SCCM Task Sequence Failed with error code 0x000001B6

I probably had never heard of SCCM task sequence failing with error code 0x000001B6. This error is was very much new to me. When you set to install windows updates that is a part of task sequence, you might see this error. In my observation the chances of getting this error are very less. But it is always good to have this documented so that it might help people who encounter same error. The error screenshot is shown below. You can see that SCCM task sequence has failed with error code 0x000001B6.

SCCM Task Sequence Failed with error code 0x000001B6

To talk about the error code 0x000001B6, it is related to Windows Updates. It occurs during the application of updates in the SCCM task sequence. There is another error that I want to discuss here. From the smsts.log file i could see there was another error related to windows updates. The error is Unhandled error returned by ZTIWindowsUpdate: Object doesn’t support this property or method (438).

Researching the error (ZTIWindowsUpdate & Error 438) suggests it is most likely down to a corrupt download of the update, or a malfunctioned update. Given this is related to WSUS and specific updates, and that updates install at the end of the Task Sequence this should not “break” the image and once running in Windows. In addition this should resolve itself over time (either by re-downloading, or skipping the update if not required). If you’re worried about the core of the image, you can re-image.