Remove or Uninstall Windows Updates in Windows 7 / 8

We all prefer to keep our Windows operating system updated. But sometimes some Windows Updates may make your PC go crazy. Maybe your Windows computer has gone in a loop! In this post we will see how to remove or uninstall Windows Updates and troubleshoot & fix problems caused due to them in Windows 8 / 7.

If you find yourself in one of these situation while dealing with Windows Updates then try some of the solutions provided here. These are some of the most common solution of most common problems. In some cases, you may have to enter the safe mode to be able to carry out the suggestions.

Uninstall Windows Updates

To remove a particular update do the following:

Updates are meant to enhance the security of your computer, it’s best not to remove an update unless you’re certain that it is causing a problem. Take these steps to be certain you want to remove an update:

• In Windows 7, click Start and the click All Programs and select Windows Update from the list of programs. In Windows 8, open the WinX menu and click open Control Panel. Now open Windows Update applet.
• From the View update history,select the update that you want to remove, and note down its KB number. I suggest you go here first as it offers some description too.

Now open the Program and Features applet of the Control Panel, and from the left side click on View Installed Updates. Right-click on the Update you wish to uninstall and click on Uninstall. The update will get installed. You may be required to reboot you computer.

It is important to mention that if you have used the Disk Cleanup Tool to delete the  Windows Update Cleanup option, then you might not be able to uninstall the Update.

Remove Windows Updates using command line

To uninstall Windows Updates using the command line, open an elevated command prompt window, type the following and hit Enter:

wusa /uninstall /kb:1234567

Here 1234567 should be the number of the Update you wish to uninstall. Here we are using the built-in WUSA or Windows Update Standalone Installer tool.

TROUBLESHOOTING SCENARIOS AND TIPS

1. A recently installed update is causing problem: If you are sure enough that recently installed update is causing the problem then only try these steps or before uninstalling it try to find information about any problems that have occurred on the computer by checking for a solution. If no solutions are available, check the Windows Update history to learn more about recently installed updates.

• Click Start and the click All Programs and select Windows Update from the list of programs.
• In the left pane, click View update history.
• To view more information about an update, double-click it.

2. You are not able to remove an update: You may face this error because you might be connected to a network where updates are managed by Group Policy. These network-wide settings can prevent you from removing an update. In other cases, you might not be able to remove an update because it applies to a security-related area of the operating system. If you think an update that you can’t remove is causing problems, contact system administrator of your organization.

3. A removed update is getting reinstalled automatically: Your computer is probably connected to a network where Group Policy settings determine which updates must be installed on each computer. These network-wide settings can reinstall any required updates that you’ve removed.

You might also have Windows set to automatically install updates, which is the recommended setting for your computer. If you don’t want Windows to install an update, you need to hide it.

• Click Start and the click All Programs and select Windows Update from the list of programs.
• In the left pane, click Check for updates.
• When Windows finds updates for your computer, do one of the following:
  • Click on important updates links if you have important updates to hide.
  • Click on optional updates links if you have optional updates to hide.
• Right-click the update you don’t want to install, and then click Hide update. The next time you check for updates, the update won’t be automatically selected or installed.

The same steps are also applied if you want to stops Windows Updates offering an update that you don’t want to install like Language packs.

4. Your Device or Hardware is not working after updating its device drivers from Windows Update: You might need to revert to a previous version of the driver for that device. Check the manufacturer’s website for a more recent version of the driver, or remove the driver and restart your computer.