Force Windows to install *all* missing updates

When I miss at least one cumulative update on one of my Windows 10 or Windows Server 2019 installations I often get the situation that after installing seemingly all pending updates and rebooting first the Windows Update GUI says the system is up to date but as soon as I click the check for updates button it finds a whole bunch of further updates. I can install these right away without issues but that really is annoying and time consuming and also requires a second reboot right after the first one...

Is there a way to force Windows to check for all missing updates directly and force it to install them all at once?

Hitting the check for updates button manually at first (if it even is available) or wuauclt.exe /detectnow doesn't cut it. But maybe there is a way with PowerShell or something similar?

(I'm assuming this is already answered somewhere out there but searching for it really seems hard since tons of other Windows Update topics pop up. But I'd also be grateful for any link or reference.)

Solution 1:

No you can not force all the updates at one time. Sometimes updates are applied to other updates. It is updating as far as it can in one go, rechecking for any newer updates that can now be applied and then repeating the cycle until you are caught up. The best thing to do is be updating more often so they don't accumulate.

Solution 2:

Apparently manually checking for updates can actually find extra updates that would not normally be offered to you; you used to have to install these updates, but they've since been made optional.

https://www.howtogeek.com/369656/dont-click-check-for-updates-unless-you-want-unstable-windows-10-updates/

https://www.howtogeek.com/413180/windows-10s-check-for-updates-button-just-got-safer/

Solution 3:

Some cumulative updates often include previous updates, after they've been refined and rid of all (hopefully) potential bugs and mishaps.

Generally speaking, Microsoft pushes the updates your PC needs, be it a desktop, laptop or server.

You can also check the already installed updates, and manually install those that are missing by downloading them from the catalog page on Microsoft's website.

Solution 4:

Depending on the number of missing updates I would consider 3rd party software - namely WSUS Offline. It's freeware if you are concerned.

The good part is that this software greatly lessens the pain involved with updating several systems. Simply use one computer to download ALL patches for your OS and drag the whole folder to a big enough USB-stick.

Afterwards its simply the execution of the update installer which will detect the missing ones and install all of them.