Command Update, Support Assist errors and system shutdown

So I had this happen to me, I removed all the Dell apps on the system including the directory sources, it reinstalled just fine then. But after running some updates and restarting, it started doing the same thing again. I tried to re-run the installer to repair it but it kept giving an error when it got to "Starting Services...".

I was able to resolve the problem by exiting the Dell Command Update installer, deleting C:\ProgramData\Dell\UpdateService, then installing DCU worked. Hope this helps.

Hello. This trick made me reinstall Command Update, unfortunately when I try to run it, I get the same error on windows event viewer:

[21-07-03 14:38:36] {ServiceShell.Program->FATAL} Failed to Secure the service root folder
System.Exception: Failed to Secure the service root folder
in ServiceShell.Program.Main()

works for me! thx

Dear sir, can u plz explain how this works for you... Thanks...

Dear all, Thanks this work for me as will ... Cheers... i don't understand, i asked this to dell customer support and they say i need to format my PC. LOL

There are some remnants of the program remaining in your registry that need to be cleaned out. There are a multitude of programs out there that will do that for you, but I usually download CCleaner, run the registry cleaner and then delete the program. All these programs suck up memory and are updated frequently so a new version will be out by the next time you run it. Remember to uncheck the install of Chrome (unless you want it).

Anyone find an answer to this?  I've been dealing with this problem since 4.0.2 came out... we are now at 4.0.4 and they have yet to fix the problem.

Uninstalling DCU and deleting the C:\ProgramData\Dell\ folder then reinstalling DCU works... until I reboot the computer and the same issue comes back.  I have talked with support more times than I'd like to admit and it is honestly the worst support system and support staff I've ever come across.  I had one person out of 10+ that actually understood what was going on, said it was passed to the correct team, and it would be fixed in a new release - that was 3 versions ago.

Would really like to find a solution to this one rather than having to manually check and download updates from the website.

Like pongo I am now also experiencing this. I cannot run Dell Command Update or install Support Assist. Event log shows the same error. Anyone have any more ideas how to solve it?

I've been dealing with Dell Support about this since June 2021 - not kidding.  Late November they had me send some logs/files to them to hopefully help understand the issue and why it was happening.  I have not heard anything back from them other than a 'we are still waiting to hear back from the team' message every few days or so.  The solutions in this thread did not work for me.  There is definitely an issue with the app itself in some form.

Same errors in the event log. If I follow the instructions about uninstalling and deleting the folder and reinstalling it will work until reboot then it fails again.

It fails to start the 'Alienware Client Management Service' with the permissions error at the top.

I was able to get it working again by taking ownership of the folder C:\ProgramData\Dell\UpdateService and then giving full control to the folder and children to Everyone.

Same error here (using Alienware Aurora R9). The problem was temporarily fixed by reinstalling SupportAssist (and ensuring Dell folders under C:\ProgramData were deleted manually).However, as @Tailslide1 mentions, the problem appears again after reboot.

And now thanks to @Tailslide1 it works again if you modify the folder C:\ProgramData\Dell\UpdateService and give it full control.

I must say that I've been months with this problem trying to find a solution which Dell Support was unable to provide. It's a bit discouraging that this problem is still around, after so long time, and Dell is not fixing it yet. DellSupportAssist was one of the major assets included when buying a Dell/Alienware but now it's more of a pain.

Again, thanks a million @Tailslide1  for your brilliant contribution. It made my day!

....and it works for me too. So far so good..........

.......and it's failed again. Everything seemed fine after the first reboot, but the permissions I added to the UpdateService folder have been removed and the error occurs again.

I have been exchanging PMs with a very helpful Soniya from Dell-Cares and seem to have moved forward on what is happening. Sadly, Dell’s stupid system now tells me that I have reached the limit on PMs (10?) I can send so I have been unable to respond to her further.

The problem appears to be that the Dell Client Management Service fails to start, with error

{ServiceShell.Program->FATAL} Failed to Secure the service root folder

System.Exception: Failed to Secure the service root folder

   at ServiceShell.Program.Main()

This service is critical to all the Dell support packages. The exe for this service resides in C:\ProgramData\Dell\UpdateService.

For me the first occurrence of this error in the Event Log was 2nd September 2021. Coincidentally (or not) this was the day I installed the August W10 updates, including 2 Intel packages.

Having followed various suggestions on this site I seemed to be getting nowhere. Yesterday I uninstalled all the Dell Update and Support Assist applications, and deleted the UpdateService folder.

Using links provided by Soniya I downloaded the Dell Update and SupportAssist packages.

The Dell Update package failed to complete installation, yet again, with the above error.

I went through the uninstall process again, and installed SupportAssist. This not only successfully installed but ran and successfully downloaded and installed all the outstanding drivers etc. This installation successfully survived reboots without any change to permissions on the UpdateService folder.

This morning I applied the January W10 updates. Just the basic Cumulative Update package, and the .NET Cumulative Update package, plus the Malicious Software removal Tool.

And it’s broken again.

So I uninstalled again, and reinstalled SupportAssist and it all works again, and survives reboots.

It seems I can temporarily get round this by not installing Dell Update, and by uninstalling and reinstalling SupportAssist after each W10 Update.

So, DELL, something in your system is being broken by Windows Updates, or by something Windows Updates triggers. Please fix it.

Thank you, @Tailslide1. Like the others have explained, the permissions get changed back after a restart but at least I can run it once in a while until Dell gets this fixed.