Help with Windows Update Mystery

Hello,

I have an urgent problem that has had me baffled for weeks. I have two identical servers running behind a Netscreen 5xt hardware firewall. Both are running Windows 2000 Server SP4. One of the servers will alert me to critical Windows updates and let me install them. The other one does not. The troubled server also won't update when I go to the Windows Update Website. Regardless if I select Express or Custom install, it scans my computer for a while and then I get the dreaded error 0×80072EFD.

I found some sites with tips on it. So far, no suggestions worked. Here is what I have tried so far:

1) Check that the "Background Intelligent Transfer Service" (BITS) was running. This was off on both servers. I went ahead and started it. This did not fix the problem so I turned it back off.

2) Test your Internet connection to Windows Update by seeing if you can download the Iuident.cab file:

http://windowsupdate.microsoft.com/v4/iuident.cab

The download worked so I am reaching the Windows Update site.

3) Reconfigure or update your firewall program. As mentioned, both servers use a Netscreen firewall. Since one server works fine, this can't be the problem.

4) Remove Windows Update entries from the HOSTS file. I checked and my HOSTS file was empty except for a reference for my Netscreen.

5) Run the IPCONFIG /FLUSHDNS command. I did not try this yet. Can this possibly mess up my firewall settings?

6) Add Windows Update addresses to the trusted sites list. I did this with all kinds of variations to the URL. Nothing still.

7) Add Windows Update addresses to the proxy settings exceptions list.

If your Internet connection uses a proxy server, add the Windows Update sites to the proxy settings exceptions in Internet Settings. To do this, follow these steps:

-Open Internet Explorer.
-Click Tools, and then click Internet Options.
-Click the Connections tab, and then click LAN Settings.
-Click Advanced, and then type the following text in the Exceptions text box (all in one line):

windowsupdate.microsoft.com;v4.windowsupdate.microsoft.com;
download.windowsupdate.com

Is this OK for me to do?

8) Change the MTU setting on your router. Did not try because one server works.

SOMEONE PLEASE HELP ME!