Windows Update - Hide or Restore Hidden Updates

How to Hide or Restore Hidden Windows Updates in Windows 7 and Windows 8​

   Information

This tutorial will show you how to either hide or unhide Windows Updates to have them listed or not listed as available to install again in Windows 7 and Windows 8.

OPTION ONE

To Hide a Windows Update

1. Open the Control Panel (icons view), and click/tap on the Windows Update icon. (see screenshot below)



2. After you check for updates, click/tap on the .....update(s) is available link. (See screenshot below)

3. Right click or press and hold on a listed Windows Update that you want to hide, then click/tap on Hide Update. (See screenshot below)

4. If prompted by UAC, click/tap on Yes.

5. You will now notice that the now hidden Windows Update is grayed out. Repeat steps 3 and 4 if you want to hide another Windows Update. When done, click/tap on OK. (See screenshot below)

6. You will now see this if you do not have any unhidden Windows Updates left to install. (See screenshot below)

OPTION TWO

To Restore a Hidden Windows Update

1. Open the Control Panel (icons view), and click/tap on the Windows Update icon. (See screenshot below)

2. In the left pane, click/tap on Restore hidden updates. (See screenshot below)

3. Check all of the Windows Updates boxes that you want to restore, and click on the Restore button. (See screenshot below)

4. If prompted by UAC, then click/tap on Yes or enter the administrator's password.

5. Windows Updates will now check for updates, then your restored update(s) will now be available to be installed. (See screenshots below)
NOTE: Some updates that you try to restore might not appear in the list of updates that Windows Update offers you. This happens only when Windows Update finds a more recent update, available or already installed, that addresses the same problem as the update you tried to restore.



That's it,
Shawn

Related Tutorials

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• How to Create a "Windows Update" Shortcut in Windows 7
• How to Change the Windows Update Settings in Windows 7
• How to Enable or Disable Windows Updates from Automatically Restarting the Computer
• How to Uninstall a Windows Update in Windows 7
• How to View Windows Update History Details in Windows 7 and Windows 8
• How to Create a Installed Windows Updates Shortcut in Windows 7
• How to Create a Windows Update Troubleshoot Shortcut in Windows 7
• How to Enable or Disable Uninstalling Windows Updates in Windows 7
• How to Enable or Disable Access to Windows Updates in Windows 7
• How to Reset Windows Update in Vista, Windows 7, and Windows 8
• How to Enable or Disable the Windows Update "Who can install updates" Setting
• How to Download the Standalone MSU Installer File of a Windows Update
• How to Extract a Windows Update
• How to Check for and Install Windows Updates in Windows 8

 

[UsernameIssues]

I did both having seen the new reg key created as well as the upgrade policy disabled. The KB3035583 update is the one to hide for the Get 10 app once that shows up in the Optional updates on most systems. Right click on it to select hide and that won't reappear on you.

You cannot hide an update. You can only hide a version of an update. If a new version is issued, it might show up for you. There have been 6 versions of KB3035583

https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/kb/3035583

Article ID: 3035583 - Last Review: 10/05/2015 16:45:00 - Revision: 6.0

 

[Night Hawk]

It just doesn't sit well with me when something I pay for with my hard earned money can be dictated to be used by the manufacturer in deciding what I can and cannot do with it .

If you rent a place to live, there are a number of things that you cannot legally do to/with the rental property.

When you "buy" an operating system from Microsoft, you are buying a license to use the OS. You don't own the OS and the license agreement comes with restrictions on what you can and cannot do to/with the OS.

I'm not defending MS. I'm just offering an analogy other than your Ford one.

Commercially you can't alter anything for sure! But experienced programmers will manage to tweak things? on their own regardless of the EULA on their own machines. MS can't control or actually say anything about that since they do not own the hardwares! Their concern has to remain with the things that do violate the terms of the licensing.

I did both having seen the new reg key created as well as the upgrade policy disabled. The KB3035583 update is the one to hide for the Get 10 app once that shows up in the Optional updates on most systems. Right click on it to select hide and that won't reappear on you.

You cannot hide an update. You can only hide a version of an update. If a new version is issued, it might show up for you. There have been 6 versions of KB3035583

https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/kb/3035583

Article ID: 3035583 - Last Review: 10/05/2015 16:45:00 - Revision: 6.0

It comes as no surprise actually! The number remains the same while the core element sees a slight change to allow it to simply arrive mixed in with the rest. So far I have only run into the first seeing the 10 app put on back in late June and suspect then and not in July and just this past week.

The second failed upgrade by 10 app was obviously an MS server's recall of the first when I knew the reserved copy would fail here after 10 was already on and I had added in two new larger storage drives to replace the first pair of which one was failing. That was the monkey wrench tossed into the works as far as seeing any automatic replacement of 7!

The page there is a good one however since I will be passing that along for others to see. The one thing I so far have yet to see would be the "Upgrade to Windows 10" item found in the Optional updates list already checked off which has been stirring the 10 controversy a bit from people not wanting but ending up seeing the upgrade take place when not fully understanding how MS is bringing 10 in! Some likely thought it was simply another service pack and clicked to find out otherwise!

 

[UsernameIssues]

I don't want to take this tutorial thread to far into W10, but I think that there should be one or more registry settings that would prevent W10 from being installed while allowing all updates to be applied (e.g not be hidden over and over). Perhaps one of these will work for all versions of Windows 7:

Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00

[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\GWX]
"DisableGWX"=dword:00000001

[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\WindowsUpdate\OSUpgrade]
"AllowOSUpgrade"=dword:00000000
"ReservationsAllowed"=dword:00000000

[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\WindowsUpdate]
"DisableOSUpgrade"=dword:00000001

 

[Night Hawk]

I copied and pasted that into a new NotePad file named "Windows 10 Block" with the "reg" file extension to see that merged with the 7 registry here easy enough. The updates setting to never check as well as having an additional storage drive plugged in however will cause any upgrade install attempt to fail.

The 10 installer gets confused on where to put boot files and temp install folders resulting in a failed upgrade! I wouldn't worry too much about any of this however as even if the upgrade does take place before MS fixes? their goof? it can be reverted back or if caught during the upgrade easily sabotaged even with a hard boot if necessary. Generally to finish the set up that would still require some user interaction or see the upgrade canceled out.

The main goal however for hiding and unhiding updates has always been more about problematic updates where when something goes on the existing Windows installation bugs out on you until the update is later removed. Once a system is corrected the update can then be unhidden for a normal install. That happens when a Windows Defender update interferes with the av program in some cases someone has on when the WD itself failed to go into it's own form of hibernation until no av program is present.

 

[ICIT2LOL]

Yes I know what you mean mate but although as Night Hawk says the authorities can tap in any time they like I don't like the idea that Microsoft can do what they like if they so wish to do so - surely my data is MY business no one else's or otherwise I might just as well broadcast to the whole world what I ma doing and hey while I ma at it throw the AV stuff away.

I just think Microsoft have become so greedy and hell bent on a power trip that only they can control and it leaves me no choice to keep my own private matters to myself. I am the very wrong person to tell what to do and when to do it and how to do it.
Windows in my mind is slowly becoming Big Brother No2 and I for one don't like it. If their intentions and only IF are to stop counterfeiting their product then it would be ok but does it or would it stop there??
Ok a bit like the farmer who grows the chicken then wants to know how I cook and eat it and if I don't bend to his rules then I am stopped from doing it my way or prosecuted for it.

I am sorry for ranting but it seems to me that there are loads of people defending what Microsoft is doing either in the futile belief that they can do nothing about it or don't want to or couldn't care less.:huh:

 

[Night Hawk]

Well by the direction MS has been taking you can tell BG is no longer running the show! He had stepped down as the CEO some years back with Steve Balmer taking the reins. Shortly after you saw 8 with Metro arrive and features being stripped out of Windows to the urk of many who obviously provided some negative feedback in addition to the authors who became the critics.

Now the new method for delivery in itself is actually intrusive since 10 has arrived to many as what appears to be just another "Optional" update but arrives already checked off ready to install?!That in itself was going to be a tough and go trial for MS since as suspected it did back fire on them! Now they have to set things straight.

 

[ICIT2LOL]

Well by the direction MS has been taking you can tell BG is no longer running the show! He had stepped down as the CEO some years back with Steve Balmer taking the reins. Shortly after you saw 8 with Metro arrive and features being stripped out of Windows to the urk of many who obviously provided some negative feedback in addition to the authors who became the critics.

Now the new method for delivery in itself is actually intrusive since 10 has arrived to many as what appears to be just another "Optional" update but arrives already checked off ready to install?!That in itself was going to be a tough and go trial for MS since as suspected it did back fire on them! Now they have to set things straight.

Couldn't agree more mate it is going to the pack in my mind. WE have such a simple and easy to use system in 7 and they have got it going sideways in more ways than one.
I wonder where they find these "brilliant" people:sarc:

 

[Night Hawk]

The problem is more with the new marketing strategy over the engineering aspects. "yeah we can find a way to get 10 on more machines alright! Just give us some space to work." was likely some quick brainstorm someone in marketing suggested to the engineering dept. "Under the Table of course" to keep MS from being liable by simply saying when caught "we made a goober we will now have to correct!" while that wasn't any goober?!

For the most part the only updates that would normally be checked off would fall under "Important" and when there's a good number to play catch up on you may find several not even checked off going by date of release since those may need others installed first. You would see typically with NetFramework when some program needed 2.0 and you already had 3.51 or something else newer on. You would have to remove the latest to see the early bird then installed in sequence.