How to fix Windows Update error 0x80070057

What is error 0x80070057

Update errors have always been known for Windows users. They are inevitably present across multiple systems for different reasons. Most often, errors like 0x80070057 occur whilst trying to install new patches that pend in Update Center. File corruption, damaged partition, third-party conflicts as well as configuration problems can be the reason for the error appearance. One of them is likely to persist making your updates fail during the process. It is quite hard to decide which one is part of your case right from the spot. This is why you should try each solution presented in this article until you find the working method.

1. Use Windows Update Troubleshooter

The very first option recommended by most is Update Troubleshooter. It is quite an in-built feature sometimes helping to solve temporary issues. In most cases, it is less likely to impact the solution as you would probably wish as there might be some deeper causes for errors. However, it is still worth trying this simple, yet at times effective method to get rid of the problem. Update Troubleshooter will scan out your system for potential problems and try to fix them eventually.

1. Open Settings and navigate to Update & Security > Troubleshoot.
2. On the right pane, locate Windows Update and click Run the troubleshooter.
3. Finish the process following the on-screen instructions and restart your PC.

2. Check integrity of the system files

Notoriously, update issues can happen because some files are missing or corrupted. Such files may be essential for Windows services to communicate correctly. If some of these files are out of their native environment, more likely it will be the reason for update errors. Below, we are going to use both SFC (System File Checker) and DISM (Deployment Image Servicing and Management), which will detect and restore absent components, if any. Make sure to use both of the scans as they can have different influences on the error solution. This is how:

Using SFC

1. Open Command Prompt by typing cmd into the searching box next to the Start Menu button.
2. Right-click on Command Prompt and choose Run as administrator.
3. Once the console is opened, type the sfc /scannow command and click Enter.
4. When the fixing process is done, restart your computer.

Using DISM

1. Open Command Prompt as we did in the previous step.
2. Copy and paste this command DISM.exe /Online /Cleanup-image /Restorehealth.
3. Click Enter and wait until Windows ends the scanning and fixing.
4. Once done, restart your PC and install the update again.

After performing both of these scans, attempt to perform the installation of updates again. If this does not work, get down to alternative error solutions below.

3. Scan your hard drive for damaged fragments

Some error scenarios happen as a result of hard drive corruption. This is why it is good to check whether there is such or not. You can do it easily with the help of these steps:

1. Open Command Prompt just as we did above.
2. Then, you should paste the chkdsk /f /r C: command and press Enter. If necessary, replace “C” with the letter of your hard drive.
3. The system will scan for both configuration and physical errors and automatically repair them.

This method is less likely to solve the issue, so do not worry if it did not work out eventually.

4. Run a Clean Bootup

0x80070057 error may also be triggered by incompatibility issues. Antimalware or any other third-party software may conflict with Windows services causing the error. Clean bootup ensures your PC is started only with in-built apps and services to find out whether some secondary app is being a culprit. To launch in Clean bootup mode, follow these steps below:

1. Press Windows key + R combination and paste msconfig.
2. Then in the opened window go to the Services tab located on top.
3. Check the box next to Hide All Microsoft Services and click on the Disable all button.
4. Now choose the General tab and select the Selective startup option. Make sure that the box is checked only next to the Load System Services.
5. Click Apply and OK. Then reboot your PC.

Now you can try to update your system whilst being in Clean Boot mode. No matter whether you failed or succeeded in installing the updates, you should turn Windows back to Normal Startup settings. To do this, simply redo all the steps you implemented above by enabling the disabled services and changing your startup option from Selective to Normal.

5. Reset Windows Update components

Another go-to method whilst trying to solve update-related issues is resetting Windows Update settings. This method specifically has proven itself to be very effective when dealing with update problems. The whole procedure involves restarting BITS, Cryptographic, MSI Installer, and Windows Update services as well as renaming some update folders (SoftwareDistribution and Catroot2). These folders contain temporary files necessary for implementing Windows Updates. Based on this, we will force Windows to delete corrupted elements and create update components from scratch. Below, we will show you two ways of getting around this method. The first requires typing and executing each console command in a manual sequence. The other involves a so-called batch script written in Notepad and saved as WUReset.bat. There is no real difference in which one you choose. The entire procedure may seem more advanced, yet will not take too much time and knowledge to do it. Just follow the steps listed below:

Using manual steps

1. Open Command Prompt by typing cmd into the searching box next to the Start Menu button.
2. Right-click on Command Prompt and choose Run as administrator.
3. Copy-paste this list of commands one by one clicking Enter after each. (This action will disable services responsible for Windows Updates)

net stop wuauserv
net stop cryptSvc
net stop bits
net stop msiserver

4. Then, we have to rename the above-mentioned folders. Simply paste these commands by clicking Enter after each.

ren C:\Windows\SoftwareDistribution SoftwareDistribution.old
ren C:\Windows\System32\catroot2 Catroot2.old

5. Finally, all left to do is to turn the disabled services back. So apply these commands likewise we did previously.

net start wuauserv
net start cryptSvc
net start bits
net start msiserver

6. Now we are all done with it. Go to the Windows Update center and try to perform the installation again.

Using the Batch Script

This is an alternative method to the above. A batch script is used to execute the same range of commands to reset all Windows Update components, Cryptographic services, and folders like SoftwareDistribution. It is not that hard as you could imagine, but rather easier than the previous one. All you need is a Windows Notepad and a bit of copy-paste magic. The beauty of batch scripts is that they help execute all of the steps at once without typing commands manually. If you ever stumble into similar issues in the future, you can execute the already-created .bat file to reset update components:

1. Open a new Notepad file. For this, right-click on any free area over your desktop, choose New and Text document.
2. Then paste this list of commands into your notepad:

@ECHO OFF
echo Simple Script to Reset / Clear Windows Update
echo.
PAUSE
echo.
attrib -h -r -s %windir%system32catroot2
attrib -h -r -s %windir%system32catroot2*.*
net stop wuauserv
net stop CryptSvc
net stop BITS
ren %windir%system32catroot2 catroot2.old
ren %windir%SoftwareDistribution sold.old
ren "%ALLUSERSPROFILE%\Application Data\Microsoft\Network\Downloader" downloader.old
net Start BITS
net start CryptSvc
net start wuauserv
echo.
echo Task completed successfully...
echo.
PAUSE

3. Once pasting is done, click File > Save as and name it WUReset.bat. Make sure to set Encoding to ANSI and save the file to any location you want.
4. Finally, you can right-click on the file, select Run as administrator and enjoy automatic reset of Windows Updates.

6. Download Servicing Stack Update

If none of the mentioned above helped you resolve the problem, then you should try downloading Servicing Stack Updates (SSU). In essence, SSU ensures your PC contains the latest stack version helping the system receive and install Microsoft updates duly. You never know whether it is absent or not. But you can always safely and easily check this by downloading the latest version for your system (32-bit or 64-bit) from Microsoft Update Catalog.

7. Make sure Automatic Updates are Not Configured

Another possible reason for 0x80070057 occurrence is the wrong value in Group Policy settings. Usually, any change in Group Policy has a tendency to affect various Windows processes, including the Update feature. In this specific case, it is important to check whether Automatic Updates are set to Not Configured as this is the default option that should be causing no issues with Windows services. To do this and apply some changes, if necessary – follow these steps below:

1. Press Windows Key + R, type gpedit.msc, and click Enter to access Group Policy.
2. Then, navigate through this path Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > Windows Components > Windows Update.
3. After clicking on the Windows Update folder, you will see a list of entries on the right pane.
4. Find and double-click on Configure Automatic Updates.
5. In the opened tab, make sure the value is set to Not Configured. Click Apply and OK to close the window.
6. Now you should restart your PC and try to install updates again.

8. Alter SystemCertificates in Registry Editor.

This method will potentially work in case you receive this message whilst installing new updates:

An internal error has occurred: The parameter is incorrect: (0x80070057)

This message tells Windows runs into a problem whilst trying to back up the process of updating. Your system does it each time whilst running an update to prevent some crashes from dealing significant damage. For this exact reason, Windows refuses to finish the process as long as it has not created a backup. Luckily, there is a potential solution to it. Use these instructions below:

1. Press Windows Key + R buttons, type regedit and click Enter to open Registry Editor.
2. Similarly to the above, you should follow this path of folders HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\SystemCertificates.
3. Once done, right-click on SystemCertificates, select New and choose DWORD (32-bit) Value.
4. Name it by CopyFileBufferedSynchronousIo and set its Value Data to 1.
5. After this, click OK, restart your PC, and try to perform updates again.

9. Use Media Creation Tool

The last, yet very powerful tool to use in case no attempts to revive your updates pay off is Media Creation Tool. It is designed to obtain the latest portion of updates for users struggling to do it in a traditional way. This utility acts as a great alternative to the default Windows Update Center. The update procedure will not touch your personal data but simply upgrade the PC. In order to do it, follow the steps listed below:

1. At first, you have to download the utility from the Microsoft website.
2. Then, execute the downloaded file.
3. After agreeing with the Terms of use, there will be two options to choose from. Select Upgrade this PC now.
4. Choose to Keep Personal Files to ensure they will be untouched.
5. Finally, launch the process and wait until it ends.
6. Hopefully, this method helped you work around the 0x80070057 error.

Summary

With this variety of methods presented in our article, we hope you are no longer facing the 0x80070057 error. Furthermore, you can always rely on this set of solutions in case any similar problems pop in the future. As a rule, most update errors have similar origins of their occurrence, thus, most steps mentioned above will be equally helpful in addressing many other update-related errors. If there is anything else downgrading your PC experience, you can always find the necessary topic on our website. The BugsFigther team works well to deliver new troubleshoot as well as removal articles each day on our website.