If the November Windows update fails to install on your PC, here’s what to do

Microsoft says some Windows 11 PCs are failing to install the November Patch Tuesday update, and the company has begun pushing a repair to the affected machines. The problem involves the update designated KB5132061, released on November 10.

According to Microsoft's support page for the update, computers that installed the November preview update released on October 28 may encounter the glitch when they then try to install the actual November update. In those cases, the installation may not complete, and the PC may repeatedly attempt to install the update. Users may instead see an error code such as 0x80070306, 0x800f0989, or 0x800f0993.

Microsoft says all affected PCs should receive repairs within 24 to 48 hours starting from November 11 at 1pm ET. The company advises that the PC be connected to the internet and set up to receive updates through Windows Update. In Settings, users can select Windows Update, where the November release, listed as the 2026-11 Security Update (KB5132061) (26300.9974), may again be available to install.

Microsoft releases each monthly Windows update in two phases. An optional preview update arrives around the end of the previous month and is considered a non-security release because it contains only feature changes. The November preview, labeled KB5127936 and released on October 28, introduced the new customizable right-click menu, a Cloud rebuild option, and other feature changes. The mandatory Patch Tuesday update then follows with both security patches and the non-security changes, which is how KB5132061 arrived on November 10.

Preview updates are intended for IT administrators, software testers, and others who want an early look, so they are not always fully finished and may contain bugs. Because they appear in Windows Update, however, anyone can install them. The actual Patch Tuesday updates are meant for all Windows users. In this case, an incompatibility or other conflict between the two releases appears to have required a resolution from Microsoft.

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