Command line switch for Windows software update package

Summary

Some Microsoft software updates use hotfix.exe or update.exe for installation.Program. These installers check the version of the Windows Service Pack and the language of the operating system, install and register software updates on the computer, and then back up the files to allow the deletion of software updates.

Using software updates in one of the above setup programs supports multiple command line switches, which can be used by administrators to deploy updates.

To determine whether the software update package released after January 26, July 2004 uses hotfix.exe or update.exe as the installer, you only need the value of "Installer engine" on the "version" tab of the "properties" dialog box of the package. For a package released before January 1, July 2004, you must decompress the package to view the installation program.

Introduction
Microsoft uses several different formats of Self-decompressed files to package software updates. These file formats can automatically run the installer included in the package. This document describes the command line switches that can be used with hotfix.exe or update.exe as the software update package of the installer. These packages are referred to as the "Windows software update package ".

For more information, clickArticleTo view the articles in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:
824684 (http://support.microsoft.com/kb/824684/) Introduction to the standard terminology used to describe Microsoft software updates

More information
To determine whether the software update package uses update.exe as the installer and the version it uses, perform the following steps: 1. Right-click the package and click "properties ".
2. Under "other version information" on the "version" tab, click "Install Program engine ". If update.exe is used, it should appear in the "value" field.
3. To determine the version, click "Installer version ". The version of the installer used in the package appears in the "value" field.
For packages released before March 13, July 2004, or the "Description" value on the "General" tab is displayed as a "self-decompressed cabinet" package, perform the following steps to determine whether they are using update.exe or hotfix.exe and the version they are using: 1. decompress the software update package to a unique Temporary Folder. For example, to extract an update package named kbarticlenumber.exe to a folder named extractedpackage on drive C, type the following command at a command prompt:
Kbarticlenumber/X: C: \ extractedpackage
2. Open the Temporary Folder where the decompressed file of the software update package is located. For example, Open c: \ extractedpackage.
3. Find the update.exe or hotfix.exe file in the Temporary Folder or subfolders.
4. To determine the version of update.exe or hotfix.exe, right-click the file and click "properties ".
5. Click the version tab and write down the value on the file version line.

Note: If the package description is "Win32 cabinet self-extracting program", the software update package is an iexpress package. For additional information about the iexpress package, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:
197147 (http://support.microsoft.com/kb/197147/) iexpress software update package command line parameters

If the package uses the. MSI or. MSP file extension, it indicates that the software update package uses Windows Installer as the installer. For more information about the command line options used by Windows Installer, visit the following Microsoft Website:
Http://msdn.microsoft.com/library/en-us/msi/setup/command_line_options.asp (http://msdn.microsoft.com/library/en-us/msi/setup/command_line_options.asp)
Hotfix.exe is used for software updates for Windows NT 4.0 and software updates contained in Windows 2000 Service Pack 3 or earlier.

For Windows 2000 Service Pack 4 and later versions, as well as software updates included in Windows XP and Windows Server 2003, update.exe is used as the installer.

Note: The iexpress or Windows installer package is used for Software Update packages of the Windows version listed in "Apply. These packages do not use hotfix.exe or update.exe as the installer.

Installation Process Overview
If you do not use the command line switch when running the Windows software update package, the hotfix.exe or update.exe installer is automatically run to install the software update. The installer performs the following operations: • installer (hotfix.exe or update.exe) to check the current service pack version. If the service pack version is earlier than the software update version but not earlier than the minimum version specified by the Software Update, and the language is the same, the installer automatically installs the software update. If the service pack version is later than the software version, the installation will not continue.
• If the software update language version does not match the operating system language, the installation will not continue.
• If no version conflict exists, hotfix.exe or update.exe will install the software update.
• The installer registers the Software Update under a registry entry below:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE \ SOFTWARE \ Microsoft \ Updates \ <operating system> \ <service pack level> \ kb <nnnnnn>
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE \ SOFTWARE \ Microsoft \ Windows NT \ CurrentVersion \ Hotfix \ q <nnnnnn>
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE \ SOFTWARE \ Microsoft \ Windows NT \ CurrentVersion \ Hotfix \ kb <nnnnnn>
• The deletion information of software updates is stored in the hidden folder named $ ntuninstallqnnnnnn $ or $ ntuninstallkbnnnnnnnn $ under % SystemRoot %.

Command line switch of update.exe Program
The following table lists the command line switches supported by different versions of the update.exe program.

The update.exe version that supports the standard switch
/Help displays the command line help. 5.3.24.3 and later support/help. To be compatible with the old version, you can use /? Switch.

/Passive unattended installation mode. No user interaction is required, but the installation status is displayed. If you need to restart the computer after the installation is complete, a dialog box appears, containing a timer warning indicating that the computer will be restarted 30 seconds later. V5.3.24.3 and later support the/Passive switch. To be compatible with the old version, you can use the/u Switch.

/Quiet Mode-same as unattended mode, but no status or error message is displayed. V5.3.24.3 and later support/quiet switch. To be compatible with the old version, you can use the/Q switch.

/After norestart is installed, do not restart the computer. V5.3.24.3 and later support the/norestart switch. To be compatible with the old version, you can use the/Z switch.

/Warnrestart a dialog box containing a timer warning indicating that the computer will restart after X seconds. (30 seconds by default ). It should be used with the/quiet or/Passive switch. 6.1.22.0 and later versions support the/warnrestart switch.
/Forcerestart restarts the computer after installation, and forces other applications to close immediately when shutdown, rather than saving open files first. V5.3.24.3 and later support the/forcerestart switch.

/Promptrestart: a dialog box is displayed, prompting you to restart the computer if necessary. Should be used with/quiet. 6.1.22.0 and later versions support the/promptrestart switch.

/Forceappsclose forces other programs to close when the computer is shut down. 5.4.15.0 and later versions support the/forceappsclose switch. To be compatible with the old version, you can use the/F switch.

/Nobackup does not detach a file from the backup. 6.1.22.0 and later versions support/nobackup. To be compatible with the old version, you can use the/n switch.

/Overwriteoem overwrites the OEM file without prompt. 6.1.22.0 and later versions support the/overwriteoem switch. To be compatible with the old version, you can use the/o switch.

/Integrate: path integrates software updates into Windows Installation source files located in the specified path. Note: path refers to the folder containing the i386 folder. 5.4.15.0 and later versions support the/integrate: path switch. To be compatible with the old version, you can use the/s switch.

/Log: path allows you to specify the location where the log file is created. 6.1.22.0 and later versions support/log switch.
/Er enable extended Error Report. All versions support the ER switch.

/Verbose enables detailed logging. Create % WinDir % \ cabbuild. log during installation to describe the file to be copied in detail. Using this switch may cause installation to slow down. V5.3.24.3 and later support the/verbose switch. To be compatible with the old version, you can use the/V Switch.

/D: path specifies the Backup Directory for Windows Service Pack Installation. : Path refers to the destination folder of the backup file. The default backup location is % systemdrive % \ $ ntservicepackuninstall $. This switch cannot be used for updates other than service pack and can only be used in installer 5.3.16.5 or later versions.

/Extract [: path] decompress the file, but the installer is not started. If ": path" is not included, you are prompted to provide the path of the target folder to which you want to decompress the file. If ": path" is included, extract the file to the specified destination folder. V5.3.24.3 and later support the/extract switch. To be compatible with the old version, you can use the/X switch.

/Hotpatch: Disable the hotfix function. Only the cold patches are installed. This is only applicable to Windows Server 2003 packages that support hotfix and can be used in versions 6.1.22.0 and later. For more information about Hotfix, see the reference section of this article to get a link to the "Inside update.exe" White Paper.

Note: • we use the same command line toggle set. You can use these toggle to deploy a package containing software updates. For more information, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:
824687 (http://support.microsoft.com/kb/824687/) command line switch for Microsoft software update package
To achieve backward compatibility, the Windows software update that implements the new standard switch name also supports the installation switch used by the earlier version of update.exe. However, we recommend that you stop using these old switches because such support may be canceled in future software updates.
• All the switches listed use a forward slash (/). To be compatible with the old version, you can also use hyphens (-) instead of forward slashes (/).
• To safely delete software updates, you should first Delete the latest software updates. For example, assume that both provisioning A and B Replace the same file or registry key, and that you first install a and then install B. To restore the system to the status before installing a, you must first uninstall B and then Uninstall. For more information about how to delete update.exe updates, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:
823836 (http://support.microsoft.com/kb/823836/) Removing Windows software updates in the wrong order may cause the operating system to stop working

Command line switch of hotfix.exe Program
The following table lists the command line switches supported by the hotfix.exe program.
Command line switch description
/F force other programs to exit upon Shutdown
/L List Installed Software Updates
/M unattended mode
/N is not a backup file.
/Q quiet mode-No user interaction required
/Y to unmount (must be used with/m or/q)
/Z does not restart the computer after installation

For how to install and delete software updates using hotfix.exe, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:
184305 (http://support.microsoft.com/kb/184305/) how to install and delete a hotfix.exe

Reference
The following White Paper discusses the package installer update.exe for Windows and Windows components:
Http://www.microsoft.com/technet/prodtechnol/windowsserver2003/deployment/winupdte.mspx