Is it possible to uninstall Windows 7 updates? Removing required updates

The article discusses ways to uninstall all updates in Windows 7 at once. Since the OS developers have not built in such a function, without third party software can't get by here.

Why are updates needed?

Anyone who hears the word “updates” for the first time will say that these are certain measures aimed at improving the product. Their task is to correct bugs and shortcomings in any program, not necessarily in Windows 7. For example, a year after the release of the application, the company decided to improve the interface and released a package of updates that the user must download and install, after which he will see these changes.

Updates in Windows 7 are usually aimed at fixing security and compatibility issues operating system with drivers and programs. This also includes software compatibility issues that require software installation. Microsoft platforms.Net Framework etc.

Unfortunately, you cannot avoid problems with updates - after a while they become irrelevant, as new ones appear to replace them. In this regard, a “dump” arises in the section with installed updates, and I’d like to have more on my hard drive free space.

There is only one solution: remove all Windows 7 updates and reinstall only the ones you need. But what if you have a thousand of them? Windows 7 does not have a function that allows you to uninstall all updates at once, so you cannot do without third-party software.

Problems that may arise during a deupdate

It is recommended to create a system restore point, since the methods discussed in this article can lead to unpleasant consequences, for example, certain programs may fail, the OS may begin to slow down, which may result in a system failure, etc. The only way to fix this is to roll back Windows 7 to the point when the updates were installed.

Not all updates will be removed, only those that do not require user action. The remaining updates will have to be uninstalled manually.

First, let's look at a simpler method that will take literally a few minutes of your time, while the second one is longer and requires certain software. All these processes will not interact in any way with the update center. Just in case, temporarily disable the search for updates to successfully complete operations.

Uninstalling Windows 7 updates via batch file

Do you know the method for removing updates via command line? So, this method simplifies it: now you won’t have to enter the command “wusa.exe/uninstall/ update number” every time - all possible updates will be automatically removed from your computer.

Let's create a file with the extension .bat (batch file). To do this, write the following code in notepad:

@echo off
color 0A
mode con: cols=40 lines=12
setlocal enabledelayedexpansion
Set templist=%TEMP%\listTMP.txt
set list=%USERPROFILE%\Desktop\uninstall_updates.cmd
echo.
echo.
echo Please wait
echo.
echo.
if exist %templist% del %templist%
if exist %list% del %list%
wmic qfe get hotfixid>>%templist%
call:1 "KB" "KB:"
echo DONE
timeout /t 3 /nobreak > nul
exit /b
for /f "tokens=1* delims=]" %%a in ("find /v /n "" ^<"%templist%"") do (
if not "%%b"=="" (set line=%%b) else (set line=not)
set newline=!line:%~1=%~2!
set newline=!newline:not=!
echo wusa.exe /uninstall /!newline!/quiet /norestart>>%list%
::set templist=%list%
goto:eof

Then save with .bat at the end of the file name, selecting “All files.” After running it, uninstall_updates.exe will appear on your desktop. To begin the update removal procedure, run it and wait for the process to complete (the command line window will automatically close).

In my case, when the program finished its work, only 90 modifications remained out of 233. We can safely say that its task was partially completed. Restart your computer to reconfigure Windows.

Uninstalling updates using Revo Uninstaller

To complete the update removal process, we need the Revo Uninstaller program. You can buy it on the developer’s website for $39 or download it somewhere, it’s up to you.

After launching Revo Uninstaller, we see a list of programs available for removal, but there are no updates here. To fix this, in the top menu, click on the “Tools” tab and select the section with parameters (Alt + O). In the navigation panel on the left, click on the “All programs” item and check the necessary settings: show system updates, show system components, click “OK” and you will notice significant changes in the list of programs - applications will appear, the name of which will contain the update number.

Select them and click “Delete”. Of course, this method requires certain actions from the user, but you do not have to manually click on each component in the Windows 7 update center.

Name Removing required updates does not fully reveal the meaning of what is described in the article, since it is not entirely clear what exactly is meant by the term “mandatory”. The material could be titled as Removing uninstallable updates, but then it is not entirely clear why they suddenly became undeletable: by the will of the developer or due to errors with the component storage. There is also an option to designate as deleting updates that are not intended to be deleted, but this is somehow redundant or something.
Just recently I discovered one curious feature of some updates: they are not removed by standard operating system tools. In practice, a situation arose in which I could not remove the “broken” update from the system. As we delved deeper into the topic of the issue, it turned out that there are different types of updates in Windows, and that the particular case of the inability to remove some of them is not at all the result of any local error, but rather reflects a feature. Apparently, this is explained by the architectural nuances of the update mechanism. In practice, it is difficult to create a system of update relationships in which each update will be completely autonomous, that is, independent of the others, and, accordingly, can be deleted without any consequences. But even more important is that some updates for the system are truly critical, since they are quite deeply integrated into it. For example, the update mechanism itself (service stack) is provided by a set of modules (installer, libraries, etc.) that are necessary for installing subsequent updates and on which the performance of the mechanism as a whole depends. Accordingly, all servicing stack updates that introduce algorithmic changes cannot be simply removed, since then some features of these algorithms that were already installed in subsequent service packs will no longer be available. Removing such updates is fraught with serious consequences for the system, such as destruction of the component store, and as a result, potential problems with the performance of the operating system itself. In fact, everything is so scary, since there are only about a dozen such mandatory (non-removable) updates, for example in the Windows 7 system :) But it’s still worth knowing about this nuance, as well as having an understanding of how exactly to perform removing required updates.

Problem

From a technician's point of view, installing and uninstalling system updates are considered trivial tasks. In our age of the global Internet, updates to the system are constantly installed, often completely unnoticed by the user. Updates are security fixes for various components, modules containing additional functionality of existing applications, as well as new software. However, along with the tasks of installing updates, there are often tasks of removing system updates. The reasons for this can be completely varied, ranging from the need to simply reinstall any of the updates to achieve correct operation and ending with the need to correct dependency problems and the integrity of the component repository.
The system provides several ways to remove updates from the system, for example through the component Windows Update, applet Installed updates. In this case, the user simply selects (marks) the update he is interested in by clicking the left mouse button and by right-clicking, opens the Delete menu, or selects the item of the same name from the top panel:

everything is trivial here. But with mandatory updates, everything is somewhat more complicated, since during similar actions we do not see the usual controls:

when trying to remove this component from the command line using the wusa utility:

wusa /uninstall /kb:2522422

the error is given: The Microsoft Windows update is required for this computer and cannot be uninstalled.

In this case, the specialist has a reasonable question: why are you doing this to me? :) The fact that the system considers some updates mandatory and does not allow them to be deleted does not at all guarantee that these updates cannot be damaged and cause various kinds of problems. Therefore, in some cases there is a need for removal. Is it possible to remove such uninstallable updates from the system?

Solution

The changes described in this section may result in the component store not working!! You perform the actions given in this section at your own peril and risk!!

Therefore, act extremely carefully, preferably making a full backup of the system or creating a restore point. The main thing is to understand why you are doing all this. If you need to correct the consequences of a crooked update, then uninstall the required update and then install it again. In a successful scenario, after uninstalling/reinstalling a non-removable update, you will be able to correct the consequences of a crooked update, but in the worst case scenario, you will render the system inoperative, since the update may turn out to be key. The result may be damage to the component store with the error STATUS_SXS_COMPONENT_STORE_CORRUPT.
At what level is it ensured that such mandatory updates are not uninstallable? At the parameter level in configuration .mum files.

Mum file (Microsoft Update Manifest) is a Windows update configuration file in XML format containing package parameters: name, identifier, installation language, dependencies, action flags, and others. Used as an identifier (symbolic name) of a service (stack) for the purpose of performing enable/disable/remove operations on a package using various service utilities (for example, the Package Manager (pkgmgr)). The manifest file contains the name of the update being served in its name and is located in the %WinDir%\servicing\Packages directory;

Msu file (Microsoft System Update/Microsoft Service Pack) is an isolated Microsoft Update package containing metadata (describing each service pack contained in the .msu file), one or more .cab files (each .cab- file contains individual update modules), .xml file (describing the update package, used by the Offline Installer Windows updates wusa.exe to perform the update installation process), a properties file (the file contains property lines that the wusa.exe utility uses.

The .mum file has a parameter called permanence that takes two values: removable and permanent. Service packs that are not desirable to be removed from the system are declared by Microsoft developers as “permanent”, while all other (regular) service packs are marked as “removable”. Therefore, the process of changing the update type from undeletable to deletable comes down to changing this parameter in the corresponding .mum file.

General algorithm of actions

At the request of readers, the algorithm of actions is presented for the widest possible audience of users, so I tried to describe the process at an accessible level.

After installing a typical system update, the corresponding .mum files are placed inside the %Windir%\servicing\Packages\ directory. Therefore, open it in C:\Windows\servicing\ and place the cursor on the Packages subdirectory.
Often there is a problem with access to objects in the %Windir%\servicing\Packages\ directory, since full access permissions are set only for the TrustedInstaller system account. Therefore, to make changes to access rights, right-click on the Packages directory, select Properties and then go to the Security tab. In the window that opens, immediately after the “Groups and Users” section, click the Edit button, then click Add, in the window that opens, write All in the input field, click Check names, select from those found, click OK, then set full rights for the newly added group. Close the window, in the main window Security, at the very bottom click the Advanced button, in the window that opens again, in the “Permissions” tab, select the newly created group (All), click the Change permissions button, then at the very bottom of the new window check the “Replace all” checkbox permissions of a child object to permissions inherited from this object", click OK everywhere, closing all windows.
We go to the Packages directory, look for the .mum file(s) related to the update to be removed. They usually have a name containing the full name of the package being sought:
Open the found file for editing:
We look for a line containing the word permanence, replacing the parameter value with permanence="removable" . In the example above, this is line number 4. Next, close the file and save the changes made.
We perform similar actions for all .mum files associated with the required non-removable update package, since some updates may have two or more .mum files associated with them.
After finishing the editing process, close all windows related to updates. In some cases, changes take effect instantly, that is, the update will become available for removal immediately after opening and re-indexing in the section

Microsoft Corporation releases update packages or patches with enviable regularity for all its creations in the form of operating systems, which seem to be designed to patch holes in the security system and improve the level of performance of the OS. Unfortunately, in Windows 7, after installing some updates, problems may occur (a black screen appears, the system slows down or completely freezes, etc.). For many users who are not familiar with the intricacies of configuring this OS, uninstalling Windows 7 updates becomes a real headache, since some packages are uninstallable. That is, standard means do not work. Next, we offer several options for consideration that allow you to remove old Windows 7 updates and recently installed updates.

Why are there problems with Windows 7 updates?

First, let's figure out why problems arise with updates and why they need to be removed. The problem here is that today there is unprecedentedly strong competition in the motherboard market, and each manufacturer is trying to bring something new to their devices. But you can’t keep track of everything. And the updates released by Microsoft are quite universal and do not take into account the specifics of a particular mother chip.

All this only leads to the fact that some updates are simply not suitable for a particular computer system, although the OS itself functions more or less normally. When problems occur, uninstalling Windows 7 updates in most cases has a positive effect on the operation of the PC or laptop. But the main thing here is to uninstall them correctly, and also take some important steps to prevent the situation from reoccurring in the future.

Removing unnecessary Windows 7 updates: standard technique

Let's digress from the main topic for now and see how you can remove updates from the system using the standard method.

Windows 7 updates are uninstalled from the installed updates section of the Update Center, which is located in the Control Panel. In principle, you can do it easier by immediately entering the programs and components section and using the appropriate item (in the previous version, when you click on view, you will still be redirected to the programs and components section).

Here you just need to select an installed package and simply run the uninstallation line through RMB. If required, all packages can be sorted by installation date (this can be useful when the exact time of occurrence of a particular glitch or error is known).

Windows 7: uninstalling updates. Command line.

But not all update packages can be uninstalled using the method described above. Some critical updates cannot be removed using standard methods. What to do in this case? The only possible and fail-safe remedy is to use a command line launched with administrator rights.

You can start it from the “Run” menu with the cmd combination, call it from the main “Start” menu, or open the executable file cmd.exe, located in the System32 directory of the root folder of the operating system, as an administrator.

Since all update packages are designated KBXXXXXXXX, where XXXXXXX is the seven-digit code of the update number, you will need to enter this number in the command console along with the main command. In general terms, the uninstall line will look like this: wusa.exe /uninstall /kbXXXXXXX. The number of the patch itself must be remembered or written down when viewing it in the installed updates section.

All the capabilities of the main command in terms of using additional attributes can be viewed by entering the line wusa /?, after which help information will appear in the console.

Batch removal of updates using a BAT file

But uninstallation in the past case applies exclusively to each individual package. If there are enough of them that you don’t have to waste time entering the command every time, you can use the batch uninstallation scheme, which, by the way, works great for those cases when it is impossible to uninstall an update using the standard method.

To do this, you will have to launch a standard Notepad, write there the lines wusa /uninstall /quiet /norestart /kb:XXXXXXX, where, again, XXXXXXX are the update numbers, and save the created file with manually assigning the extension BAT (Windows batch file) to it in current user directory (for example, c:\Users\Vasya), otherwise the file will not be able to start. After this, all that remains is to launch it by double-clicking, after which the command line will appear, and in it you will be able to see the removal process in progress. After all processes are completed, you should not restart the computer under any circumstances, although this is necessary for the changes to take effect. It will become clear why later.

Pay attention to the quiet and norestart parameters. They are necessary so that when uninstalling, confirmation for deletion is not requested for each package.

Actions after uninstalling updates

So, the removal of Windows 7 updates via the command line seems to have been completed, but it’s too early to rejoice. The essence of the subsequent problems is that if automatic update is enabled on the system, whether you want it or not, the system will still (even when rebooting after uninstallation) start looking for packages again. Thus, to prevent updates from being installed, the function must be disabled.

To do this, you should use the same “Update Center”, select the settings section, and set the preferred action to “Do not check for updates”. If updates are still needed, as a last resort, you can use the download installation with an installation offer, which you can always refuse.

Conclusion

As you can see, uninstalling Windows 7 updates is not such a troublesome task. If we approach the implementation of such actions from the point of view of rationality, of course, the best option would be to create one with all the numbers of packages to be uninstalled. But here you should pay special attention so as not to enter something unnecessary (meaning critical

Finally, as an addition, somewhat distracting from the topic, owners of some laptop models can be advised to use special buttons or menus that allow you to restore the system to its factory state with a complete reset. Naturally, all updates will also be deleted. But this will only work as a last resort.

Updates in Windows 7 are usually aimed at fixing security problems and compatibility of the operating system with drivers and programs. This also includes compatibility issues with programs that require installation of the Microsoft .Net Framework software platform, etc.

Unfortunately, you cannot avoid problems with updates - after a while they become irrelevant, as new ones appear to replace them. In this regard, a “dump” appears in the partition with installed updates, and you also want to have more free space on your hard drive.

Problems that may arise during a deupdate

It is recommended to create a system restore point, since the methods discussed in this article can lead to unpleasant consequences, for example, certain programs may fail to work, the OS may begin to “slow down,” which may result in a system crash, etc. The only way to fix this is to roll back Windows 7 to the point when the updates were installed.

Not all updates will be removed, only those that do not require user action. The remaining updates will have to be uninstalled manually.

Uninstalling Windows 7 updates via batch file

Do you know a method to remove updates via the command line? So, this method simplifies it: now you won’t have to enter the command “wusa.exe/uninstall/ update number” every time - all possible updates will be automatically removed from your computer.

Let's create a file with the extension .bat (batch file). To do this, write the following code in notepad:

@echo off
color 0A
mode con: cols=40 lines=12
setlocal enabledelayedexpansion
Set templist=%TEMP%\listTMP.txt
set list=%USERPROFILE%\Desktop\uninstall_updates.cmd

echo.
echo.
echo Please wait
echo.
echo.

if exist %templist% del %templist%
if exist %list% del %list%

wmic qfe get hotfixid>>%templist%

call:1 "KB" "KB:"
echo DONE
timeout /t 3 /nobreak > nul
exit /b

:1
for /f "tokens=1* delims=]" %%a in ("find /v /n "" ^<"%templist%"") do (
if not "%%b"=="" (set line=%%b) else (set line=not)

set newline=!line:%~1=%~2!
set newline=!newline:not=!

echo wusa.exe /uninstall /!newline!/quiet /norestart>>%list%
::set templist=%list%
goto:eof

In my case, when the program finished its work, only 90 modifications remained out of 233. We can safely say that its task was partially completed. Restart your computer to reconfigure Windows.

Uninstalling updates using Revo Uninstaller

To complete the update removal process, we need the Revo Uninstaller program. You can buy it on the developer’s website for $39 or download it somewhere, it’s up to you.

Select them and click “Delete”. Of course, this method requires certain actions from the user, but you do not have to manually click on each component in the Windows 7 update center.