constant rebooting configuring update 3 of 3 0% and KB949358 method 1 and 2 do not work

[leojdpa]

constant rebooting configuring update 3 of 3 0% and KB949358 method 1 and 2 do not work and 3 is missing.

*****Be sure to backup your registry before attempting this*****
****You assume total resposibility when touching the registry****

Method 3 which MS does not seem to want to publish is below.
I did it a little different because I had already renamed pending.xml (thanks to google searches) and rebooted the PC before I found this information out by calling Microsoft Safety Hotline to see if there was a KB I could not find. They pointed me to 949358 which I had already tried and did not work, and 937287 which was not valid since I could not boot yet.
I did check my registry and the 2 entries mentioned are not there now.
I suspect the entry went away because no it is asking me to install sp2 as an update. That must have removed it.

Method 3: Rename the pending.xml file and edit the registry
1. Put the Windows Vista installation disc in the DVD drive, and then restart the computer.
2. Press a key when you are prompted to restart from the disc.
3. In the Install Windows window, select a language, a time, a currency, a keyboard input method or other input method, and then click Next.
4. In the Install Windows window, click Repair your computer.
5. In the System Recovery Options window, click the version of the Windows Vista operating system that you want to repair, and then click Next.
6. In the System Recovery Options windows, click Command Prompt.
7. Type cd C:\windows\winsxs , and then press ENTER.
8. Type ren pending.xml pending.old , and then press ENTER.

(I rebooted successfully at this point because I did not have any of this information.

So I basically did 1 thru 8, without having them, rebooted, saw the same message "configuring update 3 of 3 0%" but then it let me log in almost right away. I then rebooted a couple of times and the message went away.

I skipped 9 thru 11 since i was up and went to step 15)

9. Open Regedit.
10. Highlight HKLM.
11. Click the File menu.
12. Select Load Hive.
13. Browse to c:\windows\system32\config\components.
14. Prompted for name – Offline_Components


15. In regedit, locate HLKM\Offline Components\AdvancedInstallersNeedResolving , and then select delete.

( I did a find in the registry for both strings but they were not there so I am done at this point. I then installed sp2 since the PC i repairing for a friend was on sp1)

16. In regedit, locate HKLM\Offline Components\PendingXmlIdentifier , and then select delete.
17. Type exit , and then press ENTER.
18. Click Restart.

Hope this article saves you a lot of time! (which I wasted plenty of)
Method 3 is faster then 1 and 2 in article 949358 but a little riskier.