The error with the message that the system cannot find the specified file, for some reason, most often appears in Windows 7, although it is rightfully considered one of the most stable and popular OS in this world. What it is connected with and how to eliminate such a problem will now be considered.
When does the system error “Error: cannot find the specified file” appear?
Based on the description and nature of the failure itself, it is easy to conclude that the system for some reason cannot find the file due to its absence on the computer or the remote server. In the simplest case, this can be explained by the example of uninstalling some programs that require a system restart to complete the uninstall. But if you try to run the program before rebooting, the user will receive a notification that Windows cannot find the specified application file.
However, the most common problem is the functioning of the Update Center and the system service responsible for its operation. It is simply impossible to consider all the reasons, because even in the descriptions submitted by Microsoft, there are more than five thousand of them. Sometimes the error 0x80070002 indicating the files not found may appear during installation, during backup, and during recovery. The solution to this problem will be discussed separately.
“Cannot find the specified file” error: installing updates
Since the most common reason is the failure to install updates, you need to start with this. In Windows, to fix the problem you need to use the appropriate section, which can be called from the "Control Panel".
If the user observes an error precisely when trying to download the necessary updates, you just need to use the manual search activation because the system cannot automatically find them. If they are found, it remains only to agree with their installation. Sometimes the reason may be a violation of the Internet connection, but for obvious reasons, such situations are now not taken into account.
Adjust date and time settings
When searching for the latest updates, error 0x80070002 may also appear due to the fact that the system time does not correspond to the real one.
Trying to change the time and date directly in the system is not worth it, as this may not give the desired effect. The best option is to install the correct parameters in the BIOS when starting a computer or laptop.
Restart update service
Actions with the Update Center may not lead to the desired result, because a program failure could occur in the service responsible for its operation (in this case, a search may also give a warning that the system cannot find the specified update file). In this case, you will need to manually restart this system process.
To carry out such actions, the services section is used, which can be accessed through the computer administration menu, but it is better to use the Run console (Win + R), where the combination services.msc should be registered.
Here you need to find the corresponding process and simply stop it with a special button in the menu for editing parameters and settings.
You cannot restart the service immediately or do it after an immediate reboot (in this case, the message that the system cannot find the specified file will appear again when you try to update). You can stop the corresponding process (wuauserv) from the command line using the net stop command, and restart through net start.
At the second stage, open “Explorer” or any other file manager used and find the SoftwareDistibution subdirectory in the main system directory (Windows). There are two options here. You can completely try to delete its contents, but it is unlikely to succeed. Or you can simply rename the folder by adding Old to the name. Only after such manipulations can you return to the services section and activate the stopped process again.
System Restore Check
As already mentioned, an error due to the fact that the system cannot find the specified file can occur when creating backups or when the system is rolled back to the previous state. In the first case, you can immediately launch the command console, in the second - only when booting from removable media.
In the simplest case, when there is a stable Internet connection, you can first use the integrity check of system components (sfc / scannow), and then use the state scan and restore command directly, as shown in the image above.
Utilities for automatic error correction
For cases when, for some reason, the system cannot find the specified file (if it is really connected with the above processes), you can use some automated tools to fix the problem without user intervention.
The easiest and most popular utility is Fix It Center, developed directly by Microsoft. In parallel with it, it is desirable to use the program for searching for missing system libraries DLL Suite. Only in this case can you be sure that the error message will not be displayed again. By the way, the first program corrects not only the failures of the "Update Center", but also a bunch of other problems, for example, regarding Internet connections.
What else could be the error?
Regarding the installation of updates, a failure can be caused not only by updating the system itself. Often, identical errors can occur when trying to find or install updates for other Microsoft software products. First of all, this applies to MS Office. If the user sees that the updates for Windows are being installed, but do not want for other programs, you just need to disable their search and subsequent integration into the system.
It remains to add that the choice of a remedy for the problem directly depends on the cause that caused it. And the tools for the update service are not always suitable for troubleshooting backups or rollbacks to the previous state.