KB4042345 is a targeted hotfix for a specific peer-cache download failure in System Center Configuration Manager current branch version 1706. Microsoft’s fix updates the site database procedure MP_GetSuperPeerContentLocations; it is not primarily a client or Windows patch. Install it through the console only if the update is applicable to your site. Microsoft says 1706 installations downloaded after September 13, 2017 already include the correction.
What KB4042345 fixes
Microsoft’s official title is “Clients cannot download peer cache content in Configuration Manager version 1706.” After an upgrade to 1706, clients could fail to download content from peer-cache sources because the content-location process supplied a peer source’s NetBIOS name rather than its fully qualified domain name (FQDN) when the client requested additional connection information.
The hotfix updates the site database stored procedure MP_GetSuperPeerContentLocations. That is why administrators call it a server-side fix: clients experience the failure, but the correction is applied at the Configuration Manager site. It does not repair a peer computer’s operating system, client cache, or IIS endpoint, and it does not add a new peer-cache feature.
How to tell whether the 1706 defect matches
The strongest indicator is the error below in the affected client’s Contenttransfermanager.log, while it is trying to use a peer-cache source:
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CContentTokenMgr::EncryptToken - Failed Base64Decode cert contextCheck that the site is actually running Configuration Manager 1706 and that the failure is specific to peer-cache content. The error and release match make KB4042345 a strong candidate, but peer downloads can fail for other reasons too.
Does your 1706 site need the update?
Not every 1706 installation needs KB4042345. Microsoft says the fix does not apply to Configuration Manager 1706 installations downloaded after September 13, 2017, because those installation files already include the corrected procedure.
- Confirm the site’s Configuration Manager release and determine which 1706 installation media was used.
- In the Configuration Manager console, open Updates and Servicing and check whether the peer-cache update is listed as applicable.
- If it is listed and applicable, install it through the servicing workflow. If it is absent, do not force an installation or run a SQL script manually; the site may already contain the correction or may not be affected.
If the service connection point is in Offline mode, Microsoft says the update must be reimported before it becomes available in the console. Use the site’s established offline servicing and import process.
Install and verify through Configuration Manager
- Open the Configuration Manager console and go to Updates and Servicing.
- Find the applicable 1706 peer-cache update and start its installation.
- Monitor the update installation and site-component status using your normal Configuration Manager servicing checks.
- After the site is updated, trigger policy retrieval on a test client and retry the content download.
- Review
ContentTransferManager.logand related content-location logs to confirm that a peer was actually selected and used.
Microsoft lists no prerequisites and says a restart is not required for this hotfix. Its update payload is Update.sql, listed as 10,601 bytes and dated August 27, 2017 UTC. Those are historical package details, not a general detection method; use Configuration Manager servicing rather than manually executing the SQL file.
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If peer-cache downloads still fail
KB4042345 addresses the identified 1706 content-location defect, not every peer-cache problem. Check configuration and source health as well:
- Boundary groups: Confirm the requesting client and intended peer source are in the appropriate current boundary group, and that Allow peer downloads in this boundary group is enabled. A client that falls back to a neighboring boundary group does not receive peer-cache sources from that neighboring group in its potential source list. If a client belongs to multiple boundary groups, peer downloads must be enabled in each applicable group. See Microsoft’s peer-cache configuration guidance.
- Peer eligibility and content: Confirm the source is enabled as a peer-cache source, has the requested content in its client cache, is online, and has received policy. Microsoft’s peer-cache documentation says clients generally use peer sources in their current boundary group; it also notes that sources can reject requests in low-battery mode, above 80 percent processor load, with average disk queue length above 10, or when no connections are available.
- Name resolution and networking: Check that the peer’s FQDN resolves correctly and that firewalls permit the required traffic. For Windows PE peer-cache scenarios, Microsoft documents UDP 8004 for initial discovery and TCP 8003 for content transfer; those ports are specifically documented for that scenario, not a universal port prescription for every peer-cache workflow. See Windows PE peer-cache networking details.
- Other content-location issues: Verify that the content is distributed and available to the deployment, and that the client has received the relevant policy. A missing source or content-location problem can resemble the 1706 defect without sharing its cause.
When retesting, distinguish a peer transfer from a successful deployment that used another source. Logs should show whether a peer was offered and attempted, rejected or unavailable, or whether the client fell back to a distribution point or another content source.
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When to look beyond KB4042345
This historical hotfix is unlikely to be the answer if the site is not running 1706, the matching log error is absent, only one client has trouble while others use the same peer successfully, or the problem is tied to boundary configuration, DNS, firewall rules, missing content, client policy, or source health. It also does not address failures in different content-distribution technologies such as Delivery Optimization or Microsoft Connected Cache.
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