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Announcing Update Health Tools

Kay_Toma's avatar
Kay_Toma
Iron Contributor
Jul 20, 2021

Update Health Tools enable the Windows Update for Business deployment service feature for expediting Windows 10 security updates using Microsoft Endpoint Manager. Update Health Tools run a tiny component that receives the expedite command from the deployment service, enabling devices to start updating right away, faster than default or existing configured settings.

Update Health Tools are automatically deployed to devices connected to Windows Update. You can also manually deploy Update Health Tools, which is the purpose for today's post.

Before manually deploying Update Health Tools

First, if Update Health Tools have not been automatically deployed to your devices via Windows Update, please file a feedback item so we can understand why it was blocked and ensure that all eligible devices receive these important tools.

To log a feedback item, launch the Windows Feedback Hub from the Start menu or by pressing Windows + F. When asked to choose a category, select Install and Update then Downloading, installing, and configuring Windows Update.

When prompted to Add more details, ensure the checkbox to Include data about Downloading, installing, and configuring Windows Update (Default) is selected.

Manually deploying Update Health Tools

The package

The Update Health Tools package contains one Microsoft Installer each for Windows 10, versions 1809, 1909, 2004, 20H2, and 21H1. The package can be downloaded from the Microsoft Download Center.

System requirements

In order to use Update Health Tools, you will need Windows 10, version 1809, 1909, 2004, 20H2, or 21H1.

Installation instructions

  1. Select the files you would like to download, then select Next to start the download.
  2. Save the files to a folder of your choice.
  3. Use the instructions inside the Windows 10 app deployment by using Microsoft Intune document to deploy Windows 10 apps in Intune.

Related resources

For more details about using Microsoft Endpoint Manager to expedite updates, see Expedite Windows 10 quality updates in Microsoft Intune.

 

Updated Feb 02, 2023
Version 4.0

9 Comments

  • danielcart's avatar
    danielcart
    Copper Contributor

    Update Health Tools help speed up Windows 10 security updates by enabling the expedite feature via Microsoft Endpoint Manager. They're auto-deployed through Windows Update, but you can also install them manually if needed. Manual deployment involves downloading the MSI package (for supported Windows 10 versions) and deploying it via Intune. If automatic deployment fails, submit feedback through the Feedback

  • Erik Wold's avatar
    Erik Wold
    Copper Contributor

    Hi,

    In a new tenant with only AAD joined computers and with newly deployed Intune, the update health tools is not being downloaded and installed, even when manually check for updates. How is it supposed to work? Should it be detected as a needed update? I have for now downloaded and installed UHT manually but I see this is an older version (2.81) than the ones being installed on other computers in other tenants (2.84). Should the old version also autoupdate?

  • Kay_Toma's avatar
    Kay_Toma
    Iron Contributor

    Jordi_Koenderink Installing Windows Health Monitoring (WHM) does not trigger the tools to be installed from Windows Update (WU). If you've been connected to WU and receiving your quality updates from WU, you shouldn't have to do anything and the tools should already be installed. If you only recently switched to using WU for quality updates, you may want to manually trigger a scan via Windows settings to ensure your devices gets these tools.

     

    While WHM doesn't trigger the installation of the tools itself, we strongly recommend to enable WHM when using Expedite so you can receive richer reporting.

  • bdam55's avatar
    bdam55
    Iron Contributor

    Awesome, that means the easy-as-sin MSI product code detection methods that get automagically generated is all that's needed.

  • Kay_Toma's avatar
    Kay_Toma
    Iron Contributor

    bdam55 Yes, the packages that are sent via WU are the exact same! If you are an enterprise or edu SKU and get quality updates from WU or are co-managed, you should have received this package via WU without having to manually download.

     

    The downloads are provided as backups for folks who may have only just switched from config manager or were not previously received quality updates from WU and haven't received the update yet. 🙂

  • bdam55's avatar
    bdam55
    Iron Contributor

    Kay_Toma: Are the packages that come down from WU also MSI-based like the linked download? Ideally, in MEM I'd want to use detection methods that would detect the WU-delivered version.  In that way my Intune/ConfigMgr deployment is simply a back-up to WU.

  • Kay_Toma's avatar
    Kay_Toma
    Iron Contributor

    Kazzan , good catch we're updating that in the blog right now! The package is applicable to devices from 1809 all the way up to 21H1.

     

    If you're connected to WU and getting updates from WU, you *should* already have the packages on your device without having to manually deploy yourself. As a backup for customers that may have only recently switched from on-prem to WU or other reasons, we've made the package downloadable from here.

  • As I read, installer is for 1809, 1909, 2004, and 20H2. But system installer is 1809, 1909, 2004, 20H2, or 21H1.

     

    So, Kay_Toma if we have only 21H1 in environment, we do need to deploy, because they are already there. Or else?