Microsoft has confirmed a frustrating bug affecting Windows 11 PCs that were previously upgraded from Windows 10: they can't install the June 2026 cumulative updates, and the company says it won't be fixing the issue on machines that have already made the jump. If your PC is stuck on error 0x80073712 or 0x800f0993, you're not alone — and you'll need to take action to get monthly security patches flowing again.
What Microsoft confirmed
Microsoft warned customers on Tuesday that they may have issues installing the latest monthly updates on some Windows devices that were upgraded to Windows 11 24H2 or 25H2. The trigger is a specific upgrade path: a small percentage of devices running Windows 10, versions 22H2 and 21H2, or Windows 11, version 23H2, that were then upgraded to Windows 11, version 24H2 or 25H2, might fail to install the latest cumulative update.
On affected machines, users will see 0x80073712 or 0x800f0993 errors when trying to install the June 2026 cumulative updates. After encountering this issue, devices cannot install monthly Windows updates.
How to tell if your PC is affected
The clearest sign is in Windows Update history. When you go to Settings > Windows Update > Update history, you might see that Windows updates fail with error 0x80073712/0x800f0993. Under the hood, checking the Windows Update log files on impacted devices, users will see error 0x800f0993 (PSFX_E_REBASE_HYDRATION_CANDIDATES_MISSING) or 0x80073712 (ERROR_SXS_COMPONENT_STORE_CORRUPT) — both pointing to a damaged component store left behind from the older Windows version.
If you bought a PC with Windows 11 24H2 or 25H2 already installed, you're not affected. The bug only hits machines that were upgraded in place from an older Windows version.
The bad news: no automatic fix
Microsoft has shipped a preventive patch through this month's Patch Tuesday so that future in-place upgrades won't hit the bug. But for PCs that already made the jump, the company has been blunt: this issue will not be addressed on systems that have already been upgraded to Windows 11, version 24H2 or 25H2. That means a manual repair is the only path back to a healthy update pipeline.
Typical recovery steps include running DISM and SFC component-store repairs, resetting the Windows Update components, or — in stubborn cases — performing an in-place repair install using fresh Windows 11 installation media. None of these are dangerous if done correctly, but each can go sideways on a machine that's already in a bad state. If your PC won't boot cleanly afterward or starts throwing blue screens, it's worth bringing it to a local PC repair shop rather than digging deeper on your own.
Why this matters beyond an annoying error
A PC that can't install monthly updates is a PC that quietly falls behind on security patches — including the zero-day fixes Microsoft pushed in this same June release. Within weeks, an unpatched Windows machine becomes a much easier target for ransomware, infostealers, and browser exploits, which is exactly the kind of mess that ends with a call to have malware cleaned off the system.
Before attempting any heavy repair work, back up your important documents, photos, and tax records to an external drive or cloud storage. Component-store repairs rarely cause data loss, but a botched in-place reinstall can — and if the drive itself is already showing signs of failure, getting files off a failing drive gets harder once the OS starts crashing.
What This Means for York, PA
If you're in York County and your Windows 11 PC has been failing updates since this week with error 0x80073712 or 0x800f0993, bring it in to York Computer Repair at 2069 Carlisle Rd — we can rebuild the component store, get patches flowing again, and verify your machine is current on the June security fixes.