14 DAY TRIAL // A number of users are said to be experiencing a pretty awkward situation when trying to download and install the new Windows 8.1, as the update is telling them that their PC can’t run the operating system.
Even though their computers are already powered by Windows 8 (which basically means that 8.1 should run flawlessly), an error provided during the updating process tells them otherwise.
Bug reports posted on Microsoft’s Community forums suggest that the error may be related to existing partitions and the location of system folders.
Here’s what one of the affected users has posted on the official forums:
“Receiving the error: Sorry, it looks like this PC can't run Windows 8.1. This might be because the Users or Program Files folder is being redirected to another partition. Getting this error when attempting to update my release of Win8 to 8.1. I have moved both User and Program Files to an alternative drive as my primary is a smaller SSD.”
It appears that this message is displayed to users whose Program Files folder is placed on a different partition, so moving all items indeed seems to be the only way to fix it.
According to a few consumers who already tried this little workaround, it doesn’t seem to make any difference, with Windows 8.1 still returning the same error during the installation process.
“I moved the users folder by using the symlink method. The update also fails, but with some generic error message. The logs show the updater fails to properly traverse the symlink. So either method is not updatable. Updating from the store, or the ISO gives the exact same result,” another user explained.
While Microsoft is probably looking into the problem as we speak, more and more users are already confirming the issue. The Windows 8.1 update is becoming more like a nightmare for many people out there, so Redmond clearly needs to address this as soon as possible.