The error 0xC1800118 is basically an upgrade error that occurs primarily when using WSUS (Windows Server Update Services). If you are struggling with such an error code and don’t know what to do next, follow this tutorial till the end. In this post, we will discuss what causes such errors on WSUS and how you may overcome this issue.
Upon encountering this error code, you may receive an error message as well that reads the following –
Error 0xC1800118: WSUS has downloaded content that it cannot use due to a missing decryption key.
What causes Upgrade Error 0xC1800118 on WSUS?
This is stated quite clearly in the error message that the problem arose only when WSUS has downloaded content that it may no longer use. AS WSUS doesn’t know what exactly has gone wrong, this is throwing an error code. Check if it has downloaded/installed any cumulative update on your PC. If yes, uninstalling that might resolve this issue.
If not looked upon, this error will prevent any future updates from ever installing on your computer. So, uninstall the recent updates, purge your system of any leftover files, and sync WSUS. Let’s see how you may perform all these tasks on your Windows PC.
How to solve Error 0xC1800118 on WSUS
To troubleshoot this error code on WSUS, go through the instructions as guided below –
The error 0xC1800118 primarily occurs when WSUS has downloaded a problematic file, however, that gets declined afterward. To overcome this problem, you must search and get rid of this declined update on your WSUS server. Here’s how you may perform this task –
- First of all, open the Windows Update Services MMC.
- Select the All Updates View.
- Set the display to show the Approval status of ‘Any except Declined’ with a Status of ‘Any’.
- Click Refresh.
- Right-click on the Column headers and hit Supercedence.
- Left-click on the Supercedence column to sort things according to it.
- The updates that were already declined will have one of two particular flowchart symbols for their updates pictured in the attached image.
- Select the correct updates and decline them. To do so, right-click on any updates and hit the decline button. Alternatively, select the update and hit the decline button inside the action panel.
Now that you have removed the declined updates from your server, make sure to run WSUS Server Cleanup Wizard next. By doing so, you will get rid of any leftover files from the declined updates. Here’s how you may proceed –
- Launch WSUS and go to the administrator console.
- Select Options > Server Cleanup Wizard.
- Select all the options available on this wizard and hit Next.
- Let this wizard initiate the cleanup process.
- Once this is over, this will present a summary of the procedure that it performs on your server.
- In the end, click Finish to come out of this wizard.
Manually install the pending updates on your WSUS server
Only after you have used the Server Cleanup Wizard to purge the leftover files, you may proceed ahead to reinstall the pending updates. To do so, visit the Microsoft Update Catalog site, search for the KB number. This site will offer a list of available updates matching that cumulative update number.
Pick the one that best matches your system architecture and hit the Download button. On the next screen, click the top link to start downloading the standalone package. Use the standalone installer to install the downloaded package onto your WSUS server.
How to Manually Download and Install Windows 11 Updates
Note: Alternatively, you may also check for updates via Windows Update on the WSUS server.
How to enable Feature updates in WSUS
If you want to enable the automatic download/install of feature updates on your WSUS server, follow these steps –
- Open WSUS and go to its administrator console.
- Navigate to the below path next –
Update Services\Server_Name\Updates\All Windows 11/10 Upgrades
- Reaching there, right-click on the available feature update, and hit Approve. When a confirmation window pops up, click Approved for Install.
I hope you were able to fix the error 0xC1800118 on your WSUS server by following this guide. Let’s know if you face any difficulty following this tutorial.
