• December 2020 Office non-Security Updates have been released

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    #2316312

    The December 2020 Office non-Security updates have been released Tuesday, December 1, 2020. They are not included in the DEFCON-4 approval for the Nov
    [See the full post at: December 2020 Office non-Security Updates have been released]

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    • #2316379

      I still believe that many businesses (or govt agencies like the one I run support for) are actually MORE cautious than home users about patching, since we can actually control when stuff gets pushed and we lose much more money if a patch goes sideways.

      No matter where you go, there you are.

    • #2316711

      I haven’t paid much attention to Office non-security updates for the past few years,  but someday when I get time I plan to install some or all of them  (or at least the ones that Susan has approved).   In the past,  I’ve just unchecked the boxes in Windows Updates if they were non-security.  So there’s probably a long list of ones that I haven’t installed.  Is there a consolidated list of all the ones that Susan has approved in the past?  Also,  what specifically is involved in being “cautious”?    Sorry if these are elementary questions,  but I haven’t been following this aspect of your website very closely, and would appreciate it if you could provide a brief summary of the basics for someone like me who wants to go back and install the ones that haven’t been installed over the past few years..

      • This reply was modified 4 years, 5 months ago by L95.
      • #2316777

        The Master Patch List has all the information.

        cheers, Paul

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        L95
        • #2319023

          Paul T:   Thanks for your response.  It appears to me that for Office 2010 non-security updates,  the Master Patch List only goes back as far as January of 2019.  I also looked at the archives,  and I looked at the oldest one I could find there,  but that appeared to only go back as far a January 2019 also.   What do I do about the non-security updates that are older than January of 2019?

          • #2319028

            In general, we do not recommend installing the non-security updates. They are manual download/install from the MS Catalog only, not delivered through Windows Update, although I belive they are offered through WSUS.
            The non-security content is included in the next released Security update anyway.

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            L95
            • #2319076

              PK:  Thanks for your response.  I have a couple of questions about your response:

              (1)  You said the non-security updates are ” are manual download/install from the MS Catalog only, not delivered through Windows Update.”   But that has not been my experience.  My experience is that they are offered to me through Windows Update.  An example is KB4475604 which was offered to me through Windows Update and identified as an “Important” update,  but it didn’t have the word “security” in the description,  and so I unchecked the box so that it wouldn’t get installed.  And to the best of my knowledge,  I do not use WSUS.  And now,  in the Master Patch List,  I see the word “Install” for KB4475604,  so I assume that you folks are now recommending that it be installed.   So should I install that update (and also the other updates that say “Install” on the Master Patch List which had been offered to me through Windows Update but which I had not previously installed due to the lack of the word “security” in their description) ?

              (2)  You also mentioned that “The non-security content is included in the next released Security update anyway.”  I’ve been installing all the Security Updates.  Does this mean I don’t need to install any of the past Non-Security updates whose boxes I had unchecked (or in some cases whose boxes had been unchecked in the first place)?

            • #2319078

              I am an individual, not business, no server.

              In Win7/8.1 I have checked “Give me recommended updates the same way I receive important updates” and “Give me updates for other MS products.”
              My rule of thumb is install the checked Important Updates released through Windows Updates. I do not install the unchecked updates and/or Previews (Optionals). or the Office non-security updates released on the first Tues of the month. If they are later released as checked updates on Patch Tues, they get installed.

              In Win10, I have checked “Give me updates for other MS products.” I use wushowhide and GP to hide driver updates, Intel microcode, and MS’s “fix your settings for you” patch. My settings are such that I am not offered Previews, or I would hide them as well. The rest are installed.

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              L95
            • #2319094

              PK:  Thanks again for your response.  I don’t see an answer to my Question #2 in your response.   However,  it appears that Susan Bradley answered that Question #2 in her subsequent posting  #2319082 below,  where she said “Office 2010 in particular the non security patches are not included in the security patches”.   If I’m interpreting that incorrectly,  please let me know.  But in the meantime,  I’ll try to provide at least a preliminary response to Susan.

              Thanks again,  and if you have any further comments,  I’d appreciate seeing them.

          • #2319082

            I only started spreadsheets back then as I recall.  Office 2010 in particular the non security patches are not included in the security patches.  There are a lot of bug fixes in these non security ones and – annoyingly too – Microsoft puts their fixes for anything they broke in the security updates in the non security stuff.

            What updates do you have questions on?  Even on a home machine I do recommend installing the non security office updates, just not right away.

            Susan Bradley Patch Lady/Prudent patcher

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            L95
            • #2319104

              Susan:  Thank you for your response.  Sorry I haven’t been able to keep up with all the information on this website over the years,  but there’s a lot of information on the website and I haven’t had enough time to keep up with it;  however,  it occurred to me that I should try to get caught up on installing the past non-security updates  as described in my original posting #2316711 above.

              You asked which updates do I have questions on?  About all I can do to answer that at this point is to ask some general questions and maybe provide an example:  (1)  Should I just go through the Master Patch List and install the non-security ones that have the word “Install ” shown,  if they had been offered to me in the past by Windows Update?   (2)  Do they need to be installed in a particular order?   (3)  What do I do about the ones that are prior to 2019?  For example,  a couple that were offered to me in 2018 by Windows update were KB4018314 and KB4018317.  Those were listed by Microsoft as “important” but the boxes were unchecked.  Likewise there were some that had checked boxes,  but I unchecked them,  and I would need to go through my records to find those,  but one example is the KB4475604 that I described to PKCano in a previous posting 2319076 above.

              I will appreciate your response.

               

            • #2319106

              On several of my computers with Office 2010 I’ve installed all non security office updates.  On 7 I don’t do the silverlight for the OS, but for Office I tend to install them.  I use windows update to let it “offer” them up to me as that gives them to me in the order that Microsoft/Office recommends.  Does that help?

              Susan Bradley Patch Lady/Prudent patcher

            • #2319120

              Susan:  Thank you for your response.  It probably  helps for updates that are issued in the future,  but my questions pertained to updates that were issued in the past.   Microsoft isn’t offering those to me through Windows Update any more.  Most (if not all) of the ones I’m talking about were probably only offered once,  but then in the next month I didn’t see them offered again.  Does that mean that I don’t need them?   Or on the other hand,  if I do need them,  should I go ahead and install them manually?   And should I assume that all the ones prior to 2019 would have gotten the “Install”  OK from you?

              I will appreciate your response.

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