Windows Server 2016: Windows Update stuck at 0%

During the Windows Update procedure via proxy server, in Windows Server 2016 the download process stuck at 0%.

Although is a pretty old Windows version, a lot of organizations still have version 2016 in production and you may face a similar issue. This behavior may occur in some versions only of Windows Server 2016 and when you access the Windows Update page the download progress stuck at 0%.

Regardless if you have properly configured the Internet Explorer proxy settings for Internet access, in Windows Server 2016 the proxy works differently compared to previous versions. System proxy must be forced for WinHTTP.

Check current configuration

To check current proxy server settings for WinHTTP, run the following command:

C:\> netsh winhttp show proxy

In this example, the proxy settings for WinHTTP are not set in the System level.

Fix Windows Update issue

To configure the proxy settings for WinHTTP, run the command:

C:\> netsh winhttp set proxy proxy-server="10.210.253.194:8080" bypass-list="*.woshub.com"

Restart the Windows Update service.

PS C:\> Restart-Service wuauserv

Check the current proxy server settings for WinHTTP once again.

C:\> netsh winhttp show proxy

When the proxy for WinHTTP has been set, the download process resumes.

This behavior has been fixed in Windows Update agent 10.0.14393.187 and higher.