Feature updates change your Windows 11 version; monthly security updates keep the version you already have current with security and quality fixes. Microsoft plans Windows 11 feature updates annually, in the second half of the year. Monthly security updates typically arrive on the second Tuesday, though other update releases can happen off schedule. Not every new feature waits for an annual release: Windows 11 can also receive features through monthly servicing.
What each update changes
| Question | Feature update | Monthly security update |
|---|---|---|
| Main purpose | Introduces a new Windows version with features and enhancements. | Provides cumulative security and nonsecurity fixes for the installed version. |
| Does the Windows version change? | Yes. It moves the device to a new feature version. | No. It services the version already installed. |
| Usual timing | Once a year, in the second half of the calendar year. | Typically the second Tuesday of each month. |
| Why it matters | Begins that version’s support lifecycle. | Keeps that version current with available security and quality fixes. |
The distinction is about each release’s main purpose—not “features versus security only.” Microsoft says monthly security releases can include nonsecurity content, and feature updates typically include previously released fixes as well as new features. Microsoft’s Windows client release-cycle overview describes both release types.
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When updates arrive—and what the names mean
Monthly security updates
The regular monthly security release is commonly called Patch Tuesday or Update Tuesday. Administrators may also see terms such as “B week,” “quality update,” “security update” and “latest cumulative update” (LCU). Microsoft says these releases typically arrive on the second Tuesday of the month, often around 10 a.m. Pacific time, but that is not a guarantee: updates may be released at other times.
Optional previews and urgent releases
An optional nonsecurity preview typically arrives in the fourth week of the month. It gives users and organizations an early opportunity to test nonsecurity fixes or features that may be included in the following month’s release. It is separate from the regular monthly security update, and installing it is optional.
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Microsoft can also publish an out-of-band update when an issue needs a fix before the next scheduled release. These releases are issued as needed, rather than on a regular monthly date. Microsoft explains these release types in its release-cycle documentation.
Annual feature updates
Microsoft’s stated cadence is one feature update in the second half of each calendar year. The exact availability date varies by release. A feature update changes the Windows version and starts that version’s support lifecycle; it is not simply another name for the monthly cumulative update.
Why a monthly update can include features
Windows 11 uses what Microsoft calls continuous innovation: since version 22H2, features and enhancements may arrive through familiar monthly servicing channels between annual feature updates. Some may first appear in an optional preview and later be included in a monthly security release. That means a visible change in Windows does not necessarily mean the device has moved to a new Windows version.
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How cumulative updates work
A monthly security update is cumulative: the latest release includes new fixes along with previously released security fixes for that Windows version. It may also include nonsecurity content that appeared in the previous month’s optional preview. In practical terms, installing the latest cumulative quality update for a particular feature version is intended to bring that version up to date with the fixes available for it.
Beginning with Windows 11 version 24H2, Microsoft may issue checkpoint cumulative updates. Windows Update and Windows Server Update Services (WSUS) clients can still install the latest monthly update through their normal update process; checkpoint updates do not require a different routine from those clients. See Microsoft’s Windows update deployment guidance for details.
Can you delay an update?
For home users
Windows Update offers update controls, but the available options and eligibility can vary by device and update. A monthly security update is the regular route for receiving security fixes, so delaying it also delays those fixes. Optional preview releases are not required to receive the regular monthly security release.
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Organizations can use update policies to defer or pause deployments and roll them out in stages. Microsoft’s policy documentation says pausing a feature update still allows quality updates to be offered, so an organization can hold back a version change while continuing security servicing. A limited pilot group can help administrators identify issues before broader deployment. See Microsoft’s update policy documentation for the relevant controls.
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Check your Windows version and support deadline
Support depends on both the Windows version and the edition—such as Home, Pro, Enterprise or Education. Microsoft’s general summary gives Home and Pro 24 months of support from general availability, and Enterprise and Education 36 months. That summary does not cover every special servicing option, so use the release-specific entry for your edition rather than relying on the broad duration alone.
For a dated example, Microsoft’s release-information table listed Windows 11 version 26H2 as available on September 29, 2026. As of October 4, 2026, it listed version 24H2 updates ending October 13, 2026 for Home and Pro, and October 12, 2027 for Enterprise and Education. These are edition-specific dates, not universal Windows 11 deadlines; check the live Windows 11 release information table for the current status of your version and edition.
What happens while an update installs
Microsoft describes the update process in four phases: scan, download, install and commit/restart. A restart usually completes an update, although not every update requires one. Feature-update downloads may occur in multiple sequential phases. For more detail, see Microsoft’s Windows update process guide.
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