Windows 7 Windows update "Service not running"

[alpeabody]

I had noticed that I had not seen the familiar process of installing updates to Windows 7 for quite a while, so I went to Windows Update and clicked on Check for Updates.

After a couple of seconds, a pop-up appeared saying "Windows Update cannot currently check for updates because the service is not running. You may need to restart your computer."

So I restarted with no effect. The same message appears every time.

McAfee Internet security is running and says There are no problems with my computer.

Any ideas what I need to do?

Thanx,

Al Peabody

 

[Elmer]

Hi alpeabody,

Have you tried going to Control Panel >> Administrative Tools >> Services. Check that the Windows Update Service is set to Automatic(delayed start). And that the Remote Procedure Call (RPD) is set to Automatic (Start).

 

[Drew]

Anybody ever tell you that you can do much better than, to be using McAfee?

Drew

 

[alpeabody]

Hi alpeabody,

Have you tried going to Control Panel >> Administrative Tools >> Services. Check that the Windows Update Service is set to Automatic(delayed start). And that the Remote Procedure Call (RPD) is set to Automatic (Start).

I went to control panel and set windows update service to automatic(delayed start). However, the only Remote Procedure Call was RPC, not RPD. It was set ao automatic(Start). But it didn't help. Got the same message.

Thanks, anyway. Any more ideas?

 

[alpeabody]

Actually, lots of people have. I've heard Symantec is better, though it used to drive me nuts. I've heard that a dozen or so free anti-malware offerings are better than anything I pay for. But I've been using McAfee ever since I gave up on Norton and have had no problems.

So, what do you recommend?

Al

 

[Drew]

Al,

MSE, absolutely, always & no question. McAfee & Norton share something in common... neither are anything you want. MSE does both anti-virus & anti-malware.

Here's the link for MSE
Microsoft Security Essentials - Free Antivirus for Windows

As for you Updates problem. Although, I'd get McAfee out of there 1st.

1. Give the MS Fix-it Tool a go.
2. Run cmd as Admin & the following command line, netsh winsock reset & hit Enter

Cheers,
Drew

 

[Saltgrass]

You could try this site to try to reinstall Windows Update.

Link Removed

But as Elmer was mentioning, the service, if it is referring to Windows Update, depends on other things, which depend on other things. When you checked the services recommended, could you start them yourself? To find out what they depend on, go to properties and the Dependencies tab. If it depends on another service and that cannot be started, it might be the problem.

If nothing seems to work, you might open an Administrative command prompt and type SFC /scannow to check your system files.