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[Fixed] Latest Windows Update Blocks Internet Access for Some

12/16/2016

Microsoft continues to struggle to update (patch) Windows 10 without causing problems for some users.  (RemembNo Internet Accesser the problem back in Octobers, which put many PCs into a never ending reboot cycle?)  Some Windows 10 users are experiencing difficulty connecting to the internet after installing this month's patch. (I have also seen reports of some Windows 7 users having this problem.)  I am working with one customer now that has been affected by this problem.

The update causing the issue seems to be KB3201845, which includes 11 bug fixes.  (In Windows 10 and now also Windows 7, Microsoft releases one patch integrating a lot of fixes each month instead of the prior methodology of releasing individual patches for each bug fix.  So, it is difficult to block installation of a patch that causes severe problems.)

Microsoft's advice as a first step is to restart your PC.  The problem is that the PC is getting an Automatic Private IP Addressing (APIPA) address (169.254.0.1 through 169.254.255.254) and such a private IP address cannot access the Internet by definition.  Restarting your PC should cause the PC to attempt to get a new IP address.  If restarting does not get a new non-APIPA address, you can manually force your PC to try to get a new IP address by doing the following:

Open a command prompt by holding down the Windows key and typing s (Win+s).

Type CMD and press the Enter key.

In the command prompt type ipconfig /release and press Enter.

Type ipconfig /renew and press Enter

Now try to go online to see if your connection is working.

Type ipconfig /flushdns and press Enter.

Try to go online to see if your connection is working.

But if that doesn't work, then  Microsoft is advising users to "visit our website" for further help.  That's a difficult ask if your machine is offline.

Once you are back online, install the update to the broken update.  Microsoft released the patch KB3206632 to fix the broken update KB3201845.  I downloaded it to a flash drive and am taking it to my customer that cannot get online.  That is easier said than done because Microsoft no longer includes links to directly download the patch files in their KB articles and you instead have to instead download from the Microsoft Catalog.  But the patch would not download from the Microsoft Catalog using Microsoft Internet Explorer 11 on Windows 10.  I instead had to use Firefox.  How ironic is that?

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