Update ignored in Windows PE image and Microsoft Windows Setup (amd64)

tistou77 said:
CUs do not need to be integrated in boot.wim
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While including cumulative updates (CUs) in boot images (boot.wim) when editing images with NTLite is not mandatory, in some situations it is highly recommended or even necessary, such as:

Compatibility with newer drivers: Some CUs update WinPE (pre-installation environment) components, ensuring support for disk, network, or USB controllers not recognized by older versions.

Installation bug fixes: Cumulative updates can fix bugs or limitations that occur during the installation process, preventing errors or crashes.

Corporate or custom environments: In scenarios where the installation image needs to include updated tools, scripts, or features, having boot.wim with CUs ensures greater stability and compatibility.

Summary:
Including cumulative updates in boot.wim is not mandatory, but it can be essential to ensure compatibility with modern hardware, installation stability, and support for the latest features, especially in custom or corporate environments.
 
I believe there are specific updates for boot.wim
Aside from Intel RST/VMD drivers, which is required for certain scenarios, I haven't seen any others.
Since Windows installation uses the files copied from install.wim after the first reboot, the CUs are applied at that time, if needed.
 
OK. What WinPE installation bug is the monthly CU fixing? Are you personally using a custom WinPE platform with scripts and tools which require this level of compatibility? Or are you just running Setup like the other 90% of normal desktop users out there.

If you're rolling in Dynamic Update, then WinPE gets patched. But if you're always rebuilding a freshly updated ISO, then Setup DU is a wasted effort because you already have an up-to-date image to install, which is the end goal of having Setup DU.

You're free to apply the CU to boot.wim. But it probably gains you almost no net benefit. I haven't heard of any install error (outside of an Autopilot scenario) where the solution was to patch boot.wim with CU.
 
I'd like to clarify that I'm not currently experiencing any issues due to not applying the monthly updates to boot.wim, but I decided to report this behavior in good faith, just to raise awareness among the community and developers.

Even if only a minority of users—such as those working on recovering older machines or offline environments—rely on these updates replicated in the boot images, this is still a bug or technical limitation, as it can indeed cause failures in certain scenarios.

The goal here is not to generalize the need, but simply to alert you to a situation that may impact some real-world use cases and is worth keeping in mind.
 
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