Issues with Client Computers Not Reporting

Applies To: Windows Server 2003 with SP2, Windows Server 2008 R2, Windows Server 2008 R2 with SP1, Windows Server Update Services, Windows Small Business Server 2011 Standard

If you have configured client computers 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.

Troubleshooting client computers that are not reporting issues

Check the HTTP hotfix

Some client computers have been affected by a known issue with Windows ServerĀ 2003 http.sys and Internet Information Services (IIS). In some cases this transient issue will prevent client computers from checking in, because they receive incorrect responses from the server after a number of attempts. For more information about this issue, see article 898708 in the Microsoft Download Center.

Note

Failure of clients to contact the server is not related to compression. Administrators should not disable IIS compression, because allowing noncompressed data can increase network traffic and server load, while reducing the number of client computers that can be served effectively.

Troubleshoot client computer connectivity

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

To troubleshoot client computer connectivity

  1. Open a Command Prompt 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 that asks you whether to open or save the file. Close the window.

Note

If you do not see the File Download window, make sure that the self-update tree on the client computer has been configured properly. For more information, see Issues with Client Computer Self-Update.

Troubleshoot the Automatic Update client

Ensure that the Automatic Update client has been configured correctly.

To troubleshoot the Automatic Update client

  1. Open a Command Prompt window.

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

    You should see output like the following if the client computer 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 computer 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 contains values for WUServer and WUStatusServer, try to contact the WSUS server that is 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" page if the WUServer value is valid. If it is not, you will get an HTTP error message.

Reset the Automatic Update client

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

To reset the Automatic Update client

  1. Open a Command Prompt window.

  2. Type wuauclt.exe /resetauthorization /detectnow.

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