When I read this morning on NeoWin that KB5039239 would update 23H2 Windows 11 to 24H2, I had to give it a try. So I visited the Microsoft Update Catalog and grabbed the x64 version to attempt an install on my Lenovo ThinkPad P16 Mobile Workstation. No dice. Indeed, this early 24H2 update attempt fails on that laptop, as you can see in the lead-in graphic. The Windows Update Standalone Installer informs me that “the update is not applicable to your computer.”

Why the Early 24H2 Update Attempt Fails

The NeoWin story specifically cites to a non-Copilot AMD PC receiving the update via WU, complete with Update History screencaps to show it downloaded and applied. Thus, I can only speculate that KB5039239 is still missing some support infrastructure for Intel CPUs in general (or this Alder Lake i9-12950HX CPU in particular).

Whatever the case my be with this CU, something about it gets picked up as “not applicable” for this test rig. Last May, I blogged about a way to use the 24H2 ISO to run an in-place repair install as workaround to upgrade 23H2 PCs to 24H2. It worked back then, and I’m pretty sure it still works now.

All this said, I’m not sure why the afore-cited CU doesn’t cut the mustard on my P16, but it’s just one of those interesting things about Windows. If I truly wanted to upgrade this machine to 24H2, I could get there from here. But I really just wanted to see if the approach described in the Neowin story works on the P16. It doesn’t, but I will keep my eyes peeled for something similar from WU soon, and see if what else comes along for that ride changes things from “not applicable” to otherwise.

Stay tuned!