FIX: KB3125574 Stuck or Won’t Install on Windows 7

Users who have avoided the Windows 10 update, or who have recently switched from a modern PC to an older Windows 7 machine, might experience problems with Windows updates. One Seven Forums user explained:
I am on my backup PC, which runs on Win7 Pro x64 and does not have any updates. I wanted to update it, so I first installed KB3020369, a prerequisite, and also KB2670838 – as suggested by WHDownloader to install before the rollup. Naturally, I restarted the PC after installing these two updates.

The problem I have is that the update won’t install. It’s always at 0%. I’ve tried several times; even after waiting for one hour, there’s no progress. I even attempted to install it with ntlite, but I encountered exactly the same problem – it’s stuck at 0%.

This is a problem that other Windows 7 users have experienced, and it can be resolved by changing your machine’s update settings, before performing manual updates.

Change Update Settings and Install Manually

1. Click ‘Start‘ -> type ‘Windows Update‘ -> Click ‘Windows Update‘ -> Click ‘Change Settings‘ and choose ‘Never Check for Updates‘. Windows will remind you that this is not recommended, as it disables the automatic update system – but this is a necessary step to resolve your problem. After clicking ‘OK‘, it’s time to restart your computer.
2. Once your machine has restarted, ensure that your Windows updates are not set to manual. You can do this by holding the Windows key and pressing R. Then, type ‘services.msc‘ and click OK.
3. In Services, locate Windows Update in the list that appears. Right-click on it and choose Stop. Then, double-click on it and change the startup type to Manual. Click Apply/OK.
   
4. Your next step is to see if the KB3020369 update is installed, and if it is not, you must manually install it. To check if it is already installed, click Start, search Uninstall a program and press the link of the same name that appears in the results. This will take you to Programs and Features where you should click View installed updates on the left-hand side.
5. This link will take you to Installed Updates, search for KB3020369 to check if it is installed. If the update is not already installed, you can download it from this link KB3020369 for your system type. (32 bit or 64 bit).
6. Restart when complete. This install should work, now that you have changed your update settings to Never check for updates.
7. The next step is to download KB3172605 (32-bit) or KB3172605 (64-bit). Once downloaded, install them.
8. Using the steps above, change your settings back to what they were before you began this process. The updates should have been installed, and you can revert to using automatic Windows updates on Windows 7.