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During installation, the following error generates:

"Setup has detected the need to reboot this computer. The system registry indicated that another installation program still has pending unresolved issues. These issues will be cleared when this computer is restarted. You will need to run this program again after the machine has been rebooted."

Why is this error generating?

  • When you run a Setup program to install any application, Setup may try to update some files that your operating system is currently using.
    • For example, Setup may try to rename or to delete these files.
    • If Setup can't update these files, Setup sets the PendingFileRenameOperations registry entry to a non-empty value.
    • You must manually restart your computer to update the files that your operating system was using during the installation process.
  • If you don't restart your computer, these files aren't updated.
  • If you then try to install another application, Microsoft Windows Installer determines that the PendingFileRenameOperations registry entry isn't empty.
    • Therefore, you receive the error message that "Setup has detected the need to reboot..."

How do I resolve this error?

First, restart the computer and try again. If the error persists, try the steps below.

Before you start:

This requires modification of the Windows Registry. Serious problems may occur if the registry is modified incorrectly. Intuit strongly recommends having an IT professional make these changes if you are not comfortable with editing the registry. It's also strongly recommended to make a backup of the registry before proceeding. See here for further instruction.

Follow these steps to resolve this error if restarting doesn't work:

  1. Hold down the Windows key + R on your keyboard to open the Run command.
  2. Type REGEDIT in the Open: field and click OK.
    • You may get a message asking “Do you want to allow this app to make changes to your device?” Click Yes.
  3. From the File menu, choose Export.
  4. Click Desktop on left side of screen.
  5. In the File name field, type REGBACKUP and click Save.
  6. On left side of Registry Editor window, expand HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE, and then expand SYSTEM.
  7. Expand ControlSet001.
    • You may also have a 002 or 003. Start with 001.
  8. Expand Control.
  9. Scroll down, locate, and expand the Session Manager folder.
  10. On right side of screen, find the file titled PendingFileRenameOperations.
  11. Right-click on PendingFileRenameOperations, then choose Delete. Click Yes to confirm deletion.
  12. Repeat steps 7-11 for ConstrolSet002 and ControlSet003, if present. 
    • The PendingFileRenameOperations file may not be present for ConstrolSet002 and ControlSet003. If not, continue to step 13.
  13. Close Registry Editor window.
  14. Try the installation or update again.
 

In the event that a key was deleted in error from KeysNotToRestore, you'll need to restore the Registry backup file made in step 5.

Additional information