Patch Tuesday

Patch Tuesday[1] (also known as Update Tuesday[1][2]) is an unofficial term used to refer to when Microsoft, Adobe, Oracle and others regularly release software patches for their software products.[3] It is widely referred to in this way by the industry.[4][5][6] Microsoft formalized Patch Tuesday in October 2003.[1][7] Patch Tuesday is known within Microsoft also as the "B" release, to distinguish it from the "C" and "D" releases that occur in the third and fourth weeks of the month, respectively.[1]

Patch Tuesday occurs on the second Tuesday of each month[8]. Critical security updates are occasionally released outside of the normal Patch Tuesday cycle; these are known as "Out-of-band" releases. As far as the integrated Windows Update (WU) function is concerned, Patch Tuesday begins at 10:00 a.m. Pacific Time.[9] Vulnerability information is immediately available in the Security Update Guide. The updates show up in Download Center before they are added to WU, and the KB articles are unlocked later.

Daily updates consist of malware database refreshes for Microsoft Defender and Microsoft Security Essentials, these updates are not part of the normal Patch Tuesday release cycle.

  1. ^ a b c d Wilcox, John (2018). "Windows 10 update servicing cadence". Microsoft.
  2. ^ "August updates for Windows 8.1 and Windows Server 2012 R2". Windows Experience Blog. Retrieved 25 November 2015.
  3. ^ "April 2020 Patch Tuesday: Microsoft fixes three actively exploited vulnerabilities". Help Net Security. 2020-04-14. Retrieved 2020-10-12.
  4. ^ "Microsoft Patch Tuesday to target Windows, IE". CNet. October 10, 2011. Retrieved November 9, 2011.
  5. ^ ".NET Framework 1.1 Servicing Releases on Windows Update for 64-bit Systems". Microsoft. March 28, 2006. Archived from the original on March 27, 2012. Retrieved November 8, 2011.
  6. ^ "Understanding Windows automatic updating". Microsoft — Understanding Windows — Get Help. Retrieved July 3, 2014.
  7. ^ Budd, Christopher. "Ten Years of Patch Tuesdays: Why It's Time to Move On". GeekWire. Retrieved 28 July 2015.
  8. ^ "When does Microsoft release security updates". Microsoft MSRC.
  9. ^ "Patch Tuesday updates to Windows and Office: What you need to know". Hewlett Packard Enterprise. Retrieved 15 February 2022.