How to Pin Windows Update to the Task Bar

Patching windows and SQL is something I do every month on every computer.  One thing that I have found extremely annoying in both Windows 8.x and Server 2012 and 2012 R2 is that you cannot easily pin Windows Update to the task bar to make it easy to launch.  I have found a work-around that lets me do this.

1. Bring up Windows Update.
   1. Start menu
   2. type “Windows Update”
   3. Launch “Windows Update
   

   Search For Windows Update

2. Create a Windows Update shortcut on your desktop
   1. Drag the icon at the top of the windows update window to your desktop to create a shortcut.
   2. Rename the shortcut to remove the – Shortcut at the end
   

   Drag Windows Update Icon To Your Desktop

3. Right-click the shortcut and pin it to the start menu

Pin Windows Update To Start Menu

1. Open the start menu, right-click the Windows Update icon, and pin it to the taskbar

Pin Windows Update To Taskbar

That’s it.  Now you can launch Windows Update from your desktop, your start menu, or your taskbar.