A while back I posted a message about the Windows 7 Release Candidate install appearing to hang whilst expanding windows files.
Well, I just wanted to let you know that this also appear to be happening on Windows 7 RTM / Final.
When the installation reaches the Expanding Windows Files stage at 21% (some people have reported various different percentages but mostly it has been 21%) the install remains here for a significant period of time, appearing to have hung and causing many people to reset their computers. However, my advice to you would be to WAIT as it will continue eventually!
There have been reports that it can hang here for over an hour but does eventually carry on. So don’t give up on Windows 7 RTM yet!
EDIT: Just to add some weight to this post, see the comments on my similar post about the same issue for the RC of Windows 7 here. So don;t give up…..just leave it to get on with it!
10 comments
1 ping
Sukhbir says:
August 15, 2009 at 2:38 pm (UTC -5)
I fail to understand, WHY should this happen in RTM version. I was checking the disk space usage during the halt period, and it didn’t even change by one byte. So what the installer is doing that time remains a mystery.
Microsoft should fix such problems. If the installation falters at install time, what expectations would a user have from the final OS?
jj says:
September 9, 2009 at 1:35 pm (UTC -5)
RTM version hung @ 21% for well over an hour. Finally moving forward @ 75% now. Thanks for the post. This should be documented or better yet, resolved in the RTM version – IMO.
djd says:
October 22, 2009 at 1:54 pm (UTC -5)
i was close to resetting myself just now… thankfully i double checked via a mobile device&google before i switched off!!!
djd says:
October 22, 2009 at 2:00 pm (UTC -5)
o… and i should point out this is the european retail home premium, upgrading from Vista, and with the ‘check online for installation updates` selected. So in other words, if its a bug, its not fixed!
J. Pisano says:
October 22, 2009 at 11:15 pm (UTC -5)
Installing Windows Home Premium today..stuck on 21% for 50 minutes so far… will wait to see what happens.
Tim says:
October 23, 2009 at 11:19 am (UTC -5)
Disable all firewalls antivirus and security. I had the same problem now it works!!
Anon says:
November 23, 2009 at 10:28 pm (UTC -5)
Does anyone know what it is doing during this phase?
Meg Griffin says:
June 24, 2010 at 4:08 pm (UTC -5)
21% is where it reboots, after it reboots I believe it may be checking files to make sure they aren’t corrupt or something. If you hold down the spacebar and the W key, it probably won’t help, so don’t even try that.
Dan says:
September 4, 2011 at 11:31 am (UTC -5)
Yes it hang up for me too at 21% but now i am at 38% and it works fine, thanks because i was thinking about throwing my laptop over the window.
joey joejoe says:
October 6, 2011 at 12:54 pm (UTC -5)
Just stumbled across this after getting hung, stuck and stalled at “Expanding Windows files” at 21%… sure enough, waited about 30 mins and it finished up pretty quickly afterwards
Windows 7 and the 21% solution « Hundreds and Thousands (on the trifle of life) says:
October 21, 2009 at 3:46 am (UTC -5)
[...] I googled from my laptop and soon found this. [...]