We couldn’t connect to the update service in Windows 10

While checking and installing windows updates Getting an Error “We couldn’t connect to the update service. We’ll try again later, or you can check now. If it still doesn’t work, make sure you’re connected to the Internet.” And click the Retry button results the same, Windows 10 fails to install the latest updates. Also, users report they have a valid internet connection, Other apps and web browsers display web pages but only while checking windows updates its results We couldn’t connect to the update service. There are various reasons that cause this problem but the most common is Corrupted system files, Or may any third-party application causing the issue, or the windows update service itself stuck not running etc.

Fix We couldn’t connect to the update service

So if you’re sure you’re online or connected to the web and all apps can work with the Internet but you still can’t check for Windows Updates, here are some applicable solutions to address the issue.

• Open Settings -> Time & Language -> Select Region & Language from the options on left. Here Verify your Country/Region is correct from the drop-down list.
• Completely uninstall the antivirus program or any other security program from your system.
• Start windows into clean boot state and check for updates from settings -> update & security -> windows update and check for updates. This will fix the issue, download and install windows updates if any third-party application causing the issue.
• Also, make sure you have enough free space on the windows installed drive (Basically its C drive) to download windows update files from the Microsoft server.

Change DNS Address

Domain Name System (DNS) makes it possible for you to open websites and access internet services. The DNS directs your computer to access a service, and problems with the DNS can make services such as Windows Update temporarily unavailable. And you can fix this “we couldn’t connect to the update service error” by changing the DNS settings on your PC. You can switch to Google DNS or Cloudflare’s privacy-focused DNS to address the Windows Update issues.

To change the DNS settings on your Windows 10 device, do the following:

• Press Windows + R, type ncpa.cpl and ok
• This will open the network connections window,
• Right-click the network interface which is in use.
• For example: right-click the connected ethernet adapter displayed on the screen. Select Properties.
• Double-click on Internet Protocol Version 4 (TCP/IPv4) from the list to get its properties window.
• Here select the radio button Use the following DNS server addresses

1. Preferred DNS server 8.8.8.8
2. Alternate DNS server 8.8.4.4

• Click on validate settings upon exit and ok
• Now check for updates, there is no more Update service error

Run Windows Update Troubleshooter

• Open Windows Settings (Windows + I)
• Click on Update & Security then Troubleshoot.
• Here you find different troubleshooting tools to fix different problems.
• look for the windows update troubleshooter
• click on it and run the troubleshooter button.

This will attempt to identify if any problems exist which prevent your computer from downloading and installing Windows Updates. After complete, the process Restart windows and again manually Check for Updates.

Run Network & Internet Troubleshooter

Here again from Windows Settings ( Windows + I ) > Update & Security > Troubleshoot. Click on the network adapter and run the troubleshooter after that click on internet connections and run the troubleshooter to check and make sure the network and internet connection not causing the issue.

Turn off the Automatic proxy setup

This is another effective solution you may apply to check and fix “We couldn’t connect to the update service” problem.

• Press Windows key + I to open windows settings
• Select Network & Internet then Click on Proxy
• Here turn off  Automatically detect settings.
• Now press Windows + R, type inetcpl.cpl and ok.
• Move to the Connections tab, click LAN settings.
• uncheck, Use a proxy server for your LAN
• And make sure the Checkmark on Automatically detect settings

Restart Windows update Service (And its related services)

• On the Start menu search type services.msc and hit enter key to open windows services.
• Here look for windows update service,
• If it’s running state simply right-click on it and select restart.
• If it’s not running then right-click and select start the service.
• Now double click on windows update service to get its properties.
• Here change its startup type is set to automatic.
• Now switch to the Dependencies tab, and make sure the dependency services listed here are running.
• In this case, the dependency service is the Remote Procedure Call service.
• So ensure it is Running and has Automatic Startup type.

Also Check whether windows update-related services (Background Intelligent Transfer Service, Superfetch) are running or restart these services.

Run System File Checker Utility

Corrupted system files may be the possible cause of why you’re unable to get an update. Simply Run the System file checker utility to check and restore if any missing corrupted system files causing the issue. To do this

• Open the command prompt as administrator,
• Type sfc /scannow and hit the enter key.
• This will check for missing corrupted system files
• If found any the utility will restore them from %WinDir%\System32\dllcache.
• Wait until 100% complete the scanning process After that restart windows and check for updates.

Also if the SFC scan fails to restore corrupted system files, simply run the DISM command which repairs the system image and enables SFC to do its job.

Reset the Windows Update components

If nothing seems to solve the problem, you can try to reset the Windows Update components, and manually clear the Windows Update cache that fixes windows update download and installation issues. Before clearing the cache, first, we need to stop the Windows update service and its related service.

• To do this Open Command prompt as Administrator
• Perform the command below to Stop the Background Intelligent Transfer Service (BITS), Windows Update service, and Cryptographic service.

1. net stop bits
2. net stop wuauserv
3. net stop cryptsvc

• And minimize the command prompt window (we use the same later)

Now to clear the windows update cache

1. Press “Windows + R,” enter the below path and press the Enter button.
2. C:\Windows\SoftwareDistribution\
3. This folder has all the files related to Windows updates.
4. Open the “Download” folder, select all the files and delete all the files.

Now again open the Command prompt window and perform the command below to Reset the network configurations that might be part of the problem.

netsh winsock reset
netsh winsock reset proxy

And then perform the command below to restart the BITS, Windows Update, and Cryptographic services that we previously stopped.

net start bits
net start wuauserv
net start cryptsvc

That’s all now close every window and restart your system.

On next login check for updates from settings -> update & Security -> windows update And check for updates. And I am sure this time you get succeed, Did these tips help to fix the problem? Let us know on the comments below Also, Read

•  Solved: Potential windows update database error detected on windows 10
• Windows 10 Scanner Not Working “Cannot communicate with the scanner”
• How To Fix Windows Update Error 0x80070057
• Windows 10 Photos app not working File system error -2147219196