Microsoft's latest cumulative update for Windows 10 May 2019 Update and Windows 10 November 2019 Update is apparently failing to install for some users, although a workaround has been supplied.

As Windows Latest reports, posts from disgruntled users unable to install the cumulative update KB4524570 - which was released on Patch Tuesday a week ago - happen to be spotted online, including at Microsoft's own Answers.com

The installation looks like it's failing with error codes 0x80073701 and 0x8009001d, along with a message: "Updates Failed, There have been problems installing some updates, but we'll try again later."

Microsoft has acknowledged this problem, and states that should you encounter it, you need to first look for updates again, and retry cellular phone procedure.

Workaround suggestion

If the error message still pops up, that's when Microsoft advises trying the following workaround:

Select the start button and type cmd
Right click or long press on Command Prompt and select Run as administrator.
If you receive a User Access Control (UAC) dialog for Windows Command Processor stating, "Do you need to allow this app to create changes to your device?", select Yes.
Type or copy and paste the following command into the Command Prompt window: dism /online /cleanup-image /startcomponentcleanup
Wait for that command to complete.
Restart your device.
Try checking for updates again.

Fingers crossed that this works for you, but when not, we can presume that Microsoft is working on a proper treatment for this gremlin.

If you're wondering exactly what KB4524570 does, it's a security update which shores up a number of flaws in Microsoft Edge and Ie, so obviously it's quite vital that you install for all those people that ever make use of a Microsoft browser under Windows 10.

As you're probably aware, the November 2019 Update only just arrived, but does hardly any save for tweaking odds and ends under the hood from the operating system. The next big update for that first half of 2020 goes back to making bigger changes, and could potentially be available as soon as January (but don't bank onto it).