How to determine if a specific KB Windows update has been applied to your computer
There may be times when troubleshooting or preparing for an upgrade to determine if a specific KB Windows Update has been applied to a computer.
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There a couple of solutions.
First use the Windows Update tool.
- Launch Windows Update
- Click on View your update history
- Search the update history to see if the desired update is installed.
Second way – Use DISM.exe.
- Launch the Command Prompt with administrative privileges.
- By typing the following command within your elevated command prompt will get a list of all updates that have been applied to your computer. Search the update history to see if the desired update is installed:
Type dism /online /get-packages
- You can check for a specific update by piping the output to FINDSTR. Typing the following command within your elevated command prompt will get a list of a specific update has been applied to your computer:
Type dism /online /get-packages | findstr KB2894856 (KB is case sensitive)
Note: (Replace the KB number with whichever update you are looking for.) If the update exists there will be a response if not a command prompt will be returned.
Third way – Use SYSTEMINFO.exe.
- Launch the Command Prompt with administrative privileges.
- By typing the following command within your elevated command prompt will get a list of all updates that have been applied to your computer. Search the update history to see if the desired update is installed:
Type SYSTEMINFO.exe
- You can check for a specific update by piping the output to FINDSTR. Typing the following command within your elevated command prompt will get a list of a specific update has been applied to your computer:
Type SYTEMINFO.exe | findstr KB2894856 (KB is case sensitive)
Note: (Replace the KB number with whichever update you are looking for.) If the update exists there will be a response if not a command prompt will be returned.
Hope this helps you determine if a specific update is installed on your computer or not.
Until next time, RIDE SAFE!
Rick Trader
Windows Server Instructor – Interface Technical Training
Phoenix, AZ
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I tried all 3 methods and all three worked, but THEY DIDN’T! I’m trying to ferret out and remove that freakin KB971033 file! I removed it before and hid the file, in order to try to prevent its re-installation. Didn’t work and it’s back badgering me about having a counterfit Windows 7 version, even though I know better. This time, though, the KB file is BURIED somethow! I see it, when I go to Windows Update and get a list of everything that was installed. It’s there and it shows the file was successfully installed 02/16/2018. (I only THOUGHT I had removed it.) When I go to “Installed Updates” so that I can try to REMOVE the update, IT’S NOT THERE! In trying the 3 versions you show for uncovering the file, NONE of them show that it is installed. But, Windows Update says it was INSTALLED and, apparently, its still alive and kicking. Any thoughts on this?
you have misspelled in
SYTEMINFO.exe | findstr KB2894856
It should be
SYSTEMINFO.exe | findstr KB2894856
thank you very much, it worked like a charm in windows server 2008 R2
Hi! We have the same problem like Buddy Shipley. We can not find the MS17-010. It’s not listed in “Programs and Features” – > Installed Updates but it’s listed as installed in “Windows Updates” -> View update History.
I cannot get this to work: dism /online /get-packages | findstr KB#######
I’ve tried with & without quotes around the KB#. I even tried searching for KB#s that I know are installed.
I’m trying to write a simple batch to run at an elevated command prompt to determine that MS17-010 is present.
dism /online /get-packages | findstr KB4012212
dism /online /get-packages | findstr KB4012213
dism /online /get-packages | findstr KB4012214
dism /online /get-packages | findstr KB4012215
dism /online /get-packages | findstr KB4012216
dism /online /get-packages | findstr KB4012217
dism /online /get-packages | findstr KB4012219
dism /online /get-packages | findstr KB4012220
dism /online /get-packages | findstr KB4012598
dism /online /get-packages | findstr KB4012606
dism /online /get-packages | findstr KB4013198
dism /online /get-packages | findstr KB4013429
dism /online /get-packages | findstr KB4015217
dism /online /get-packages | findstr KB4015438
dism /online /get-packages | findstr KB4015549
dism /online /get-packages | findstr KB4015550
dism /online /get-packages | findstr KB4015551
dism /online /get-packages | findstr KB4015551
dism /online /get-packages | findstr KB4016635
dism /online /get-packages | findstr KB4018466
dism /online /get-packages | findstr KB4019215
dism /online /get-packages | findstr KB4019216
dism /online /get-packages | findstr KB4019263
dism /online /get-packages | findstr KB4019264
dism /online /get-packages | findstr KB4019472
.
cmd line and, more specifically, findstr is not case sensitive. Great article though, the dism command worked around an issue I was having with systeminfo. Thanks!
The two command prompt methods, dism and systeminfo, did not seem to work when I tried to find an Office 2010 update. Maybe these only work for Windows System updates?
SYTEMINFO.exe
you missed s