{"id":1616265,"date":"2025-12-29T02:31:00","date_gmt":"2025-12-29T07:31:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.computerworld.com\/article\/1616265\/using-dism-to-install-windows-updates.html"},"modified":"2025-12-29T02:34:13","modified_gmt":"2025-12-29T07:34:13","slug":"using-dism-to-install-windows-updates","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.computerworld.com\/article\/1616265\/using-dism-to-install-windows-updates.html","title":{"rendered":"Using DISM to install Windows updates"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Windows’ built-in Deployment Image Servicing and Management<\/a> (DISM) command, a.k.a. dism.exe<\/strong>, is something of a Swiss Army knife when it comes to working on Windows OS images. Among its many capabilities<\/a> — such as adding optional Windows features and packages, taking image inventories, performing image cleanups, and more — DISM includes an \/Add-Package<\/code> option. This option allows users to install Microsoft Catalog updates in .cab or .msu files to a targeted Windows image.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

.cab<\/strong> is short for “Windows Cabinet<\/a>,” a type of compressed file that stores data and instructions for Windows that can update device drivers, system files, and so forth. The .msu<\/strong> file extension is associated with the Microsoft Update Standalone Installer<\/a>. Normally, this installer uses the Windows Update Agent API to install update packages. Both .cab and .msu files also work with the DISM command against Windows image files, which may be of types .wim, .wsm, .esd, .ffu, or virtual hard disk files of type .vhd or .vhdx.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Note that .msu updates only work on offline images, while the more common .cab files may be applied to an online image to update a running Windows install. If an .msu is the only format available for download, you can sometimes use a tool like expand.exe (built into Windows 10 and 11) to extract a .cab file that DISM can apply to online images. See this Microsoft Learn article<\/a> for details: only a couple of extra steps are involved.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That said, Windows 11 updates invariably come in the form of .msu files. Perhaps worse from a DISM perspective: they do not readily cough up .cab files suitable for use on an online image. Thus, this workaround is really only suited for Windows 10.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At the end of this story, I’ll explain what you must do to take an image offline and work on it. Most readers — except for IT pros and software developers — are likely to say “Heck, no!”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Why use DISM instead of Windows Update?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Good question! Sometimes, DISM provides a way to install an update when Windows Update (WU) may have issues. At times, Windows Update may simply refuse to work, or it may hang or crash for some particular update. Thankfully, DISM provides a handy way to install updates when WU itself may be unable to oblige.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Other scenarios when you might want to use DISM instead of Windows images include:<\/p>\n\n\n\n