Microsoft Releases Hotpatching for Windows 11 Updates

Microsoft has begun rolling out the long-awaited hotpatch update for security updates on Windows 11 Enterprise 24H2 and Microsoft 365 Preview Builds. Once installed, users will be able to download and install the security patches through Windows Updates, without needing to reboot their device for them to become active. 🔄

Hotpatch updates are specific and provide a complete set of patches. security of the operating system. No additional features are included," he explains. Microsoft. “They are unique in that they take effect immediately upon installation without requiring a device reboot, helping to ensure fast and targeted protection.” 🛡️

The updates HotPatch updates were available in Windows Server 2022 Datacenter: Azure Edition since February 2022, and now also in Windows Server 2025. They are proving to be more than just a quality of life improvement, reducing system downtime per reboot required to apply security patches.

Hotpatching update the code in memory with the update, thus avoiding the need to reboot the system. This method also has other advantages, as mentioned Microsoft:

• Fewer binaries mean that updates install faster and consume less disk resources and CPU.
• Less impact on workload with less need to reboot the machine.
• Better protection, as Hotpatch update packages are geared towards security updates Windows, which install faster without requiring a reboot.
• Reduces time exposed to risks of security and change windows, as well as facilitating patch orchestration with Azure Update Manager.

Hotpatching is incredibly useful for commercial workloads, since hotpatching patches are security are required regularly, some more urgently than others. Thus, users no longer need to plan an update for a critical patch and coordinate a reboot for complex servers and clusters that use these operating systems. Microsoft also uses hotpatching for its clusters, such as the grid from Xbox. 🎮

We inform that Microsoft I was testing hotpatching internally a few months ago, with the goal of deploying it to 22H2 and Arm64-based devices, which will be delayed for a full year.

There are limitations to hotpatching, as it only works for patches of security. This means that Cumulative Updates, which are rolled out during the first month of each quarter, will require a restart. It is worth noting that for Windows For Windows Server 2022 and 2025, hotpatching does not include non-security updates for Windows, .NET updates, or non-Windows patches such as firmware, driver, and software updates. software, which will likely be the case with Windows 11 Enterprise and Windows 365 as well.

The editions of Windows 11 Enterprise forms part of the Windows Enterprise subscription, which includes Enterprise E3, Enterprise E5, and Microsoft 365 Enterprise plans. Those who have subscribed to this plan will need a Windows 365 Enterprise license. Windows 11 Pro. Windows 11 Enterprise includes more features, such as Azure Virtual Desktop, Credential Guard, Direct Access, Universal Print and others. Pro and Enterprise versions are designed for business users but with specific purposes. 💼

You might expect hotpatching to inevitably come to Home and Pro editions of Windows, though hotpatching is more beneficial on systems with a more complex deployment. Rebooting every system after an update is impractical for many situations, as it involves downtime. ⏳