Windows 10 KB4579311 update won't install, may cause Explorer crash

​Windows 10 users face numerous issues installing the latest KB4579311 cumulative update, and for those who can install, they are reporting various bugs, including performance issues.

Microsoft released the Windows 10 KB4579311 cumulative update on October 13th, 2020, and since then, users have been reporting problems getting the update to install, crashes, performance issues, and boot problems.

Due to the varied hardware and drivers running Windows 10, there will always be issues when a new cumulative update is released, but there appears to be an uptick in reports with this particular update.

With that said, I have installed the KB4579311 update on numerous computers, and only one has experienced an explorer crash issued described below.

What users are reporting

With the KB4579311 update release, there is a noticeable uptick in the number of problems users experience.

Below we have outlined some of the issues that people are having after installing the update.

Can't install the KB4579311 update

The most common issue users are running into with Windows 10 KB4579311 is the inability to install the update in the first place.

A brief review of the feedback hub and Microsoft forums post shows many users reporting that they receive error codes such as  0x800f081f, 0x8007000d, 0x800f0988, and others when trying to install the update.

Other users on Reddit also report that the installation routine will get to a certain percentage and then get stuck. Eventually, after waiting for a long time, the update will continue.

Unfortunately, many of those affected state that running the standard Windows Update troubleshooting tasks such as 'sfc /scannow, antivirus scans, drivers updates, etc. are not helping.

One method that BleepingComputer has found successful in bypassing update issues is to perform an in-place upgrade using the Windows 10 Media Creation Tool.

Boot problems,  explorer crashes, performance issues

Finally, some users are experiencing boot problems, performance issues, and a strange restarting desktop problem.

While boot problems and crashes have unfortunately become par for the course when it comes to Windows updates, some users are stating that after they login, the screen flashes or explorer will start and close a bunch of times [1, 2] before the desktop will appear. 

"Hi, I've been having an issue with Windows Update KB4579311. When it gets installed it causes the Explorer to crash repeatedly until it eventually logs me in, at which point I can use it as normal. BUT, the crashing increases time it takes to log in and load everything up. It's very annoying," one user reported.

For some, these explorer crashes do not resolve themselves, and instead, Windows becomes unresponsive.

Finally, some users are reporting performance issues where Windows is sluggish, unresponsive, or games no longer work.

To resolve these issues, I recommend users perform the following steps:

1. Uninstall the KB4579311 update. You can learn more about uninstalling updates here.
2. After uninstalling the update, update the drivers for your graphics, audio, Intel drivers, and storage devices if possible. For those with Intel GPUs, you can try their graphics drivers, which can be installed universally now on OEM devices.
3. Reinstall the update after all drivers have been updated to their latest version.

Hopefully, updating the device drivers will have resolved the issue.