If a Windows update broke your PC, uninstall the latest update from Settings or recovery, try System Restore, then roll back drivers. Reset is the last resort.
If a Windows update broke your PC, the quickest fix is to uninstall the latest update, either from Settings if Windows still opens or from the recovery environment if it does not. System Restore and a driver rollback are the next steps, and a reset or reinstall is the last resort.
Most updates install without trouble. When one goes wrong, it is usually a bad driver, an interrupted install, or a full drive. A failing drive or memory module that was already struggling can also show up at exactly the moment of an update, which makes it look like the update's fault.
What happens when an update goes wrong?
- Boot loop: the laptop restarts again and again, or shows Undoing changes made to your computer.
- Blue screen or black screen after the update finishes.
- Missing features: Wi-Fi, sound, touchpad or graphics stop working because a driver changed.
- Slow or stuck at "Working on updates" for a very long time.
- Sign-in problems, or a BitLocker recovery key prompt after the restart (see the BitLocker guide).
If the laptop is still installing, let it run for a while. Updates can take a long time on a slow drive. Do not force it off unless nothing has changed for a long period, because interrupted updates cause corruption.
Step 1: Uninstall the latest update from Windows
If you can reach the desktop:
- Open Settings > Windows Update > Update history.
- Scroll down and select Uninstall updates.
- Find the most recent update (check the install date), select it and choose Uninstall.
- Restart.
On Windows 10 the path is Settings > Update & Security > View update history > Uninstall updates.
Step 2: Uninstall from the recovery environment
If Windows will not start:
- Force the laptop off with the power button two or three times during start-up until Automatic Repair appears.
- Choose Advanced options > Troubleshoot > Advanced options > Uninstall Updates.
- Choose Uninstall latest quality update first. If the problem was a big version upgrade, choose Uninstall latest feature update.
- Sign in if asked, confirm, and restart.
A quality update is the monthly security update. A feature update is a larger version upgrade. If the PC upgraded a version in the last few days, Settings > System > Recovery > Go back (when offered) can also return to the previous version, but only for a limited period after the upgrade.
Step 3: Use System Restore
If you have a restore point from before the update:
- In the recovery environment, choose Troubleshoot > Advanced options > System Restore, or from Windows type Create a restore point in Start and use System Restore.
- Pick a restore point dated before the problem.
- Follow the prompts. System Restore reverses system changes and drivers but does not delete your personal files.
System Restore only works if protection was switched on earlier. If no restore points exist, move on.
Step 4: Roll back or reinstall the driver
If one thing is broken (graphics, Wi-Fi, touchpad), open Device Manager, right-click the device, choose Properties > Driver > Roll Back Driver if available, or uninstall the device and restart so Windows installs it again. Safe Mode (choose Startup Settings from the recovery menu and press 4) lets you do this when normal Windows will not load.
Step 5: Pause updates and repair files
Once the PC is working again:
- Open Settings > Windows Update and choose Pause updates, so the same update does not reinstall immediately. This is a short delay, not a permanent fix.
- Run
sfc /scannowandDISM /Online /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealthin Command Prompt as administrator. - Check that the drive has free space.
Step 6: Reset or reinstall as a last resort
If nothing works, Troubleshoot > Reset this PC reinstalls Windows. Keep my files keeps personal files but removes apps and settings; Remove everything wipes the drive. Either option can fail partway through, so back up first if you can reach your files. A reset is not a guarantee that your files survive.
A clean reinstall is the dependable repair when Windows itself is badly damaged. Our Windows reinstall for laptops is a flat RM100 for a straightforward reinstall. TechFix does not offer data recovery, so files that were not backed up are lost on a reinstall.
Update fault or hardware coincidence?
| Sign | More likely |
|---|---|
| Fine again after uninstalling the update | Software or driver |
| Laptop still fails after update removal, System Restore and Safe Mode | Hardware or damaged Windows |
| Drive missing in BIOS, clicking, slow before the update | SSD problem |
| Random crashes, memory errors | RAM problem |
Updates restart the machine and stress the drive, which can expose a fault that was already there. If the laptop still will not boot after the update is gone, see no bootable device error and the Windows blue screen guide.
When to bring it in
Bring the laptop in if the boot loop continues after uninstalling the update, System Restore and Safe Mode do not help, or you suspect the drive or memory. We diagnose first and quote before any repair. Diagnosis for Windows laptops and desktops is RM100, waived when you approve the repair; the fee policy has the detail. There is no free pickup: you courier the laptop to TechFix or walk in, and we courier it back free.
See Windows laptop repair, then book a diagnosis or WhatsApp us at 012-770 7120. We are open Monday to Friday, 9am to 6pm.
