KB5012170 failure — this is a Windows-level issue, not a WithSecure one
KB5012170 is the Secure Boot DBX security update released by Microsoft in August 2022. This update is widely known to fail in certain environments regardless of which tool attempts to install it. Common causes include insufficient space in the system reserved partition, TPM configuration issues, or existing Secure Boot DBX state conflicts.
When Windows fails to install this update, Software Updater receives an unknown error from the Windows installer and reports it as WA_VMOD_ERROR_INSTALLATION_FAILED — but the root cause is not in WithSecure.
WA_VMOD_ERROR_INSTALLATION_FAILED
As @Wida confirmed above, the workaround is to install it manually. If it also fails manually, Microsoft's own guidance for KB5012170 failures is to check the system reserved partition has at least 50MB free, and to verify Secure Boot is correctly configured in BIOS/UEFI. Microsoft's official support page for this update, including known installation issues and a link to download it manually from the Update Catalog, is here: https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/topic/kb5012170-security-update-for-secure-boot-dbx-august-9-2022-72ff5eed-25b4-47c7-be28-c42bd211bb15
If WA_VMOD_ERROR_INSTALLATION_FAILED is appearing for other updates beyond KB5012170, that's a different issue — please open a new post with the specific update name and your Elements Agent version.
Last reviewed: May 2026.
Hi @Wida
Thank you for informing us and for your understanding. Please feel free to reach out to us if the issue persists or if you have any further concerns.
Best regards, Sethu Community Moderator | Technical Support Engineer WithSecure™ https://www.withsecure.com/en/home
I managed it, sometimes some installation errors pop up, I don't worry about it anymore, if not remotely then manually and that's it.
Thanks for wanting to help
best regards SW
Thank you for reaching out the WithSecure Community,
Please ensure that you are using the most recent version of the WithSecure product. Regarding the specific update KB5012170, the root cause remains unclear as we have been unable to reproduce the issue internally thus far. It can be challenging to determine the precise root causes of the error without examining the fsdiag logs.
To further investigate, it would be greatly appreciated if you could enable debug logging, reproduce the issue, and then share the fresh fsdiag logs with our WithSecure support team. This will allow us to delve deeper into the matter and provide you with a more accurate solution.
You can find step by step instruction how to collect the fsdiag with debug enable mode here: https://community.withsecure.com/en/kb/articles/29424-how-to-generate-debug-fsdiag-logs-for-elements-endpoint-protection-client-security-and-server-security
Hi
I'm currently updating the server manually so that it doesn't get damaged, but I have an error when I ran one update via WithSecure:
"The update could not be installed because the installer returned an unknown error. (WA_VMOD_ERROR_INSTALLATION_FAILED)"
2022-08 Security Update for Windows Server 2012 for x64-based Systems (KB5012170)
