Windows has come a long way as an operating system and progressed tremendously over time. The latest iteration of Windows has brought amazing features along with awaited functionalities to the table.
That being said, no matter how amazing a piece of software is, it is ultimately prone to errors. Similarly, a group of people has been lately receiving a peculiar ‘Update.exe’ error message on their computer.
This type of error could present itself due to several reasons. However, in almost all cases, it tends to be a software-related issue, and hence, it is relatively easy to resolve on your own.
If you have also been one of the unfortunate ones, receiving this error on your system, just follow the solutions listed in this guide below and you will be free from this annoyance.
But before you tackle this issue head-on and eradicate it from your computer, let’s first understand what are the probable causes of such an error as that will allow you to have a perspective on how to avoid it in the future as well.
Potential Reasons for Receiving the Update.exe Application Error
As mentioned earlier in this guide, there could be multiple reasons for this error arising in the system, and below are the most probable reasons:
- Malware or Virus Infected System
- An Incompatible Third-Party App
- Outdated or Damaged Drivers
- Improper Registry Modification
- Corrupted or Damaged System Files
Now that you understand the reasons for this kind of error, let’s head on to resolving the issue on your computer.
Method 1: Scan your PC for Malware or Virus Infection
The first and foremost step you should take when facing an error of such kind is to scan your PC for any malware or virus. Typically Windows does that automatically, however, running a deep scan on your PC cannot hurt at all.
To run a full scan of your PC, first, head to the Start Menu and type Security in the menu to perform a search for it. After that, from the search results, click on the ‘Windows Security’ tile to proceed.
Then, on the ‘Windows Security’ window, click on the ‘Virus & threat protection’ tab present in the left sidebar.
Now, from the right section of the page, click on the ‘Scan options’ button situated under the ‘Current threats’ section.
Then, on the next page, click on the radio button preceding the ‘Microsoft Defender Anticrius’ scan and then click on the ‘Scan now’ button present at the bottom of the page to proceed.
Your PC might shut down and restart once to complete the scan and detect any malware and/or virus on your system.
Method 2: Fix Registry Errors Using DISM and SFC Scan
Since the issue involves corrupted or damaged system files, it is recommended to run the DISM and SFC scan, as DISM will fix the image that is used to diagnose the problems present on your system, and SFC (System File Checker) will check and repair your machine.
First, you will need to run the DISM (Deployment Image Servicing and Management) process, and once that is completed, you will have to run the SFC (System File Checker) to check the integrity and errors of all system files.
To run the DISM on your system, first, head to the Start Menu and type Terminal to search for it. Then, from the search results, right-click on the ‘Terminal’ tile and select the ‘Run as administrator’ option.
Now, a UAC (User Account Control) window will appear on your screen. If you are not logged in with an admin account, enter the credentials for one. Otherwise, click on the ‘Yes’ button present in the window to proceed.
Then, on the terminal window, type or copy+paste the below-mentioned code and hit Enter on your keyboard to execute the command.
DISM/ Online/ Cleanup-Image/RestoreHealth
The DISM command may take up to several minutes depending on the speed of your internet connection. It may also appear stuck at times, but it is a normal behavior of the command. Wait patiently till the execution of the command completes.
Once completed, type or copy+paste the below-mentioned command to invoke the SFC (System File Checker) that will scan your currently installed Windows image and fix the damaged or corrupted files using the one downloaded in the previous step.
SFC /scannow
Once the SFC command is finished executing, head to the Start menu and restart your PC. Now after the restart, try to upgrade again to check if the issue is still present.
Method 3: Deactivate the Data Execution Prevention
Data Execution Prevention (DEP) is a memory protection tool by Microsoft that disallows third-party programs to execute from certain parts of the memory. Though this feature is incorporated for the safety of the system, many programs are still not compatible with it. Moreover, there have also been scenarios where DEP disallowed the execution of non-malicious programs.
However, there’s a catch to this method as it requires you to know which specific app is creating the problem on the system. If you don’t know the app creating the problem, you might as skip this method now.
To deactivate the DEP on your system, first, head to the Start Menu and click on the ‘Settings’ tile to open the app. Alternatively, you can also press the Windows+E keys together on your keyboard to do so.
Next, on the Settings window, make sure you have selected the ‘System’ tab present in the left sidebar.
After that, from the right section of the window, scroll down to the bottom of the page and click on the ‘About’ tile to proceed.
Now, on the ‘About’ page, click on the ‘System Protection’ button present in the ‘Related links’ section. This will open a separate window on your screen.
Then, from the separately opened window, click on the ‘Advanced’ tab and then click on the ‘Settings’ button present under the ‘Performance’ section to proceed. This will again open a separate window on your screen.
Next, from the ‘Performance Options’ window on your screen, click on the ‘Data Execution Prevention’ tab to continue.
After that, click on the radio button preceding the ‘Turn on DEP for all programs and services except those I select:’ option and click on the ‘Add’ button present in the bottom section of the window. This will bring up a File Explorer window on your screen. Locate the problematic app in the installer drive of your PC and select the .EXE file of the app to add it to the list.
Once you have added the app to the list, click on the ‘Apply’ button to save the changes and click on the ‘OK’ button to close the window.
Method 4: Install or Update Missing Drivers on your System
A missing or outdated driver could also be one of the reasons that you have been experiencing this issue on your system. Since updating and/or installing a driver on your system is a very straightforward process, it is definitely worth a try. Moreover, you can update the driver either from the Settings app or from the Device Manager.
To install or update the driver from the Settings app, first, head to the Start Menu and click on the ‘Settings’ icon tile present under the ‘Pinned apps’ section to continue. Alternatively, you can press the Windows+I keys together on your keyboard to open the app.
Next, on the Settings window, click on the ‘Windows Update’ tab present on the left sidebar to proceed.
Then, from the right section of the window, click on the ‘Advanced options’ tile present under the ‘More options’ section to continue.
Then, on the next screen, scroll down and click on the ‘Optional updates’ tile present under the ‘Additional options’ section to proceed.
After that, locate and click on the ‘Driver updates’ tile to expand it. Then, from the list of available drivers, locate the available driver and click on the checkbox preceding the individual item. Next, click on the ‘Download & install’ button present at the bottom of the section to commence the installation of the driver.
Install or Update Missing Driver Using the Device Manager
The process to update any driver from the Device Manager is pretty straightforward. Moreover, if you find multiple drivers are missing or need updates on your system, using the Device Manager would prove to be much more convenient.
First, head to the Start Menu and type Device Manager in the menu to perform a search for it. Then, from the search results, click on the ‘Device Manager’ tile to open the app.
Note: Just for showcasing purposes, we are updating the ‘Bluetooth’ drivers. You can follow the same process for any other drivers listed in the Device Manager.
After that, from the ‘Device Manager’ window, locate and click on the downward arrow preceding the ‘Bluetooth’ category. Then, from the expanded options, locate the ‘Intel Wireless Bluetooth’ driver and right-click it to reveal the context menu. Next, click on the ‘Properties’ option to proceed. This will open a separate window on your screen.
From the separately opened window, you can view the current status of the driver for the hardware present on your PC. In case no driver is detected, the window will state so. Then, click on the ‘Update driver’ button present right beneath the ‘Device status’ area.
In case you are here to update the already installed driver, click on the ‘Driver’ tab present in the top section of the window. Then, click the ‘Update driver’ button present in the window to proceed. This will open a separate window on your screen.
After that, from the separately opened window, click on the ‘Search automatically for drivers’ option to let the Windows search for the latest driver available on the Microsoft servers.
If you already have a driver update package, click on the ‘Browse my computers for drivers’ option to proceed. This will open a File Explorer window on your screen that you can use to navigate and select the driver package to update.
Once the update/ install has been performed successfully, you might need to restart your PC to apply the changes. Hence, restart the PC from the Start Menu.
Method 5: Restore your PC Using System Image Recovery
In case none of the methods above is working for you, the last resort is to restore your PC using the System Image Recovery option from the Windows Recovery Environment.
To restore the PC, open the Start Menu and click on the Settings tile from the ‘pinned apps’ section or open it by searching for it.
Next, make sure the ‘System’ tab has been selected from the left sidebar present in the Settings window.
Now, from the left section of the settings window, scroll down to locate and click on the ‘Recovery’ tile to continue.
Then, under the ‘Recover options’ section, locate the ‘Advanced startup’ tile and click on the ‘Restart now’ button present on the far right side of it.
Once the ‘Advanced Startup screen’ is visible on your machine, locate and click on the ‘Troubleshoot’ option.
After that, on the next screen, click on the ‘Advanced options’ tile to continue.
Now, from the ‘Advanced options’ screen, click on the ‘System Image Recovery’ tile to proceed. Your machine will now restart.
Once restarted, the ‘System Image Recovery’ screen will appear on your screen. Find your account name listed under the section and click on it to continue.
On the next screen, enter the account password that you used to log in to your computer and click on the ‘Continue’ button.
After that, on the ‘Select a system image backup’ screen, click on the radio button preceding the ‘Use the latest available system image’ option and click on the ‘Next’ button to proceed.
In case you are restoring the system image to an entirely different machine, you will need to format and repartition the storage drive in order to match the format of the drives you are restoring the image from.
To do so, locate the ‘Format and repartition the disk’ section and click on the ‘Exclude disks’ button. In case the option is greyed out, click on the ‘Install drivers’ option present on the window to install the drivers of the disks you are restoring. Once you have formatted the previous partitions or installed drivers for the disks you are restoring, click on the ‘Next’ button to proceed.
After that, on the next screen, click on the ‘Finish’ button to start the backup restore process.
The restoration process will now begin on your machine. Wait patiently while the process completes. Once the restoration process completes itself, a prompt will appear on your screen asking you to restart the PC. Click on the ‘Restart’ button to restart your PC.
That’s it, people. Hopefully, this guide will help you resolve the ‘Update.exe’ application error and get things working like clockwork again in no time.
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