Fixing a Common Windows Phone Update Issue

Now that mobile carriers around the world are beginning to roll out updates to Windows Phone, many Windows PC users are finding that the update(s) cannot be installed because they encounter an error.

The error, commonly 801811A5 for those who are interested, is caused by the Zune desktop software hasn't enabled a particular service in Windows when you've set up your Windows Phone.  Fortunately it's extremely easy to fix.

If you find that your Windows Phone won't update when it's telling you that an update is available, follow these simple instructions.

1. In the Start Menu search box type services
2. When it appears in the search results, run Services, you'll see it has a small cog icon
3. In the window that appears, navigate down the list of services until you find System Event Notification Service.
4. The problem is commonly caused by this service not running, so do one of two things here (or both)
   1. Right click on the service and select Start from the context menu that appears
   2. Right click on the service and select Properties from the context menu that appears, then in the properties dialog that appears change the startup type to Automatic.

Starting the service will help make sure the current update will install, but additionally changing the startup type to automatic (you will probably find it's currently set to manual) will prevent the error from recurring.

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