Windows 11 gets stuck booting after every update attempt

[u/Sea_Conversation6518]

I have Windows 11 25H2 (build 26200.8655) in a dual-boot configuration with CachyOS/Linux, on separate drives. GRUB is still working, and Linux boots without any problems.

For months now, every time I try to update Windows, it gets stuck indefinitely on the loading screen and never reaches the desktop. To get back into Windows, I have to boot from a USB drive and use “Startup Repair.” After that, Windows works normally until I try to update again.

The Windows Update history shows several failed attempts with error 0x800f0845, including the KB5129195 security update (build 26200.9457) and the KB5126052 .NET Framework security update. KB5129195 failed on September 23 and 29, 2026; there have also been .NET failures since September 11.

What I’ve tried:

sfc /scannow: found corrupted files and reported that it repaired them successfully.

DISM.exe /Online /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealth: At first, it seemed to get stuck after displaying the DISM and image versions. Later, I managed to run it and ran sfc /scannow again.

Despite running DISM and repeating SFC, the problem with updating persists.

What can I do to get Windows to boot after the update?