Microsoft Releases the First Windows 7 Update After End of Support

While some of you might think the title sounds odd, especially because the end of support is supposed to represent the end of Microsoft shipping updates for Windows 7, the software giant has just released a patch for the 2009 operating system for all devices still running it.

This was necessary because the “last” updates for Windows 7, which were published in January, broke down the wallpaper feature, causing the background to display as black when the stretch mode was used.

Technically, Microsoft is no longer required to release updates for Windows 7 given the OS has already reached the end of support. But because its final updates broke down this feature, the company made an exception and shipped one more fix to correct this issue.

The patch, which is available for Windows 7 users as KB4539602, needs to be manually downloaded from the Microsoft Update Catalog page and is not offered via Windows Update.

More “emergency” updates?

Furthermore, it comes with some requirements, as devices need to be running the SHA-2 update (KB4474419) or newer and the latest servicing stack update (KB4490628) or newer to be able to install the update.

What you should know, however, is that if you previously used Windows 7 with Windows Update enabled, both updates should already be there on your device, as they were offered automatically as part of the regular patching cycles.

Microsoft says it’s not aware of any issues in this update, so it should install correctly on all devices.

With this being said, this is supposed to be the final update for Windows 7, although I wouldn’t necessarily be surprised if Microsoft publishes more patches in the future for all devices.

It already happened back in 2017 when Microsoft shipped a Windows XP emergency patch to protect devices running it against the WannaCry ransomware. Windows XP officially reached the end of support in April 2014.

Via BornCity