Technical issues

How to use WuInstall?

WuInstall is a command line tool, so you have to run "cmd" to get to the command line. If you double click on WuInstall, you only get a window showing a short description of the parameters. We recommend to run WuInstall as administrator to avoid troubles with access rights.

Basically, you can do three things with WuInstall:

Searching for updates: WuInstall /search
→ searches for all available updates, either (if configured) on the internal WSUS or in the internet on the Microsoft Update Server and gives a list of the updates found
Downloading updates: WuInstall /download
→ does a search like /search and in addition downloads the updates found
Installing updates: WuInstall /install
→ does a search first, then it downloads and finally installs the updates found

There are several options for selecting not all, but only specific updates: /severity, /match, /nomatch, /matchfile, /nomatchfile, /classification, /product, /criteria

Beyond that, there are some other very useful options:

/bypass_wsus: switches the WSUS off while executing WuInstall, to force going for the Microsoft Update Server in the internet
/autoaccapteula: automatically accepts EULAs for all updates which have to be installed → no user interaction required
/reboot [nseconds]: after executing WuInstall, the system is rebooted after n seconds

For more information, see also the WuInstall HowTos

How to get "Important" updates only?

To get the same updates as you get when selected "Important" updates on the windows update page, please try the following criteria option:

wuinstall /search /criteria "IsHidden=0 and IsInstalled=0 and IsAssigned=1"

How do I call WuInstall on a remote machine using psexec?

Use the following command:

 psexec \\server -c -s

-u domain\administrator -p password \\share\path_to_wuinstall\WUInstall.exe /search

\\server → the remote Windows machine
\\share\path_to_wuinstall\ → path to WuInstall executable
-u domain\administrator → local admin or domain admin user on the machine \\server
-p password → password of the user
-c → copies WuInstall on the remote system
-s → executes the command (wuinstall.exe) on the local system

How to use WuInstall with a proxy server?

When using a proxy, which needs authentication, the user who executes WuInstall has to have the right to access the internet via the proxy.
When using a WSUS via proxy, the WSUS should be in the proxy exception list

Does windows reboot automatically after WuInstall installed updates which need to reboot the machine?

No!

But WuInstall returns a status code, which indicates whether a reboot would be necessary or not.

There is also the /reboot-option in WuInstall (it can be used in combination with all other options). It reboots Windows, after executing WuInstall, in any case.

WuInstall /reboot

just reboots the system, without doing anything else.

How does the /criteria option work?

For a detailed description of the query strings see MSDN

Some common examples:

```
 WuInstall /search /criteria "IsInstalled=0 and Type='Software'": 
```
searches updates of the type software, which are not yet installed (default-setting when the /criteria option is not specified)
```
 WuInstall /search /criteria "IsInstalled=1": 
```
searches all updates, which are already installed on the machine (here, the options /install or /download are obviously not applicable, they will have no effect)

Why are updates marked as hidden also installed?

The default criteria option (see above) includes hidden and non-hidden updates. If you add “IsHidden=0” then the updates you marked as hidden will be skipped. An example would be: WuInstall /install /criteria "IsInstalled=0 and Type='Software' and IsHidden=0"

Where does WuInstall download the updates?

The file location where WuInstall downloads the updates depends on your Windows Version and System Configuration. It is the same directory the "ordinary" Windows Update uses as well.

Usually, this directory is Windows\SoftwareDistribution\Download

Does WuInstall work with Windows 7?

Yes, WuInstall has been tested with Windows 7, 32-bit and 64-bit, and it works just as well as with all other Windows versions. We recommend to run WuInstall as administrator to avoid troubles with access rights.

Does WuInstall work with Windows 10?

Yes, WuInstall has been tested with Windows 10 32-bit and 64-bit, and it works just as well as with all other Windows versions. We recommend to run WuInstall as administrator to avoid troubles with access rights.

Does WuInstall work with Windows 11?

Yes, WuInstall has been tested with Windows 11 32-bit and 64-bit, and it works just as well as with all other Windows versions. We recommend to run WuInstall as administrator to avoid troubles with access rights.

Does WuInstall work with Windows Server 2008-2022?

Yes, WuInstall has been tested with Windows 2008-2022 32-bit and 64-bit, and it works just as well as with all other Windows versions. We recommend to run WuInstall as administrator to avoid troubles with access rights.

What is the advantage of Wuinstall over other solutions?

The biggest advantage over Powershell or other third party solutions is that Wuinstall has no dependencies on external DLLs, frameworks or Powershell library, so the .exe file can be used standalone.

WuInstall has no GUI, what can I do?

If you are looking for a GUI tool we recommend our cloud based update tool XEOX (https://xeox.com).

How to search for special updates or how to use Regular Expressions for /match /nomatch?

If you want to select special updates by using regular expressions (e.g for the switches /match or /nomatch), then have a look at the following URL for Perl - Style regular expressions: http://www.cs.tut.fi/~jkorpela/perl/regexp.html.

Example:

WUInstall /install /nomatch "(Internet Explorer).*8 ":

Installs all updates except the ones for the Internet Explorer 8.

Is it possible to deploy IE8 without user interaction using WuInstall?

With this command, you should get the absolute minimum of user interaction (=none) when installing IE 8:

 wuinstall.exe /install /autoaccepteula /match "Internet Explorer 8"

/disable_ie_firstruncustomize /quiet /disableprompt

/install ... installs the update
/match "Internet Explorer 8" ... Filters only for updates with title matching "Internet Explorer 8"
/autoaccepteula ... Accepts any EULAs automatically (suppress user interaction on that)
/disable_ie_firstruncustomize ... Disables the Internet Explorer 8 set up dialog.
/quiet ... The update-installer is forced to do an installation without user interaction
/disableprompt ... Disable showing source prompts to a user when installing the updates

Why does WuInstall crash/generate failures during the download or installation of updates?

Are you using the show_progress option? This feature is not recommend for common usage. Under certain circumstances, on some machines, it might cause problems.

It is only intended for manual testing on single machines. Please, try it without this option.

WuInstall doesn't install updates properly when starting with "run as administrator", why?

When using Windows XP it might cause problems using the "run as" command together with WuInstall. To prevent this you should use the /quiet and /disableprompt option on the end of your command.

Windows 7 Service Pack 1 installation fails, why?

Do you use the option /quiet when executing WuInstall? The installation of Windows 7 Service Pack 1 with the option /quiet could cause some error. Please try to execute WuInstall without /quiet.

Installation of updates with WuInstall does not work on my Windows XP machine, why?

If you get unexplainable errors (like for example 0x80240022 - WU_E_ALL_UPDATES_FAILED) installing updates with WuInstall on Windows XP - even though running it with admin rights - try the following workaround:

If you are using the educational version, download the fully functional Trial Version of WuInstall Pro.

Then just add the parameters /quiet /disableprompt to your WuInstall call - this should fix the issue.

Also take a look at this faq.

Does WuInstall work with Windows 8,10,11 / Server 2008,2012,2016,2019,2022?

WuInstall 2.0 is optimized and certified for Windows 11 / Server 2022, but compatible with all Windows Versions. Therefore we highly recommend all users of WuInstall 1.x to upgrade to WuInstall 2.0.

Does Wuinstall send data to the Internet or the cloud?

No, WuInstall does not send data to the Internet or the cloud. It only calls the WUAPI functions of Windows. These then establish a connection to the Microsoft Update Server if no WSUS is available.

Where is the license stored or do I update the license?

The license is coded into the Wuinstall.exe file, you just need to update the Wuinstall.exe file

Error codes

WuInstall exits with error code 0x80072EFD, why?

This error usually indicates a connection problem. There is no connection to the WSUS or to the Windows Update Server. Probably, the WSUS - address is just configured incorrectly or there are proxy problems.

See also http://support.microsoft.com/kb/836941/en-us

WuInstall exits with error code 0x8024400A, why?

This Problem sometimes occurs with new Windows XP SP 3 Machines, when the Windows Update Agent is not properly installed. Just download according to http://support.microsoft.com/kb/949104 the latest Version of the Windows Update Agent and install it.

WuInstall exits with error code 0x80240044, why?

This error code occurs when administrator privileges are necessary to perform the wanted operation. Make sure that you run WuInstall with an administrator user.

For further information about error codes see please Error Codes.

WuInstall PRO Licensing

How is the WuInstall license price calculated?

You can calculate the price of your WuInstall license using the license calculator. The price depends on the number of machines, which you want to patch within your organization using WuInstall.

This is the current price model:

max. 100 machines: USD 449 – WuInstall PRO Basic
max. 250 machines: USD 679 – WuInstall PRO Small
max. 500 machines: USD 1090 – WuInstall PRO Medium
max. 1000 machines: USD 1690 – WuInstall PRO Large
max. 2000 machines: USD 2790 – WuInstall PRO Corporate
max. 4000 machines: USD 4890 – WuInstall PRO Enterprise
more than 4000 machines: Please contact us at wuinstall@hs2n.at for an individual offer.

The prices above are yearly subscription fees. The license is always valid for one year from the date the subscription fee was paid.

For educational organizations (schools, universities, ...) the price of WuInstall PRO Basic applies, regardless of the number of servers or workstations.

How do I get updates of WuInstall PRO?

You can get the latest WuInstall 1.x version by dropping an email to support@wuinstall.com. All WuInstall 2.0 customers have access to a customer portal, where they can download the latest version of WuInstall 2.0 at any time.

How long is the WuInstall license valid?

The WuInstall license is valid for the licensed number of machines for one year from the date the subscription fee was paid.

How does licensing work if I am a IT service company and want to provide WuInstall to my customers?

If you are doing the patching as a service to your customers and WuInstall is also not used any more if they are not serviced by you any more, it is fine if you buy the WuInstall subscription for your company and use it on the machines of your customers, just count the number of machines of all your customers.

If the customers are doing the patching themselves and you are just providing them with the software (reselling it to them), then each customer needs a separate license, but you can contact us for a reseller discount!

How to calculate licenses if I only use WuInstall once per machine (e.g. for initial setup)?

If you a computer repair company or deliver pre-installed clients to your customers and are using WuInstall on every delivered machine just once, just take the average number of patched machines per month (or patched machines per year divided by 12) to calculate the number of machines to be licensed for your subscription.