Windows Server 2012 or Windows 8 always connects to Windows Update Internet locations in a WSUS environment

Prerequisites

There are no prerequisites for installing this update.

Registry information

To apply this update, you do not have to make any changes to the registry.

Restart requirement

You may have to restart the computer after you apply this update.

Update replacement information

This update does not replace a previously released update.

Beginning in Windows Server 2012, Windows 8, and Windows RT, Windows Update implements a new mechanism to dynamically determine what services are available. As part of this mechanism, the Windows Update client software periodically tries to contact a Microsoft host. The existing Turn off access to all Windows Update features policy that controls access to the Windows Update and Microsoft Update services did not control access to this new service discovery mechanism.

Beginning in Windows Server 2012 R2 and Windows 8.1, a new Do not connect to any Windows Update Internet locations policy is added. This policy is used to suppress this mechanism and to force the Windows Update client software to access only known services. This policy was previously not implemented for earlier versions of Windows.


For more information about software update terminology, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

824684 Description of the standard terminology that is used to describe Microsoft software updates