windows updated. Sometimes a bad update can introduce some errors but you can always roll back to the previous and wait for them to fix everything and then download them all.
Check the health of your hardware regularly
Hardware components have their life cycle, more quality ones tend to last longer but eventually, they will reach the end of their lifecycle. There are a lot of testers for various components in your computer that can check different things and provide you with information about the state of your components.
If you are on Windows 11, Microsoft has included a basic health app inside OS, just type PC health check in search and start the app. For some more detailed information and advanced checks, you will have to use a custom application. There are plenty of them specialized for single components like RAM, SSD, etc. A simple google search with providing you with top results and most of them are free for personal use.
Remember, a faulty component or component that is reaching its life cycle can produce many errors inside the operating system.
In case you don’t know, Windows contains a feedback mechanism that generates error reports from hardware and software problems. These reports are temporarily stored in the system and send them back to Microsoft so that it can find solutions to the reported problems and fix them in the upcoming updates. However, as time goes by, these reports actually take a lot of space in your computer which is why end-users like you are free to delete them with the help of the new Free Up Space feature in Windows 10.
As useful the Free Up Space feature may be, there are times when you won’t be able to use it for some reason which is why in this post, you will be guided on how to use alternative ways in deleting very large System queued Windows Error Reporting file, some of which may run in Gigabytes.
Every time the Windows Error Reporting or WER sends out an error file and looks for a solution, the WER server at Microsoft sends out a solution instantly. And if the solution is under investigation or is unknown, then you will be notified about it right away and will be asked for more details.
As mentioned, even though the Free Up Space feature in Settings will be able to clear the error reporting files, there are instances when it won’t be able to delete very large System queued Windows Error Reporting files. Alternatively, there is an option to delete these files using the Disk Cleanup Utility.
Feel free to select which option you’d like to use to get rid of Windows Error Reporting Files.
Option 1 – Delete Windows Error Reporting Files via Settings
Go to Settings.
From there, go to System > Storage > Free Up Space and then click on it to launch it.
Afterward, give it some time to populate all the files and folders. Once it’s done, select “System created Windows Error Reporting files” to mark its checkbox while leaving the other options unchecked.
Next, click on the Remove files button to delete all the Windows Error Reporting files from your computer.
Option 2 – Manually delete the Windows Error Reporting Files
Tap the Win + E keys to open File Explorer.
Next, enable the Hidden Files view from the menu.
Then go to C:/ProgramData/MicrosoftWindowsWER.
From there, you will see various folders like LocalReportArchive, ReportArchive, ReportQueue, and Temp.
Open each one of the aforementioned folders and delete the archive files. Note that these files will have names similar to “00c58c1f-b836-4703-9bcf-c699ca24d285”.
Note: If you are not able to delete any of these files, you have to take ownership of the folder. To do so, refer to these steps:
Right-click on the folder and then select Properties.
Next, click on the Edit button in the Properties window and click OK to confirm if you got a User Account Control elevation request.
After that, select user/group from the permission windows or click on the Add button to add another user or group. It would be best if you add “Everyone” to give permission.
Then check “Full Control” under the “Allow” column to assign full access rights control permissions.
Now edit the permission to Full Control for “Everyone”.
Click OK to save the changes made and then exit.
On the other hand, if you do not want to go through all these troubles in deleting the Windows Error Reporting files, you can just disable it especially if it already becomes a daily annoyance as the files generate every day and their sizes are mostly gigabytes. And besides, there are times when these files do not make it to the Microsoft WER server and end up only occupying a lot of space for nothing.
This post will help you fix the request that failed due to a fatal device hardware error on your Windows 10 PC. You can encounter this error when that hard drive/SSD on your computer is damaged physically and the system is either unable to access or perform read/write operations in it. Aside from hard drive/SSD, this error can also happen to removable drives.
This kind of error is not uncommon and in most cases, the hardware is physically damaged due to which you are not able to perform operations. However, there are a couple of fixes that you can try to resolve the problem before you go ahead and back up your data and move them to a different drive. What exactly causes this error? It’s actually self-explanatory and it gives you an idea that the drive is either corrupted or in a bad state. To resolve the error, follow the given options below carefully and see which one worked best for you.
Option 1 – Verify the hard drive using SMART attributes
In case you don’t know, Windows has a built-in feature of SMART analysis which analyzes the hard drive/SSD and checks all the parameters by performing some minor operations. To use it, follow these steps:
Tap the Win + S keys and type “command prompt” in the field then right-click on the related search result and select the “Run as administrator” option.
After opening Command Prompt as admin, type the “wmic diskdrive get status” command and hit Enter.
You should get a result after that, and if you see that it’s “normal”, proceed to the next option below.
Option 2 – Use the CHKDSK utility
When it comes to some issues concerning the hard drive or removable devices, there is a utility in Windows that might help which is called “chkdsk”. This error check utility can help with several issues in the system.
Tap the Win + S keys to open the Search box.
Then type “command prompt” in the field and from the search results that appear, right-click on Command Prompt and select “Run as administrator”.
After opening an elevated command prompt, copy and paste the following command and hit Enter:
Note: In the command given above, “[/F]” will try to fix the system errors while “[/R]” will be the one to fix the bad sectors.
Now if you are prompted to run CHKDSK after your reboot your PC, just tap Y and reboot your PC.
If CHKDSK is not able to find any errors, tap the Win + E keys and navigate the access window. From there, right-click on the concerned drive and click on Properties.
After opening Properties, click on the tab Tools and then click on the “Check” button under the Error-checking section.
Wait until the process is completed and then restart your computer.
Option 3 – Format your drive
You can try formatting your drive since this problem also occurs on removable hard drives. In addition, if your drive is not properly initialized, this error will really pop up. Thus, you need to make sure that the hard drive is initialized and that the correct partition style is selected.
To get started formatting your drive, tap the Win + E keys and then go to the access page of the drive.
Next, right-click on the drive and select Format.
After that, uncheck the “Quick Format” option and then format your drive properly.
Now once the formatting process is finished, unplug the drive and plug it back in afterward.
Check if the error is already fixed. If the drive is not initialized, tap the Win + R keys and hit Enter.
After opening the Run dialog box, type “diskmgmt.msc” and hit Enter to open Disk Management.
From there, right-click on the drive volume and select Initialize Disk.
Next, select the correct partition type and proceed.
That should fix the problem, if not, follow the next advanced option below.
If you have multiple keyboards, things can get quite tricky. There are times when the keyboard language changes on its own since the keyboard changes while you are typing. The thing is, the keyboard changes because sometimes we accidentally tap shortcuts like Win key + Space key or Alt + Shift or Ctrl + Shift which changes the keyboard pairs or language. Thus, if your keyboard language changes on its own, there are two ways to resolve it. First, you have to make sure that Windows 10 does not add keyboards without your permission. Second, you have to make sure that the shortcut keys don’t change the keyboard language. This second option is what we’re going to discuss in this post.
You need to first set a different input method for each app window. To do that, you have to disable the change in layout. Refer to these steps:
Go to Settings > Language and input.
Next, type “switching input methods” to open the Advanced keyboard settings with this option inside.
After that, select the checkbox labeled as “Let me set a different input method for each app window” and then click the Save button.
Restart your computer.
Now that you’ve disabled the change in layout, you now have to find the keyboard settings. Just go to Settings > Devices > Typing > Advanced Keyboard settings. From there, you have the option to select which keyboard is going to be used for any app. When you change the keyboard every time you use an app, usually, Windows remember it so that you won’t have to set it up all over again. In addition, the Advanced keyboard settings page also allows you to override the default input method which could be different from the first one in your language list. Aside from that, there is also a Language bar option that comes in handy as you can quickly switch between keyboards. And if you removed it, you have the option to restore the language bar back as well.
Now all that’s left for you to do is to change the Language Settings under the Administrative tab. A user from a forum that came up with this solution, reported that the issue occurred when he started typing in some program with non-Unicode characters which caused Windows to use the default system local language to interpret these characters even though the language is unavailable in the Language bar. To change the Language Settings under the Administrative tab, follow these steps:
Go to Settings > Time and Language > Language > Administrative language settings.
After that, click on Copy Settings under the Administrative tab.
Now make sure that all the Display language, Input language, and Format are English (United States) or any language you prefer.
Then mark the two checkboxes in “Copy your current settings to Welcome screen and system accounts & New user accounts”.
After that, click OK and then exit.
Note: You also have the option to disable those shortcut combinations which can change your keyboard settings accidentally.
As you know, aside from making computing a lot easier, mouse and touchpad, it also makes computing more efficient and less time-consuming. And so life is unimaginable without these useful devices. However, it is a known fact that you can’t customize these devices since all touchpads and mice come with their own default scrolling direction but worry not for in this post you will be guided on how you can reverse their default scrolling directions.
Every user has their own different preferences when it comes to scrolling directions. You might want the scrolling directions to look like the page is being scrolled in the same direction in where you move your fingers over the touchpad or you might prefer it in an inverted way. Reversing the scroll direction for your device’s touchpad is really easy as Windows by default offers this customization. So if you are trying to find a way to reverse the scrolling direction of your mouse, then you have to follow a tricky little method which will be provided in this post.
It is apparent from the number of settings the touchpad is available that it has become more customizable. You can configure everything, from its gestures, taps, sensitivity, and even its scrolling direction. And now, if you want to reverse its scrolling direction, here’s what you have to do:
Step 1: Tap the Win + I keys to open Settings.
Step 2: From there, go to Devices and select Touchpad from the menu.
Step 3: Next, look for the Scrolling Direction setting.
Step 4: Then click on the drop-down and select your preferred setting. If you want the same direction scrolling, just select the “Downwards motion scrolls down” option, and if you want the opposite select the other one.
After you carry out these steps, the settings will be applied right away and you will see the changes. On the other hand, if you want to change the scrolling direction for your mouse, the procedure is not as simple as it was for the touchpad.
To reverse the scrolling direction for a mouse, refer to these steps:
Step 1: In the Start Search, type “device manager” and click on the appropriate result to open the Device Manager.
Step 2: After opening the Device Manager, look for your Mouse under the “Mice and other pointing devices” section. It is mostly listed as an “HID-compliant mouse”.
Step 3: Right-click on your mouse and click Properties.
Step 4: From there, go to the Details tab and from the drop-down menu, select Device Instance Path.
Step 5: Now take note of the value displayed on its value field and then tap the Win + R keys to open the Run dialog box.
Step 6: Type in “Regedit” in the field and hit Enter to open the Registry Editor.
Step 7: Next, navigate to the following location:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINESYSTEMCurrentControlSetEnumHID
Step 8: From this folder, you have to start matching the values in the first part of the value you’ve taken note of.
Step 9: Open the folder which has the same value and repeat this for the second part of the value.
Step 10: Afterwards, click on the Device Parameters and look for a property named “FlipFlopWheel” and invert its value from 0 to 1 or 1 to 0 to reverse the scrolling direction. And then restart your PC to apply the changes made.
After you restart your PC, you should see the changes in the scrolling direction of your mouse. Note that you can change the value back to its original value or just use the registry backup to undo the changes you’ve made.
Blue screen locale id 1033 error as the name suggests, is a type of BSoD error. This error may occur during Windows startup, program load, or while the program is running. The error indicates poor PC maintenance and occurs without any warning.
The error message is prompted in the following format:
Problem signature: Problem Event Name: BlueScreen OS Version: 6.0.6002.2.2.0.16.7 Locale ID: 1033
When the error occurs, the computer screen turns blue and the user is unable to view or access the program. It is advisable to fix the error right away, virtually because BSoD is a critical PC error, it can pose serious threats to your system.
Error Causes
The two most common causes of the occurrence of the Blue Screen Locale ID1033 error code are:
Registry issues
Viral infection
Further Information and Manual Repair
You don’t need to hire a technician or be a computer whiz to resolve Blue Screen Locale ID1033 error code. Here are some methods that you can try to resolve this error on your PC. These methods are easy to perform and result-driven.
Method 1: Perform a PC Scan by Downloading an Anti-Virus
Since this error is indicative of a viral infection, it is suggested you perform a PC scan by installing an antivirus on your system. Make sure you download an antivirus that is powerful and has the ability to scan all kinds of viruses.
Method 2: Clean and Repair the Registry
Another alternative method is to clean and repair the registry.
The Registry is a component of the PC that stores all information and activities performed on the PC. This includes both important and unnecessary files like junk files, cookies, internet history, temporary files, invalid entries, bad registry keys, and more.
These files not only accumulate in the registry but also damage and corrupt it thereby generating error codes like the Blue Screen Locale ID1033 error code.
If you are trying to upgrade your computer but encounter the Windows Update Error 0x800F081F – 0x20003 instead, then read on as this post will guide you in fixing this Windows Update error. This kind of error is commonly encountered when upgrading your copy of Windows 10 and is caused by errors with various developer-related settings that are being enabled in the system.
When you encounter Windows Update Error 0x800F081F – 0x20003, you will see either of these error messages:
“We couldn’t install Windows 10. The installation failed in the SAFE_OS phase with an error during INSTALL_UPDATES operation: Error 0x800F081F”“The installation failed in the Safe_OS phase with an error during apply_image operation: Error: 0x800f081f – 0x20003”
To fix this kind of Windows Update error, you need not use external programs but you can try to disable the Developer Mode, run the Windows Update troubleshooter or restart all the Windows Update-related services and components. For more details, refer to the options provided below.
Option 1 – Try to disable Developer Mode
You might have to disable Developer Mode to fix the Windows Update Error 0x800F081F – 0x20003. How? Refer to these steps:
Tap the Win + I keys on your keyboard to open the Settings app.
Next, go to Update & Security > For Developers.
From there, select the toggle for Sideload apps or Microsoft Store apps located on the right-side panel.
If you get any prompt, just click on Yes.
After that, navigate to Apps > Apps & features and then click on Optional features on the right-side panel.
Then scroll down to locate the Windows Developer Mode entry and select it and click on Uninstall.
Once you’re done uninstalling the Windows Developer Mode component, close the Settings app and restart your computer to apply the changes made.
Option 2 – Try to run the Windows Update Troubleshooter
You should also try to run the built-in Windows Update troubleshooter as it could help you resolve the Windows Update Error 0x800F081F – 0x20003. To run it, go to Settings and then select Troubleshoot from the options. From there, click on Windows Update and then click the “Run the troubleshooter” button. After that, follow the next on-screen instructions and you should be good to go.
Option 3 – Try restarting various Windows Update-related services and components
Tap the Win + X key combination and select Command Prompt (Admin) to open Command Prompt with admin privileges.
After opening Command Prompt, copy and paste each one of the commands listed below one by one and tap Enter right after you enter each command.
Once you’ve entered all the commands given above, they will stop all the Windows Update services that are running on your computer as well as clear the SoftwareDistribution folder, and reset the Catroot2 folder. Now you have to start all these Windows Update services you’ve just stopped by executing the following commands:
net start wuauserv
net start bits
net start appidsvc
net start cryptsvc
After that, restart your computer and try to run the setup again, and see if the error is now fixed.
A lot of users lately reported getting an error that says, “The application has failed to start because its side-by-side configuration is incorrect”. This kind of error can pop up when you try to open a number of programs, regardless of their origin, the developer, and compatibility.
Here’s the full context of the error message:
“<PATH OF THE EXECUTABLE FILE>, This application has failed to start because its side-by0side configuration is incorrect. Please see the application event log or use the command-line sxstrace.exe tool for more detail”.
This kind of problem has something to do with the C++ runtime package in the background. It could also be related to an error for a registry value. Whatever the cause is, you can fix this error with the help of some suggestions provided in this post. You can try to reinstall the application or check the registry setting or reinstall the suitable Visual C++ Runtimes or re-enable the Microsoft .NET Framework. For more details, refer to the instructions given below.
Option 1 – Try to reinstall the application
There are times when some supporting module for your application under the hood could have messed up the application. And so to fix that, you need to uninstall the concerned application and then try reinstalling it again. Once you’re done, check if it fixed the problem or not.
Option 2 – Try to change the Registry setting
Tap the Win + R key combination to open the Run dialog box.
Then type “Regedit” in the fields and tap Enter to open the Registry Editor.
Next, navigate to this registry key: Computer HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE SOFTWARE Microsoft Windows NT CurrentVersion SideBySide Winners x86_policy.9.0.microsoft.vc90.crt_1fc8b3b9a1e18e3b_none_02d0010672fd8219 9.0
From there, look for a String value named “default” and double click on it.
After that, change its Value data to match the one as the third value in BINARY.
Now restart your computer to successfully apply the changes made.
Option 3 – Try reinstalling the appropriate Visual C++ Runtime
You need to open the Event Viewer first by searching for it in the Windows Search box.
After opening Event Viewer, look for the error events that are sourced by SideBySide.
Next, look for the actual Visual C++ Runtime module that’s causing the error.
Now download the module from the official website of Microsoft Support and then install it and see if it fixed the problem.
Option 4 – Re-enable the Microsoft .NET Framework
You could also try to disable the Microsoft .NET Framework then enable the latest version of the .NET Framework on your PC and check if the error is fixed.
