Manage Windows updates with ABC-Update

ABC-Update is a free program for Microsoft Windows devices to manage and control when Windows updates are delivered to computers on a network.

The application is available in command line version and in graphical user interface version. It is free for use in commercial and non-commercial environments.

ABC-Update is compatible with all versions of Windows starting with Windows XP. It requires Microsoft .NET Framework 2.0 on the client and .NET Framework 4.5 or later for the GUI version and the Microsoft Automatic Update Service is not disabled.

Point: Sledgehammer is an alternative that works well on a single computer. If you are using Windows 10, see our guide on upgrading the Windows 10 operating system.

ABC-Update

ABC-Update was designed to deal with the growing frustration related to the default update behavior of the Windows operating system. Automatic updates and performance issues are specifically mentioned by the developers of the application.

Administrators can list, install, or uninstall updates on a scheduled or immediate basis, and configure actions after installing and logging updates.

Administrators can run the program from any location on a Windows PC. The interface displays all the relevant options on a single screen of the interface.

Administrators can select the update source at the top. ABC-Update supports WSUS and MS Update; The address and port of the WSUS server can be added if WSUS is selected.

ABC-Update supports four different actions related to the update: list missing, list, install or uninstall.

• Missing List – Lists all available updates for the particular version of Windows that are not already installed.
• List All: lists all available updates.
• Install: Install the updates.
• Uninstall: Uninstall Updates, only works if WSUS has been used to install these updates.

The application offers options to set the desired power state after installing or uninstalling the update and to indicate if the system should be rebooted if necessary .

Administrators who want even more control can configure the program to run queries for all types of updates or only for certain types. The types of updates available include critical updates, Windows 10 feature upgrades, service packs, definitions updates, and development kits.

Additional options may limit software or driver updates, or even search for updates based on articles, titles, or dates in the knowledge base.

Options to enable logging and email reporting are also provided. Administrators must add targets for the operation to the target field. A click on "this system" adds the current system to the process. ABC-Update attempts to query the Windows Active Directory domain or forest on first boot to also allow for the selection of connected devices.

However, it is not possible to add targets directly in the form field; A click on the entry opens options to select which network computers to include.

A click on Schedule starts the process. ABC-Update queries the selected update source based on the configured settings and displays the progress in a new window.

The application lists all client devices and their status in the window. You can click on any client PC to view detailed information.

If you chose to search for missing updates, you will find all the missing updates in the log next to the login and selection information.

It is recommended that you first check for updates (without installation) to learn about updates before installation.

The log lists the KB article IDs, but not links. a manual search is required to find the article pages of the knowledge base.

Closing words

ABC-Update is a powerful installer and update management program for Microsoft Windows devices. Although its main purpose is to use in networks with multiple client PCs, it can also be used on individual Windows PCs to install updates.

Now, it's your turn: Do you use a third-party program to install Windows updates?

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