14 DAY TRIAL // Microsoft claims the Windows Update bug that prevented a number of devices from installing updates on their Windows devices in late January is now fully fixed.
In other words, users can once again check for updates and install new patches on their computers.
Microsoft confirms in an update to the Windows 10 version 1809 update history page that the culprit was a bad DNS configuration offered by a number of ISPs.
“Windows Update customers were recently affected by a network infrastructure event caused by an external DNS service provider’s global outage. A software update to the external provider’s DNS servers resulted in the distribution of corrupted DNS records that affected connectivity to the Windows Update service,” Microsoft explains.
Issue originally fixed on January 30
The software giant originally said that the issue was fixed on January 30, but it took a while for devices worldwide to regain updating capabilities as ISPs refreshed their DNS configurations.
“The DNS records were restored by January 30, 2019 (00:10 UTC), but downstream effects continued. We believe the issue to be fully mitigated because the majority of local Internet Service Providers (ISP) have refreshed their DNS servers and customer services have been restored. If you are still encountering download failures, please contact your local ISP,” the company continues.
Ironically, I’m still seeing isolated reports of Windows Update issues, like this one on reddit, with users complaining their devices can’t connect to the update service.
However, it could all be just a matter of time until the new DNS settings become available to everyone, with Microsoft previously recommending users to wait for the Windows Update service to return to normal.
Microsoft fixing the Windows Update issue happens just at the right time, as the company will roll out new updates for Windows devices later today as part of the February 2019 Patch Tuesday cycle.