{"id":9119,"date":"2020-06-06T07:58:26","date_gmt":"2020-06-06T14:58:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.coretechnologies.com\/blog\/?p=9119"},"modified":"2025-12-28T23:31:21","modified_gmt":"2025-12-29T07:31:21","slug":"windows-update","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.coretechnologies.com\/blog\/windows-services\/windows-update\/","title":{"rendered":"Essential Windows Services: Windows Update (wuauserv)"},"content":{"rendered":"<div align=\"center\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"no-lazy-load\" src=\"\/blog\/images\/windows-update-service-150x150.webp\" title=\"Windows Update Service (wuauserv)\" alt=\"Windows Update Service (wuauserv)\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" border=\"0\" ><\/div>\n<div id=\"blog-toc-container\" style=\"margin-top:20px;\">\n<p id=\"blog-toc-title\">In this article&#8230;<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"#what-is-wuauserv\">What is the Windows Update service?<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"#ok-to-disable-wuauserv\">Is it safe to disable the Windows Update service?<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"#disable-wuauserv\">How do I disable the Windows Update service and prevent it from starting?<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"#questions\">Questions? Problems?<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<p><a name=\"what-is-wuauserv\"><\/a><\/p>\n<hr class=\"blog-section\">\n<div style=\"width:100%;margin-bottom:30px;\">\n<div style=\"margin:0px;float:right;\"><a href=\"#top\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.coretechnologies.com\/images\/top.jpg\" border=\"0\" width=\"50\" height=\"18\" title=\"Go to the top\" alt=\"\" \/><\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<h2 class=\"blog-caption\">What is the Windows Update service?<\/h2>\n<p>The Windows Update service is responsible for automatically downloading and installing Microsoft-created software on your computer. It is a critical component that is instrumental in keeping your PC up to date with vital security patches.<\/p>\n<p>The service&#8217;s name is <b>wuauserv<\/b>. It runs inside the shared services host process, <a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Svchost.exe\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">svchost.exe<\/a>:<\/p>\n<div align=\"center\"><a href=\"\/blog\/images\/windows-update-service.png\" class=\"zoomPopup\" title=\"Windows Update Service\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"image-padding\" src=\"\/blog\/images\/windows-update-service.png\" title=\"Windows Update Service (click to enlarge)\" alt=\"Windows Update Service\" border=\"0\" \/><\/a><\/div>\n<p>The service&#8217;s startup type is <b>Manual<\/b>. It remains dormant until explicitly started by operating system components that run on a schedule.<\/p>\n<p><a name=\"ok-to-disable-wuauserv\"><\/a><\/p>\n<hr class=\"blog-section\">\n<div style=\"width:100%;margin-bottom:30px;\">\n<div style=\"margin:0px;float:right;\"><a href=\"#top\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.coretechnologies.com\/images\/top.jpg\" border=\"0\" width=\"50\" height=\"18\" title=\"Go to the top\" alt=\"\" \/><\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<h2 class=\"blog-caption\">Is it safe to disable the Windows Update service?<\/h2>\n<p>In their <a href=\"https:\/\/docs.microsoft.com\/en-us\/windows-server\/security\/windows-services\/security-guidelines-for-disabling-system-services-in-windows-server#windows-update\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">guidance on disabling system services on Windows Server 2016<\/a>, Microsoft does not designate Windows Update as a critical service. Indeed, your computer will operate just fine if you disable the service &mdash; you simply won&#8217;t get updated software from Microsoft.<\/p>\n<p>But while avoiding periodic updates is great for system consistency, allowing your operating system to become stagnant can have <a href=\"https:\/\/www.mcafee.com\/blogs\/consumer\/consumer-threat-notices\/software-updates-important\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">serious security implications<\/a>. It is likely that your computer will become vulnerable to attacks &mdash; especially if it is connected to an external network like the Internet.<\/p>\n<p>So if you do disable the Windows Update service, we recommend <b>re-enabling it every few weeks\/months to apply security updates<\/b>. Best to be safe!<\/p>\n<p><a name=\"disable-wuauserv\"><\/a><\/p>\n<hr class=\"blog-section\">\n<div style=\"width:100%;margin-bottom:30px;\">\n<div style=\"margin:0px;float:right;\"><a href=\"#top\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.coretechnologies.com\/images\/top.jpg\" border=\"0\" width=\"50\" height=\"18\" title=\"Go to the top\" alt=\"\" \/><\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<h2 class=\"blog-caption\">How do I disable the Windows Update service and prevent it from starting?<\/h2>\n<p>To disable the Windows Update service:<\/p>\n<ol style=\"margin-bottom:30px\">\n<li>\n<p>Launch the <a href=\"\/blog\/windows-services\/essential-tools-windows-services-msc\/\">Windows Services application<\/a>. You can find it by searching for &#8220;services&#8221; in the Control Panel or by running <b>services.msc<\/b> at a command prompt.<\/p<\/li>\n<li>\n<p>Scroll the list of services to find the Windows Update service. Double-click the entry to open it.<\/p<\/li>\n<li>\n<p>If the service is running, click the <b>Stop<\/b> button to terminate it.<\/p>\n<li>\n<p>And in the <b>Startup type<\/b> field, change the selection to <b>Disabled<\/b>:<\/p>\n<div align=\"center\"><a href=\"\/blog\/images\/disable-windows-update-service.png\" class=\"zoomPopup\" title=\"Disable wuauserv\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"image-padding\" src=\"\/blog\/images\/disable-windows-update-service.png\" title=\"Disable wuauserv (click to enlarge)\" alt=\"Disable wuauserv\" border=\"0\" \/><\/a><\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<p>Click <b>OK<\/b> to save your settings.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p>You can also disable the service by running these two commands from an administrative command prompt:<\/p>\n<div class=\"code-box\">\n   sc stop wuauserv<br \/>\n   sc config wuauserv start= disabled\n<\/div>\n<p>With the service disabled, any attempt to update your operating system will fail:<\/p>\n<div align=\"center\"><a href=\"\/blog\/images\/windows-update-error-encountered.png\" class=\"zoomPopup\" title=\"Windows Update: Error encountered\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"image-padding\" src=\"\/blog\/images\/windows-update-error-encountered.png\" title=\"Windows Update: Error encountered (click to enlarge)\" alt=\"Windows Update: Error encountered\" border=\"0\" width=\"520\" \/><\/a><\/div>\n<p>Note: To re-enable the service, simply repeat the steps above but set the <b>Startup type<\/b> back to <b>Manual<\/b>.<\/p>\n<p><a name=\"questions\"><\/a><\/p>\n<hr class=\"blog-section\">\n<div style=\"width:100%;margin-bottom:30px;\">\n<div style=\"margin:0px;float:right;\"><a href=\"#top\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.coretechnologies.com\/images\/top.jpg\" border=\"0\" width=\"50\" height=\"18\" title=\"Go to the top\" alt=\"\" \/><\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<h2 class=\"blog-caption\">Questions? Problems?<\/h2>\n<p>If you&#8217;d like to know more about the Windows Update service, or you have a specific problem, please feel free to <a href=\"\/support\/\">get in touch<\/a>. We&#8217;ll do our best to help you!<\/p>\n<div style=\"margin-top:30px\" align=\"center\">\n<div class=\"cta-button-1\">\n<table role=\"presentation\" cellspacing=\"0\" cellpadding=\"0\" border=\"0\" align=\"left\">\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td align=\"center\"><a href=\"\/blog\/tag\/essential-windows-services\/\" title=\"Find more important Windows Services\"><span><nobr>More Essential Windows Services&#8230;<\/nobr><\/span><\/a><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<!-- relpost-thumb-wrapper --><div class=\"relpost-thumb-wrapper\"><!-- filter-class --><div class=\"relpost-thumb-container\"><style>.relpost-block-single-image, .relpost-post-image { margin-bottom: 10px; }<\/style><h3>You may also like...<\/h3><div style=\"clear: both\"><\/div><div style=\"clear: both\"><\/div><!-- relpost-block-container --><div class=\"relpost-block-container relpost-block-column-layout\" style=\"--relposth-columns: 3;--relposth-columns_t: 2; --relposth-columns_m: 2\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.coretechnologies.com\/blog\/windows-services\/wscsvc\/\"class=\"relpost-block-single\" ><div class=\"relpost-custom-block-single\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"relpost-block-single-image\" alt=\"Essential Windows Services: Security Center \/ wscsvc\"  src=\"https:\/\/www.coretechnologies.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/windows-security-center-service-150x150-1.png\" style=\"aspect-ratio:1\/1\" style=\"aspect-ratio:1\/1\"><\/img><div class=\"relpost-block-single-text\"  style=\"height: 75px;font-family: Arial;  font-size: 12px;  color: #333333;\"><h2 class=\"relpost_card_title\">Essential Windows Services: Security Center \/ wscsvc<\/h2><\/div><\/div><\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/www.coretechnologies.com\/blog\/windows-services\/restart-service-when-event-reported\/\"class=\"relpost-block-single\" ><div class=\"relpost-custom-block-single\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"relpost-block-single-image\" alt=\"Q&amp;A: How do I Restart a Windows Service when an Event is Reported?\"  src=\"https:\/\/www.coretechnologies.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/restart-service-event-trigger-150x150-1.png\" style=\"aspect-ratio:1\/1\" style=\"aspect-ratio:1\/1\"><\/img><div class=\"relpost-block-single-text\"  style=\"height: 75px;font-family: Arial;  font-size: 12px;  color: #333333;\"><h2 class=\"relpost_card_title\">Q&amp;A: How do I Restart a Windows Service when an Event is Reported?<\/h2><\/div><\/div><\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/www.coretechnologies.com\/blog\/windows-services\/power\/\"class=\"relpost-block-single\" ><div class=\"relpost-custom-block-single\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"relpost-block-single-image\" alt=\"Essential Windows Services: Power\"  src=\"https:\/\/www.coretechnologies.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/power-150x150.png\" style=\"aspect-ratio:1\/1\" style=\"aspect-ratio:1\/1\"><\/img><div class=\"relpost-block-single-text\"  style=\"height: 75px;font-family: Arial;  font-size: 12px;  color: #333333;\"><h2 class=\"relpost_card_title\">Essential Windows Services: Power<\/h2><\/div><\/div><\/a><\/div><!-- close relpost-block-container --><div style=\"clear: both\"><\/div><\/div><!-- close filter class --><\/div><!-- close relpost-thumb-wrapper -->","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>In this article&#8230; What is the Windows Update service? Is it safe to disable the Windows Update service? How do I disable the Windows Update service and prevent it from starting? Questions? Problems? What is the Windows Update service? The &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.coretechnologies.com\/blog\/windows-services\/windows-update\/\">Continue reading <span class=\"meta-nav\">&rarr;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":9122,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[18],"tags":[78,196,211,212],"class_list":["post-9119","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-windows-services","tag-essential-windows-services","tag-windows-services-2","tag-windows-update","tag-wuauserv"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.coretechnologies.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9119","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.coretechnologies.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.coretechnologies.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.coretechnologies.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.coretechnologies.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9119"}],"version-history":[{"count":36,"href":"https:\/\/www.coretechnologies.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9119\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":13297,"href":"https:\/\/www.coretechnologies.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9119\/revisions\/13297"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.coretechnologies.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/9122"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.coretechnologies.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9119"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.coretechnologies.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=9119"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.coretechnologies.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=9119"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}