Clients Not Reporting

Applies To: Windows Server 2003 with SP2, Windows Server Update Services

If you have configured clients for a particular WSUS server, but they have not reported over a period of days, use the following procedures to isolate and repair the problem.

Some clients have been affected by a known issue with Windows Server 2003 http.sys and IIS. In some cases this transient issue will prevent clients from checking in, because they receive incorrect responses from the server after a number of attempts. Further information about the issue can be found at FIX: IIS 6.0 may send an "HTTP 100 Continue" response in the middle of the response stream when you send a POST request (https://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=80715).

Ensure that the client connection to the WSUS server is working properly.

1. Open a command window.

2. Contact the WSUS server: pingWSUSServerName

3. Contact the WSUS HTTP server. Open Internet Explorer and in the Address bar type: **https://WSUSServerName:**portNumber where WSUSServerName is the name of the WSUS server, and portNumber is the port that has been configured for it (for example, 80 for HTTP, 443 for SSL, and 8530 for a custom port).

4. Verify the existence of the self-update tree. In an Internet Explorer Address bar type **https://**WSUSServerName/selfupdate/wuident.cab

5. If the WSUS server is functioning properly, you should see a File Download window asking you whether to open or save the file. Close the window.

Ensure that the Automatic Update client has been configured correctly.

1. Open a command window.

2. Type: reg query HKLM\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\WindowsUpdate

   You should see output like the following if the client has been configured to get its updates from a WSUS server:

   HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\WindowsUpdate
   WUServer    REG_SZ  https://WSUSServerName
   WUStatusServer      REG_SZ  https://WSUSServerName
   HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\WindowsUpdate\AU
   

   You should see output similar to the following if Automatic Update is functioning, but the client has not been configured to get its updates from a WSUS server:

   HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\WindowsUpdate
   HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\WindowsUpdate\AU
   

   If the query returns the error, "The system was unable to find the specified registry key or value," Automatic Update has not been configured on this computer.

   If the output from step 2 above contains values for WUServer and WUStatusServer, try to contact the WSUS server listed in these values.

3. Open Internet Explorer and in the Address bar type **https://**WUServer where WUServer stands for the value in the output from step 2.

   You should see an "Under Construction" message if the WUServer value is valid. If it is not, you will get an HTTP error of some kind.

It can be a good idea to reset the Automatic Update client if you are experiencing difficulty with contacting the WSUS server with the wuauclt utility. For more information about wuauclt, see Appendix H: The wuauclt Utility.

1. Open a command window.

2. Type wuauclt.exe /resetauthorization /detectnow

3. Wait 10 minutes for the detection cycle to finish.