How to Install the Windows 10 May 2020 Update If It’s Missing
The Windows 10 May 2020 Update is here, but it might not be for you . Yes, this is another issue. Yes, we usually recommend that you postpone installing major Windows 10 updates until a lot of other people have “tested” them to make sure you don’t run into a terrible performance degrading bug, but we understand many of you want these new features stat .
So, after you’ve backed up your critical files – at the very least – here are all the different ways to install the Windows 10 May 2020 Update, including a couple to help you if Windows hasn’t already provided it to you directly. …
Method one: the easy way
Open the Start menu, type Windows Update and select Windows Update Settings. Click the big Check for Updates button and download whatever Microsoft wants you to install. The specific update you’re looking for in this case is Windows 10 Version 2004 Feature Update, also known as Windows 10 May 2020 Update.
You may not see this for three reasons:
- It hasn’t started yet (sorry!)
- You already installed it and did not realize – click on “View update history” to find out.
- There is some kind of incompatibility with your system, and Microsoft is blocking you from receiving the update until it fixes the problem.
Assuming you are not in the latter camp – search for the phrase “compatibility hold” on Microsoft’s page to see various issues that might prevent you from installing the update – there are a few more methods you can use to get access to Update Windows 10 if you cannot find it in Windows Update.
Method two: lesser known method
Here’s a fun little trick if you can’t get the update you need from Windows Update itself: try downloading Microsoft Update Assistant for Windows, which you can find by clicking the blue Update Now box on this page .
Launch the Upgrade Assistant app and you should be able to download and install the Windows 2020 Update on May 10 without any issue. And don’t worry: it won’t overwrite your important data, wipe your drive, or reinstall a fresh copy of Windows 10.
Method three: the wilder route
If methods one and two don’t work and you feel like you absolutely need to have access to the Windows 10 May 2020 Update right now – perhaps you really hate Cortana? – you can take a different approach. Download Windows 10 Media Creation Tool from the same site as before (Download Tool Now button). You can use it to update your PC just like the aforementioned update assistant. You can also use it to boot Windows 10 .ISO and then create a bootable USB and do a clean install of Windows 10 on your system.
Warning: this method will overwrite all your files and whatever you’ve installed. So for most people, the “upgrade” option is probably the best option. Again, make sure you back up your files before doing so in case Windows doesn’t save what you need when performing an update. If you don’t get the latest version of Windows with this trick, you may have better luck with a clean install method – at the cost of reinstalling all of your hardware.