New resource on Known Issue Rollback (KIR) for Windows update management

A new resource is available to help you understand Known Issue Rollback (KIR). This well-established process automatically rolls back problematic code for a known issue in Windows non-security updates. This rollback applies automatically through Windows Update on non-IT-managed devices. IT-managed devices require a specific Group Policy configuration.

When will this happen

KIR came together as a functionally complete system beginning in Windows 10, version 2004. Since then, most of the code changes in Windows monthly updates support KIR capability.

The new resource is now available to learn more about KIR.

How this will affect your organization

KIR is a robust mitigation technology built into Windows non-security updates to help you safeguard and troubleshoot individual parts of the update. Windows offers KIR capability on all supported versions of Windows Server and client platforms, beginning with Windows Server 2008 SP2. The next time a known issue is resolved via KIR, you’ll better understand the resolution.

What you need to do to prepare

Download the Group Policy template from the Download Center and follow the steps in How to use Group Policy to deploy a Known Issue Rollback.

For domain-joined devices, the Group Policy refresh happens at certain regular intervals. To make sure that the Group Policy settings take effect, take one of the following actions:

• Wait for Group Policy to refresh in the background, then restart the affected devices.
• To force a single device to update its Group Policy settings, open a Command Prompt window on the device, and then run gpupdate /force. After the command runs, restart the device.

Additional information

Learn more about how KIR works, supported scenarios, policy templates, and more at Known Issue Rollback.

Here's where you can look for known issues and KIR mitigations:

• Windows release notes on the Windows update history sites, such as the Windows 11, Windows 10, and Windows Server update history pages. Scroll down to the Known issues in this update section.
• Windows release health dashboard. This site provides links to all Windows release notes for currently supported Windows versions.
• Windows release health section on the Microsoft 365 admin center. You can also sign up for Windows release health notifications.