Features

It would be something of an understatement to say that Microsoft Windows is frequently updated. There are several reasons for this. The operating system itself is an enormous chunk of programming code within which, inevitably, inherent problems will occasionally come to light and have to be addressed. Some of these will wait for major upgrades, but others are corrected periodically by smaller updates or 'patches'.

Windows also gains extra features from time to time, and hardware makers may update the drivers that enable it to talk to your peripherals, improving performance and compatibility. Security updates are vital to stay ahead of the bad guys, and then there's Microsoft's periodic tinkering with things like copyright protection.You could keep up with all this manually if you really wanted to, checking for updates whenever you have an hour or two to spare, but it makes much more sense to switch to automatic and let Windows take care of updating itself. Without the latest patches installed, your PC might not only be running below peak performance, but could also be at risk from bugs and security flaws that could ultimately result in serious problems or lost data.

Updates are generally released on the second Tuesday of every month (Microsoft's 'Patch Tuesday'), but more important updates may arrive urgently at other times. Whenever updates are detected, Windows will tell you, optionally download them without further ado, and give you the option of installing them immediately or holding off until convenient - bearing in mind that installation may involve restarting your PC.

	1 To be safe, Windows Update should be set to check for and install updates daily. Open the Windows Update Control Panel, click Change Settings, select the option labelled 'Install update automatically', then choose a frequency and time.