If you have recently tried to install a Windows update you might have encountered the following error: Windows Server Update error 80072ee2. This error will not only prevent you from installing the update but it might also take you a long time to fix.
Windows Phone is riddled with errors today. First 80072ee2, now 805a01f7.
— Shen Ye (@shen) April 14, 2014
Fixing servers errors such as this can be hard. First of all, you will need to deal with your own expectations and adjust them accordingly. When you are installing a Windows update the last thing that you expect is that anything would go wrong.
A Quick & Easy Fix
Most people expect these updates to take some time so they are quite prepared to be patient. I mean, you have to update your Windows so there’s no point in getting impatient. However, when you encountered error 80072ee2 and no matter what you do you find that you can’t fix it, it is totally understandable to get slightly annoyed, to say the least. Trust me, I know; I’ve been there.
I’ve heard from people that have devoted hours to fix this error or others like it. So, if you are currently dealing with and no matter how long or how many different things you have tried, you have come to the right place.
In this article, I will explain everything you will need to know about this error, including, of course, how to fix it!
As with most other computer errors, it is important that you understand one thing from the onset: this error can be caused by a variety of different reasons so the solution to it will depend on the actual cause for it.
I will go over all the different available fixed that have been tried and tested for this error. I am well aware that it may be hard to ascertain what the cause of the error is but if you can troubleshoot this, you should know which one of the solutions should work for you.
Whether you know what is causing this error or not, I would strongly suggest that you at least skim read the whole article before picking out the solution that you think would work for you and attempted it on your Windows computer.
If you really do not have any idea what the cause of the error is even after you have read the whole tutorial, then I would suggest that you just go ahead and try the different solutions presented until you finally stumble on the one that will do the trick for you!
4 Fixes For The Windows Server Update Error 80072ee2
Fix Number 1
This first possible solution is really for those of you who use a proxy server. If you do, this could be what is causing the error. Let me explain why.
If you are using a proxy server it could very well be the case that your firewall is actually preventing your Windows computer from being updated and thus resulting in update error 80072ee2.
This sounds like a nightmare scenario but you would be surprised how easy it is to find a work around. If you are quite computer savvy, you should probably work out what you will need to do.
But don’t worry if you haven’t (or if you are not sure). This is what Error Codes Pro is here to do!
If this is indeed the problem you are dealing with, you will find that you cannot access any websites using the Windows web browser, Internet Explorer, without being prompted to enter a user name and/or a password.
If this happens to you, then you will have to access your Firewall and create a rule that will allow you to Windows update to bypass the proxy server.
Creating this new rule for the Windows firewall is, therefore, the first step you will need to take when tackling this error. If you do not know how to create a new rule, here are the steps you will need to follow in order to do that:
- Grab your Windows computer.
- Then you will need to access the Windows Firewall with advanced security. If you do not know how to do this, all you really need to do is launch the Windows Firewall by heading over to the control panel, choosing system and security and then Windows Firewall. Next, you will need to click or tap on the advanced settings on the right-hand side of Windows Firewall. As an alternative to this, some Windows users are able to just search for the Windows Firewall with Advanced Security.
- Then, click on the Outbound Rules section. This action will display a drop down menu with many different options.
- Click or tap on the “New Rule…” option. Alternatively, you could just click or tap on Action from the top menu bar and then on New Rule…
- However you do it, as long as you have clicked or tapped on New Rule… the New rule wizard will display on your screen.
- Check the option that is relevant to you from one of the following:
- Program if the rule that you want to create relates to a program or an application.
- Port if the rule that you want to create relates to connections with a specific port and protocol.
- Predefined if the rule that you want to create is designed to apply to Windows services and features.
- Custom if the rule that you want to create will just happen to combine some different parameters that would include protocols, programs, services, and ports. So, basically choose this rule if you need to create a rule that would include all of the above options.
In this case, you will have to create a rule designed to allow traffic going to Windows update.
Once you have created this rule, Windows may find some updates so make sure that you install them all.
Once you have managed to make the updates, you will need to make sure that you change your settings back to what they were before. This will, of course, involve going back to the Windows Firewall with Advanced Security again and getting rid of the rule that you had to create as a workaround.
Remember, that was only supposed to be a workaround and not a permanent solution. As this error only happens when installing updates it is unlikely that you would encounter very often.
If this possible solution does not work for you, do not worry; I have a couple more for you.
Fix Number 2
So, here is the second thing that you want to try. Well, in fact, this could be the first fix you will try depending on what you suspect may be causing this error.
This second possible fix is for those of you who may have spyware on your Windows computer. Even if you do not, if nothing else seems to work in fixing this error you could try this. You certainly do not have anything to lose.
What this fix about is really just returning to the original settings for Internet Explorer. Why would you want to do this? Because whether your Internet Explorer web browser is set to a proxy server or you do have spyware on your Windows computer, changing your Internet Explorer settings back to what they originally were may just do the trick.
The good news is that this is extremely simple and, no, you will not even need to remember what your original Internet Explorer settings were at all.
Here’s all you will need to do:
First of all, head to the search bar located in the Windows Start Menu and click or tap on the search bar and type in the following command: “netsh winhhtp import proxy source=ie” (no quotation marks, of course).
Believe it or not, this is just as simple as this fix is. The hardest thing about it is entering the command accurately!
Fix Number 3
Honestly, the previous to fixes should work just fine in most cases so this solution is extremely rare. If fixes number 1 and 2 did not work for you, it could very well be that your MTU (maximum transmission unit) settings are not correct.
This problem is also easy to fix. As in the fix number 2, you will need to go to the search bar in the Windows Start Menu and tap or click on it. This time, however, you will need to type in the following command: “REGEDIT” (all caps but, of course, no quotation marks).
Then, you will need to go to [HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINESystemCurrentControlSetServicesTci|Interfaces[Adapter ID]]
Once you have located that key, you will need to locate a DWORD value or just change the existing value (MTU). Change the value to something decimal (1492, for example). Then attempt the Windows update again and if it does not work, start over this time changing the value to 1500.
Like I said, this is extremely rare but it is, nonetheless, a possibility so it is always well worth exploring.
The two first solutions should do the trick in most cases so I’d only suggest trying out the last one if you have exhausted every other possibility.
Summing Up
If you have any feedback on this tutorial or would like you to share any tips of your own on how to fix Windows Server Update Error 80072ee2, please leave us a message in the comments section below!
