November 2026 Windows Update Problems and Fixes (KB5132061, KB5131096)

November's Windows update has been out for 3 days. Here's what's gone wrong and what you can do about it.

Three problems so far, all confirmed by Microsoft. None of them is likely to touch a normal home PC. One stops the Windows 11 update installing on some work and school machines, and Microsoft is fixing it from its end. Another breaks a command-line activation tool on Windows 10 that IT people use. The third is a SQL Server bug on Windows 11 that actually started with October's update. Compared with October's list, that's still a quiet start.

KB5132061 won't install on Windows 11 24H2 Enterprise and Education (0x80070306, 0x800f0989, 0x800f0993)

On some Windows 11 24H2 machines, this month's update (KB5132061) fails to install, or it keeps trying again and again. Microsoft lists three error codes for it: 0x80070306, 0x800f0989 and 0x800f0993.

It only affects the Enterprise and Education editions of 24H2. Those are the versions you find on work laptops and school machines managed by an IT department. If your PC came from a shop with Windows 11 Home or Pro on it, this isn't your problem.

You don't need to do anything. Microsoft says affected devices should be repaired automatically within 24 to 48 hours, starting from 11 November 2026 at 10am Pacific time (6pm UK time). No manual action needed. So if a work laptop keeps nagging about a failed update, leave it switched on and connected and give it a couple of days.

I haven't seen anyone outside Microsoft write about this one yet. It's on Microsoft's own KB5132061 page, which is where I'd check for any change.

If you're on Home or Pro and you're seeing one of these codes, that's something different and Microsoft's automatic repair won't cover it. Get in touch and I'll take a look.

Windows 10 KB5131096: slmgr commands fail with error 0x80041008

After installing KB5131096 on Windows 10, the slmgr.vbs tool can fail with error 0x80041008 and the message "Invalid parameter (SWbemObjectEx)".

slmgr.vbs is a script for managing Windows activation from the command line. Microsoft says it can fail when you use it to activate Windows, to point a PC at a company's KMS activation server (slmgr.vbs /skms-domain <domain>), or to put in a product key (slmgr.vbs /ipk <key>).

That's a business problem. KMS is how larger organisations activate lots of PCs at once, and typing slmgr commands is an IT job. Microsoft doesn't say anything about normal activation on home PCs being affected, and I wouldn't worry about it on a Windows 10 machine at home that's already activated.

There aren't any steps to follow here. Microsoft says a workaround is available to organisations that need it straight away, through Microsoft Support for business, and that it expects a proper fix in the coming days. If you look after work PCs and it's holding you up, that's the route. Everyone else can wait for the fix to arrive through Windows Update. The details are on Microsoft's KB5131096 page.

SQL Server linked server connections might stay open on Windows 11 24H2, 25H2 and 26H2

Microsoft confirmed on 11 November 2026 that SQL Server linked server connections might remain open on Windows 11 24H2, 25H2 and 26H2. A linked server is a SQL Server setting that lets one database server query another, so this is firmly in IT territory.

November's update didn't cause this one on its own. Microsoft says it goes back to October's update (KB5127648), which means holding off November's update won't make it go away.

If you run SQL Server for a business, it's worth a look. If your PC is for email, browsing and the odd game, you almost certainly haven't got SQL Server on it, let alone linked servers, and you can ignore it.

I'm not going to give steps for this, because Microsoft hasn't published any. It says a mitigation is available for affected enterprise devices through Microsoft Support for business, and that an out-of-band update (one released outside the normal monthly cycle) is coming in the next few days. If it's hitting your servers, contact Microsoft Support for business, and watch Microsoft's Windows release health page for the update.

Should you still install the update?

Yes. For most people I can't see a reason to hold off.

This month patched 1,235 vulnerabilities, including an Outlook flaw that's already turning up in phishing emails. The full rundown is in my November update post. All three problems above are narrow. One fixes itself on managed work machines, one only hits people running activation commands, and the SQL Server one came in with October's update anyway. Neither is a reason to leave a home PC unpatched.

If you look after Windows 10 PCs at work and need to activate or re-key machines in the next few days, it might be worth pausing KB5131096 on those until Microsoft's fix lands. That's a judgement call for the IT side, not something home users need to think about.

I'll add to this post if anything else turns up over the next few weeks. And if an update has left your PC in a mess, that's what my computer repairs in St Helens are for.

Last month's biggest headache was USB headsets going silent with a Code 10 error, and Microsoft says November's update finally fixes it. That, the Xbox sign-in error 0x87DD0005 and the rest of October's list are in my October update problems post.

Mark

Mark has been fixing computers since the late '90s and went self-employed in 2008. Based in St Helens since 2013, he works evenings and weekends from his home in Laffak, doing friendly, affordable repairs for PCs, laptops, and Macs. See reviews on Google