Microsoft’s recent Patch Tuesday update, KB5077181, rolled out on February 10, 2026, has unfortunately led to significant boot failures for users of Windows 11 versions 24H2 (OS build 26200.7840) and 25H2 (OS build 26100.7840). Reports are flooding in from users who find their systems trapped in endless restart loops post-installation, effectively locking them out of their desktops.
Boot Loop Challenges
Community discussions, particularly on platforms like Reddit, reveal alarming accounts of devices undergoing more than 15 reboot cycles. This situation has rendered many machines inoperable, with users unable to access their sessions. The problems typically arise shortly after the update completes, with affected systems failing to boot fully. Some users have managed to regain brief access, only to be met with System Event Notification Service (SENS) errors, such as “a specified procedure could not be found.”
Moreover, issues with DHCP have been reported, disrupting internet connectivity even when network links appear intact. Installation errors, including codes 0x800f0983 and 0x800f0991, suggest potential incompatibilities related to hardware, drivers, or servicing stacks. This regression in stability has overshadowed the update’s intended security enhancements, which were designed to address 58 vulnerabilities, including six zero-days cataloged by CISA as known exploited vulnerabilities.
KB5077181 builds upon improvements from previous releases like KB5074109, incorporating Secure Boot certificates to mitigate the impact of 2011 certificate expirations due in June 2026. It also aims to resolve gaming eligibility and WPA3 Wi-Fi issues. However, the pervasive boot loop issue continues to disrupt both enterprise and consumer environments.
| CVE ID | CVSS Score | Description |
|---|---|---|
| CVE-2026-21510 | 7.5 | Desktop Window Manager elevation of privilege to SYSTEM level. |
| CVE-2026-21519 | 7.8 | Desktop Window Manager elevation of privilege to SYSTEM level. |
| CVE-2026-21533 | 8.8 | Windows Remote Desktop Services elevation of privilege; actively exploited zero-day. |
| CVE-2026-20841 | 7.1 | Notepad remote code execution via crafted Markdown files. |
- KB Number: KB5077181
- Error Codes: 0x800f0983, 0x800f0991
- Affected Builds: 26200.7840, 26100.7840
As of February 15, 2026, Microsoft’s release notes and health dashboard do not include a “known issues” entry, despite the increasing number of reports from users. For those with accessible systems, the update can be uninstalled through the Control Panel by navigating to Programs and Features, then selecting View installed updates, followed by pausing Windows Update.
In cases where systems are unbootable, users can access the Windows Recovery Environment by interrupting the boot process three times or utilizing installation media to open Command Prompt. The following commands can be executed: wusa /uninstall /kb:5077181 /quiet /norestart, followed by sfc /scannow to repair any damaged files.
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