How (and why) to roll back Windows updates on your computer

Updates for newer versions of Windows are often downloaded in the background and installed automatically the next time you reboot. This is usually a good thing: the system remains up to date, security holes are closed, or practically new features and functions are added – as recently happened with Windows 11 24 hours a day.

However, sometimes this is not a good thing at all: sometimes the system cannot update, updates are not downloaded completely or are even initially incorrect. This happened recently with Windows update KB5043145. Instead of exciting new features and optimizations, some users only saw the dreaded Blue Screen of Death (BSOD).

If you’re having problems with a Windows update, you should first remove the problematic “update” from your system. Microsoft often quickly resolves such problems and the dilemma is resolved with the release of the next Windows update (update to update, so to speak). Until then, you can continue to use the “old” version of Windows without problems and without much risk.

We present various methods to reset Windows update in just a few steps.

Before resetting: Review this checklist first.

To rule out underlying issues and conflicts, you should go through this checklist in case of update problems:

• Make sure there is enough space on your system hard drive for updates.
• Reboot your system to see if updates can install correctly.
• If necessary, run Windows Update again.
• Disconnect external hardware, such as disks or storage media, that are not required for system operation.
• Check Device Manager to see if any conflicts or errors are reported.
• Make sure that no virus or malware scanners are blocking the update. Such programs may need to be temporarily removed.
• Check if Windows Update is activated: Click Start and type Services.msc. Click on the first item (“Services”) and find “Windows Update” at the bottom of the list. The startup type must be set to “manual”; this can be configured by right-clicking and selecting Properties.

If these steps are unsuccessful, you can reset or restore Windows updates as follows.

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Microsoft is also aware that its own updates sometimes interfere with the operating system. Therefore, modern versions of Windows come with tools to troubleshoot update problems or reset updates.

The simplest method is to troubleshoot Windows update, which can be accessed in different ways depending on the operating system.

On Windows 11: Go to “Other troubleshooting tools” by using Start > Settings > System > Troubleshooting.. There, you will find a Run command next to the Windows Update entry, which you can use to run the troubleshooter. Then it is recommended to reboot the system.

On Windows 10: Go to Troubleshoot via Start > Settings > Update & Security. Alternatively, click Start and type troubleshooting and select the first entry “Troubleshoot Settings”. In both cases, at the bottom there is an entry “Advanced troubleshooting”, which we now select. On the left side of the next window, you will find a “Windows Update” box, which when clicked opens the “Run the troubleshooter” option. Click on it and wait for the system to complete analyzing and, if necessary, correcting the error, and then restart.

Option 2: Use a system restore point.

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Windows regularly creates restore points (unless you manually prevent this process) that can be used to restore the system to a previous state. This can help with problems with updates, as well as many other troubles with the OS, without losing any data or settings. Users can also set such restore points manually.

How to activate a restore point:

1. Click Start and enter restore point there. The first hit should now be “Create a restore point”, click on entry.
2. In the window that opens (tab: “System Protection”), select the “System Restore…” field (see image).
3. Click “Next» in a new window.

• Windows will display a list of available restore points, select the entry you want. Tip: You can use the Scan for Affected Programs command to check in advance which components are affected by the restore.
• Confirm your choice and click Next and Finish. You may need to confirm a security notice. The system will now be reset to the restore point configuration and restarted.

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Some software problems can only be solved with additional software: Resetting Windows Update ToolFor example. You can download the free, open source program as a portable version (archive) from the following link. After downloading:

• Unzip the tool to a folder of your choice.
• Run “wureset.exe” with administrator rights. (Right click and command “Run as administrator”).
• Select the program language.
• In the next step, select “Repair Windows Update components.”» (usually “2” and ENTER).
• The process may take several minutes. Updates should work again.

Option 4: Install updates manually yourself.

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If Windows automatic update fails due to an update, sometimes you can help manually and download and install the appropriate update yourself. For example, after resetting to an old restore point, you can also download important updates without having to use Windows Automatic Update to get the problematic update you actually want to reset again.

However, to do this you need to know the identifier (KB number) of the update. Tip: New update IDs will often appear in Windows Update before they are installed. Just type “Check for updates” in the “Start” section and select the entry of the same name. If you can’t find the relevant update there, you can also find it under “Show update history” and view all previous updates along with their names.

• Then visit Microsoft Update Catalog and enter the KB ID in the search field.
• Download the affected update yourself.
• Run the update in your downloads folder.

Option 5: Manual reset and restart update services.

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We can use the command line to stop and restart the update services. This method cannot be used to reset updates, but you can help the operating system if it fails to update. Proceed as follows:

• Click Start and enter cmd.
• Right-click on the top “Command Prompt” entry to run the prompt as an administrator.
• Then enter these commands one by one:

pure stop bits
clean stop wuauserv
Dism.exe /online/Cleanup-Image/StartComponentCleanupsfc/scannow
clean start bits
clean start wuauserv

This will stop and restart the two services BITS (Intelligent Background Transfer Service) and Wuauserv (Windows Update Automatic Update Service). Now you can try installing the problematic update again.

If all else fails: Reinstall the system

If all the steps listed here do not achieve the desired success, you may want to consider reinstalling Windows. Since this can result in the loss of many settings and some data, this should only be done as a last resort: for example, if the system no longer works (correctly) after an update and you don’t want or can’t wait for a fix from Microsoft.