If you are experiencing the error code 0x80070002 or 80070002 on your Windows PC or laptop, here is how you can fix it.
You might face this problem when you’re trying to install some Windows 10 updates, such as KB3200970, as well as other numbers. You will notice that the update starts to download, but as soon as it gets to the screen where it should be installed, it will either fail immediately, and uninstall itself, or restart your computer, and then fail and uninstall.
This error can also show as 0x80070003 or 80070003, and they’re actually the same issue and you can solve 0x80070003 with the methods in this post as well.
How do I fix error 0x80070002?
Here are a couple of methods for this problem, which is fairly simple, even for beginner that doesn’t have a lot of technical experience. Just follow the instructions in the solutionss below to simply get rid of Windows Update error code 0x80070002 or error code 0x80070003.
Why does the error 0x80070002 happen?
This error code may vary from different Windows versions. In Windows 7/8/10, you will see the error code 80070002. While in Windows XP, you will see the error code 0x80070002.
This issue occurs when some files in the Windows Update are missing or corrupted, even though the update is downloaded and extracted successfully, or the driver faulty problem. Thus, you can work it through by these solutions until it solves your problem.
FIX 1: Check the Date and Time settings
1. Open Control Panel.
2. Select Clock and Region > click Date and Time.
3. Next, click on “Change date and time” button. Set your time zone before clicking OK.
4. Go to the Internet Time tab, click on “Change Settings” button.
5. Tick “Synchronize with an Internet time server”, and then select the Time Server from the list presented. Click “Update Now”.
6. Click OK > OK to complete the configuration and close all open windows.
7. Restart your computer and try the Windows Update again to check if it works.
FIX 2. Modify the Windows Update installation files
Sometimes the error 0x80070002 occurs because the Windows Update installation files are corrupted or missing and the system update process fails. Thus you can try to rename the installation folder or remove the installation files to resolve the issue.
Before modifying the folder or files, you may need to stop the Windows Update service. Follow these steps below:
Step 1: Disable the Windows Update service
1. Press Windows Key + R then type “services.msc” in the Run dialog box. Click OK to open Windows services list.
2. Scroll down and locate the Windows Update service on the list, double click on it.
3. Change the Startup type to Automatic, then click Start in the Service status. Click Apply > OK to save changes.
Step 2. Delete the Software Distribution Folder
1. Open This PC and go to C:\Windows
2. Locate the folder named “SoftwareDistribution“, and delete it. In case if you do not wish to delete it, you may also select to rename the folder as “SoftwareDistribution_Old”.
3. Reboot your system.
Step 3. Re-enable the Windows Update service
1. Press Windows Key + R then type “services.msc” in the Run dialog box. Click OK to open Windows services list.
2. Right click Windows Update, and select Start.
3. Restart the PC and try again to see if it works.
FIX 3. Modify Registry Editor
If you see the error when installing the Windows upgrade: Something happened 0x80070002, you can try this method to solve the issue.
1. Press Windows Key + R then type “regedit” in the Run dialog box. Click OK.
2. Go to the following path:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\WindowsUpdate\OSUpgrade
3. In the right pane of Registry Editor, right click the empty area and click New > DWORD (32-bit) Value.
4. Right-click the newly created NewValue#1 and click Modify. Change the value name to AllowOSUpgrade.
5. After that, double-click the number under Value data and type 1. Choose Hexadecimal and click OK.
6. Restart your computer and try the Windows Update again to check if it works.
In this video, we are gonna show you how to fix error code 0x80070002 in Windows 10/11 Update.
That’s about it.
