Once we began this month of patching, I totally anticipated to return again by now with large listings of purposes that hated the February updates. That hasn’t been the case, although there have been some points associated to .NET this month.
In case you are questioning, .NET is a framework utilized by builders to construct purposes. It makes for normal coding strategies and “managed code” and may make an app safer. Builders primarily use Visible studio to develop software program that all of us use on our Home windows methods.
Identified points affecting Visible Studio most dramatically appeared in updates first launched with the cumulative .NET updates starting final month. KB4598301 was launched Jan. 26 as an elective preview replace for .NET on Home windows 10 1909 and prompted Visible Studio to crash. Then KB4601056, launched Feb. 9, suffered from the identical difficulty. So Microsoft launched a preview replace per week later — KB4601556 — that fastened the underlying difficulty in Win10 1909.
The Patch Tuesday launch of KB4601887 for Home windows 10 1809 was later fastened by KB4602298, although not for all platforms. For instance, the launch of KB4601050 for Home windows 2004/20H2, KB4601054 for Win10 1803, and KB4601051 for Win10 1607 had been not fastened with later releases. I anticipate that for these platforms you’ll have to attend till the March updates arrive if you’re seeing software crashes.
In any other case, I’ve been shocked by how few experiences of points I’ve seen after these updates had been put in. In my very own private testing, I’ve not seen points — although there have been experiences of issues from different customers. One report entails Autodesk’s Inventor 2020 and 2021, which crashes with these updates put in. However software crashes have been few and much between; thus, I don’t anticipate you should have points this month.
One other report I’ve seen comes from the VMware discussion board, the place this patch was put in on Server 2016 deployments and blocked the flexibility to completely enroll iOS units with Clever Hub 21.01. Because the VMware data base notes, a number of .NET updates launched in February trigger points with Workspace ONE UEM performance together with safe channel communication.
As famous on the VMware web page, the entire following .NET patches set off this difficulty:
I personally haven’t seen any influence on one among my key purposes constructed on .NET: Intuit’s QuickBooks. Neither the 2018, 2019, 202,0 or the 2021 variations of QuickBooks have had points.
The excellent news is that the safety difficulty fastened in these patches merely blocks an attacker from performing a denial of service. Paradoxically, for the reason that patch makes the appliance crash, it successfully causes the identical factor it’s making an attempt to guard customers from. In case you should take away this replace, I don’t see it as a excessive threat if you happen to can’t set up it right now.
As a result of I haven’t seen many reported uncomfortable side effects (together with in my very own testing), subsequent week I’ll be recommending you put in the updates the Feb. 9 batch of patches until you might be instantly impacted by the .NET replace. Primarily based on my assessment of the patch boards and venues, I’ve solely seen uncomfortable side effects with sure enterprise apps. The problems have been slender and never broad unfold. That’s the excellent news.
In case you discover you do must uninstall the replace, you’ll face a two step course of. First, go to Begin button, then Settings, then Replace and safety. Click on on view replace historical past after which on “Uninstall updates.”

Scroll down and discover the Replace for Microsoft Home windows with the matching KB quantity that corresponds with the model of Home windows 10, 8 or 7 you will have. For Home windows 10, for instance, you’ll must search for one of many following:
- Home windows 10 model 1607 – KB4601051
- Home windows 10 model 1809 – KB4601887
- Home windows 10 model 1909 – KB4601056
- Home windows 10 model 2004 or 20H2 – KB4601050
Now comes the tougher half: Particularly for Home windows 10, you’ll want to make sure that you set your system so it won’t reinstall this replace if in case you have been impacted. First, obtain the WUSHOWHIDE.DIAG device from Oldergeeks.com and set up it. (As it’s possible you’ll recall from my final weblog publish, this device is not accessible from Microsoft.) Now, search for the replace you want to cover or block from putting in and choose it.

Click on on present or cover updates after which choose to cover the .NET replace and click on subsequent.

The applying will point out that software is “resolving” issues and can cover the replace from being supplied as much as your system. Another device is Home windows Replace Minitool, which lets you cover updates as effectively.
For a few years I have been cautious of .NET updates and would cringe after they had been launched. There have been a few years we’d have to make use of varied .NET restore instruments to uninstall and reinstall .NET. Since Microsoft launched .NET 4.8 and later, and included it in Home windows 10, it is change into a lot better behaved — which means we’ve not wanted to uninstall and manually reinstall .NET. This is among the first occasions I can recall {that a} .NET replace has gone out with a recognized difficulty in a protracted whereas.
Backside line, the large patching difficulty I believed would happen has been remoted. Fortunately, this time .NET has been usually effectively behaved; it hasn’t (but) prompted me to wince and cringe.