Criteria Options
/criteria "query string"
Overrides the default search criteria used to query Windows Update or WSUS. The default — when no /criteria is specified — is:
IsInstalled=0 and Type='Software'
Note: drivers are excluded from the default search.
If an invalid criteria string is provided, WuInstall prints Invalid criteria! and exits with code 4. Valid criteria are confirmed in the output before the search runs:
Searching for updates ... Criteria: IsInstalled=1
Example — express update (equivalent to the Windows Update site's default behavior):
wuinstall /search /bypass_wsus /criteria "IsHidden=0 and IsInstalled=0 and IsAssigned=1"
For full criteria query syntax, refer to the MSDN IUpdateSearcher documentation.
Criteria Shorthand Switches
For common search scopes, WuInstall provides dedicated switches as alternatives to writing out the full criteria string:
Switch | Equivalent Criteria | Description |
/driveronly | IsInstalled=0 and Type='Driver' | Pending drivers only |
/includedriver | (Type='Software' and IsInstalled=0) or (Type='Driver' and IsInstalled=0) | Pending software and drivers |
/alltypes | IsInstalled=0 | All pending updates regardless of type |
Last updated on January 3, 2024