ARCHIVED: What is Windows Update, and how do I use it to update my Windows installation?
Note: At Indiana University, to ensure that no critical updates are missed, UITS requires automatic updating of user machines in campus housing, and strongly recommends the Windows Automatic Updates feature for off-campus users as well.
For help, see Microsoft Support.
If your computer is running Microsoft Windows, you can use Windows Update to update your system with the latest system component updates, service packs (SPs), security fixes, free upgrades, and hardware driver updates. In Windows 7 and Vista, Windows Update is an application on your computer; in previous versions of Windows, you access Windows Update via the Windows Update web site.
Windows Update scans your computer to determine what updates you need, and lets you choose which to install and how to install them. Updates are categorized as follows:
- High priority: Install these critical updates as soon as they are available, before you install any others.
- Software (optional): These are non-critical updates for Windows programs.
- Hardware (optional): These are non-critical driver updates for Windows hardware devices.
When using Windows Update:
- You must be connected to the Internet.
- For versions of Windows prior to Vista, you need to use Internet Explorer as your web browser.
- The updates can be large, and may take several hours to download over a dial-up connection.
- You need to be logged in with administrative rights.
Note:Security of Information Technology Resources (IT-12) requires that you normally refrain from running your Windows computer as an administrator. For more, see About the principle of least privilege.
To use Windows Update:
- Windows 7 and Vista: In the
Alternatively, you can also select
or , and then choose which updates will be installed. If you do so, click at the bottom-right to get back to the main menu. menu
search field, enter "Windows Update". Open Windows Update, and then
click to download and install important
updates for your computer. You may be prompted to restart your
computer one or more times during or after the installation
process.
- Windows XP: Start Internet Explorer and go to Microsoft Windows
Update. Once Windows Update is open, select one of the following
options:
On the next screen, click
; all recommended updates will be downloaded and installed automatically. : If you choose this option, your
computer will search for and select all critical updates.
When you are ready, click
on the left, and then on the next screen. : This option returns both
critical and optional updates. Applicable updates will be sorted into
three categories on the left (High Priority, Software, and
Hardware). You can click each of these categories and select which
updates you would like to have installed.
You may be prompted to restart your computer one or more times during or after the installation process.
This is document agir in the Knowledge Base.
Last modified on 2018-01-18 12:26:44.