Windows Update error 0x80073712 or 80073712 means that the file required for Windows Update or Windows Installer is corrupted or missing, causing the update or installation to fail.
Windows Update error code 0x80073712 can appear on Windows 10 in several ways:
- Some update files are missing or have problems. We will try to download the update later. Error code: (0x80073712)
- Some updates were not installed; Errors encountered: Code 80073712 Windows Update encountered an unknown error.
- Code 80073712: There was a problem with Windows Update.
This Windows update error appears after updating Windows 10 or trying to install the Windows 10 operating system.
Run Windows Update Troubleshooter.
Open the Windows Update troubleshooter by swiping in from the right edge of the screen, clicking the search button (or, if you’re using a mouse, pointing to the upper right corner of the screen, dragging the mouse pointer down, then click Search). In the search box, type troubleshooter, tap or click Settings, and then tap or click Troubleshoot. Under System and Security, tap or click Fix problems with Windows Update.
Run the fix, open Windows Update and try installing the update again.
Run DISM Tool
- Swipe up from the right edge of the screen, and then tap Search.
- (If you are using a mouse, point to the upper-right corner of the screen, move the mouse pointer down, and click Search.)
- Enter your query in the search box.
- In the list of results, drag down or right-click Command Prompt, and then tap or click Run as administrator.
- In the Admin: Command Prompt window, enter the following commands. Press Enter after each command:
- DISM.exe / Online / Clean Image / Scanhealth
- DISM.exe / Online / Clean image / Restore performance
- To close the administrator prompt: Type quit and press Enter.
- Run Windows Update again.
Remove pending XML file
If you are unable to update the Windows operating system, you can delete the pending XML file and try to restart the Windows update process. Open a command prompt as administrator and enter the following commands (remember to press Enter after each command):
- net stop trustinstaller
- cd% windir% \ winsxs
- takeown / f pending.xml / a
- cacls pending.xml / e / g all: f
- del pending.xml
NOTE. If you receive a message that the Windows Modules Installer service is not running, ignore it and continue running commands, pressing Enter after each command.
Restart your computer and try updating Windows again. Check if this fixes Windows Update error code 0x80073712 that is preventing you from updating your Windows operating system.
It is also recommended to cleanly install the new Windows 10 Feature Update to avoid software conflicts that may arise during the update process. However, since it removes Windows Update from the process, you should check for yourself if there is a known issue affecting your device in order to avoid future problems. The current list of known issues with Microsoft Windows 10 May 2020 Update contains 10 unresolved bugs and one bug fix.