Windows Automatic Updates Manager review

Windows Automatic Updates Manager (WAU Manager) is a free software program for Microsoft Windows devices that gives administrators control over the updating process.

Microsoft removed some of the controls that administrators had in previous versions of the Windows operating system in regards to Windows Updates; Home editions were hit hard especially.

The company improved some processes, e.g. separating regular cumulative updates from feature updates, that gave back some control over updates.

Third-party update managers thrived since the release of Windows 10. We reviewed several in the past already including Windows Update Mini Tool Wrapper Script and Sledgehammer; WAU Manager is a new program that gives administrators full control over the updating processes.

Windows Automatic Updates Manager

The developer designed WAU Manager to replace automatic updating in Windows. I could not find compatibility information on the developer's website; I tested it on a 64-bit Windows 10 Pro system running Windows 10 version 1903 and it worked without issues.

You may run the program from any location without installation. The main interface separates settings into three main groups:

1. The option to disable the built-in automatic Windows Update to manage updates exclusively in WAU Manager.
2. Update mode and behavior.
3. Shortcut and schedule options.

The program runs in normal mode by default which means that it will search for updates automatically when you run it but will not download or install any unless you give your okay to do so. It will search for driver and software updates by default.

You can switch that to passive or quiet modes instead. Passive mode searches for, downloads, and installs updates automatically and shows the progress while quiet mode does the same but shows notifications only. You may switch each mode from searching for driver and software updates to either one.

Check the "automatically reboot when needed" option to give permission to restart the device automatically when updates require it.

The shortcut and schedule section makes the selected configuration accessible. The program may place a shortcut on the desktop that runs the program with the parameters that you defined in it. Schedule on the other hand will do the same but on schedule (meaning automatically and not on activation by the user).

You may activate the "update windows now" button to run a scan for new updates. WAU Manager runs a scan for available updates and displays those that it finds in a new program windows.

Updates are divided into groups, e.g. recommended updates and optional updates, and you may check any of them to install or hide them. Hiding means that updates won't be installed and won't be offered anymore.

Links lead to the list of hidden updates and installed updates; the very same links are found under menu as well so that you may open these management pages from the program's main interface as well.

WAU Manager may be used to display the device's update history. Just click on the menu icon and select the option from the menu to display a log of update installations.

The program lists entries by date & time and includes status and title (update name) for each.

Closing words

Windows Automatic Updates Manager offers another option for Windows administrators to manage updates on Windows devices. The program is relatively easy to use and the default options ensure that updates won't get installed automatically when you run it.

The developer should consider adding compatibility information to the website as it is not clear which versions of Windows the program supports.

Now You: how do you handle updates on Windows?

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