Neil,
lets try this.....
from the command line (cmd.exe) type: net stop wuauserv
from the command line type: regsvr32 %windir%\system32\wups2.dll
Download the manual installer from here:
http://download.windowsupdate.com/Wi...gent30-x86.exe
from the command line change to the directory that contains the file you just downloaded and type WindowsUpdateAgent30-x86.exe /wuforce
regards
Steve