Microsoft to Reduce the Number of Windows 10/11 Cumulative Updates During the December Holiday Season

As is customary every December, Microsoft will be reducing the number of cumulative updates for Windows 10/11. This year is no exception, with Microsoft planning to pause the release of optional updates during December. However, security updates will continue to be issued.

Security updates, aimed at fixing various security vulnerabilities, are usually released on the second Tuesday of each month, thus earning the nickname "Patch Tuesday."

Non-security/optional updates, which do not include vulnerability fixes and mainly consist of pre-released fixes for known issues being tested by Microsoft, will be paused in December.

Nevertheless, Microsoft is expected to continue rolling out C and D type non-security updates for testing purposes at the end of November, which will then be incorporated into the stable B type update scheduled for release on December 10.

Non-security updates scheduled for early December and the end of December will be halted, with the update cycle resuming after the Western Christmas holiday period in January. This hiatus may actually be beneficial for users, as some non-security updates can introduce new issues and detract from the user experience.

Lastly, today Microsoft has already dispatched the November 2024 cumulative updates for supported versions of Windows 10/11, addressing several critical security vulnerabilities and some known issues.

These routine cumulative updates are set to install automatically, unless users have explicitly paused updates. After the updates are downloaded and installed, the system will prompt a restart to complete the installation process.