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We know, updating your PC is a hassle–but it’s essential.
Plugging those holes, however, depends primarily upon you making sure things are appropriately updated.
Though you’re able to take somemeasures to prevent updates, Windows pretty much does it automatically.
So let’s get to it.
This is a bit different in Windows 7 than in later versions, so we’ll cover both here.
To access it, just hit Start, throw in “windows update” and then smack the result.
If you’d like to see more information about the available updates, pick the “Details” link.
The history shows each update, whether it was installed successfully or not, and when it happened.
The history screen has two options for helping you recover from a bad update.
If you want to uninstall one or more particular updates, hit the “Uninstall updates” link instead.
There also a few options you’re free to set governing how Windows Update works.
To find additional options, smack the “Advanced Options” link.
The Advanced Options page offers several options.
Related:What Does Defer Upgrades in Windows 10 Mean?
By default, Windows downloads and installs all updates automatically, including security updates and new features.
How long it actually defers these upgrades is not clear.
Windows Update divides updates into “important” and “optional”.
Important updates are selected for download and installation by default.
Optional updates are not selected.
To control what updates Windows installs, tap the relevant link.
The window that opens allows you to select each update you want to install.
Windows 7 also allows you to change some parameters governing how Windows installs updates.
Select an update and then snag the “Uninstall” button.
You want to confirm your other apps are updated as well.
Security software is especially important to keep updated, and most have automatic updaters for that reason.
They may still notify you, however.
One nice feature is that the app runs in the background if you want it to.
Image Credit:Ninite
Of the free options out there, Patch MY PC is the best.
Unfortunately, Patch My PC does not continuously monitor your PC.
You’ll need to run it when you want to scan your box for apps that need updating.
Note: We formerly recommended Secunia PSI as the best pick for an automatic app updater.
Unfortunately, Secunia discontinued it in April, 2018, and it no longer works.
Keep Hardware Drivers Up to Date
Hardware drivers are a special case.
And for the most part, you should just let that happen.
This is particularly true of drivers for graphics cards.
Again, graphics card drivers provide a good example.
Even seemingly simple things like mouse drivers can have extra features you might need.
But how do you keep them up to date when you’re getting them through the manufacturer?
The answer, of course, is that it depends on the manufacturer.
The software notifies me when new drivers are available, and I can install them right from the interface.
The manufacturer of your rig may also have drivers available from their website.
Some websites can even install a small tool that lets them scan your setup and identify appropriate drivers.
you could then choose which drivers you want to download and install.
However, our previous advice still applies: when possible, just let Windows Update handle your drivers.
Grab a driver update from the manufacturer only if you know you need a specific version or extra features.
We advise against using them.
Driver updating utilities aretypically useless and sometimes even harmful.
So there it is.
And it’s a vital task you should perform if you want your PC to stay safe and reliable.
