Updates are an important part of the Windows 10 operating system. Updates are used to improve performance, fix security vulnerabilities, and fix bugs. It is highly recommended to install updates. But sometimes the updates do not work. Updates may prevent system reboot, crash applications, disable features, instability, etc. In these cases, we should remove Windows updates. In this tutorial, we will examine how to uninstall or remove Windows 10 updates. These instructions can be implemented in Windows Server 2012, Windows Server 2016, Windows Server 2019, and Windows Server 2022 too.
Uninstall Windows 10 updates from Windows Settings (or Control Panel)
Windows updates can be controlled and managed via the Windows Settings or its old fashion name Control Panel . By using the Windows Settings the updates can be checked, listed, updated, and removed. In this example, we will remove the Windows Updates via the Windows Settings.
- Click to the
Start Menuthen opens the Windows Settings. - From the Windows Settings navigate to the
Update&Security. - In the Update&Security screen click to the
Windows update history.
The View update history screen is like below. This screen provides information about installed updates, recovery options and uninstalling updates. Just click to the Uninstall update button like below.
The following screen opens the Control Panel and list installed updates. Also provides the Uninstall button and function where the selected update can be uninstalled. Keep in mind that not all updates can be uninstalled.
Uninstall Windows 10 updates from Command Prompt or PowerShell
Another way to uninstall Windows 10 updates is using the command line interface or PowerShell or MS-DOS whatever you call. The command wmic is used to list and remove installed updates. First, the command prompt should be opened with the administrator privileges. click to the Star Menu and type cmd which lists the MS-DOS or command prompt. Then click on the Run as administrator like below.
Run the following wmic command in order to list installed updates in a table format.
wmic qfe list brief /format:table
From the updates list select the update you want to remove and get its HotFixID or the KnowledgeBase number which is identified with KB1241231 etc.
The wusa command is used to manage Windows updates. Use the option /uninstall and /kb: with the HotFixID to remove specified update. In the following example we uninstall or remove the update named KB4601554 .
wusa /uninstall /kb:4601554