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Windows 10 1809 May 14 update: So good, it's installing twice?

Windows 10 users report latest cumulative update installs twice, but updates have different build numbers.
Written by Liam Tung, Contributing Writer

The cumulative update Microsoft released on this month's Patch Tuesday for Windows 10 version 1809 has a weird glitch. Thankfully, it isn't as bad as a BSOD but it is a little confusing for those who experience it. 

The snag with this month's cumulative update, KB4494441, is that some users are finding it's installing twice.

The update includes the Patch Tuesday security update, including a fix for a Windows zero day, several non-security bug fixes and improvements, and some protections for the newly disclosed Intel CPU side-channel flaw known as an MDS attack.  

One user on Reddit reports discovering the double KB4494441 install after installing the update and then hitting 'Check for Updates' again in the hope of receiving the Windows version 1903, the May 2019 Update. It's still in the Release Preview and is scheduled for release in late May.   

"Yes, me. Technically I didn't HAVE to install it twice, but here's what happened. I installed today's updates with no problems, and then afterwards hit the 'Check for Updates' button again to make sure I got all the updates," wrote Carole4815.

"I know, that's probably a bad habit or even a little OCD, but I always do that. Anyway this time it installed KB4494441 again, even though my update history showed that the first installation was successful. 

"Everything is working just fine. Still, I am such an ingrate; I feel like the kid who got socks for Christmas instead of a shiny new bike, because I was hoping for 1903. Rats. At least I got the socks. LOL"

Others also report having the same experience and that nothing seemed amiss after installing the second, identical update.

However, users report that after the first install, the build number is 17763.437, while the second install changes the build number to 17763.503, which is the build number Microsoft lists on the KB4494441 page.  

Whatever the cause it may give Windows 10 users a reason to check out Microsoft's brand new 'Windows release health dashboard' where Microsoft provides "near real-time information on known issues (open and resolved) across both feature and monthly updates". It was in launched in a public preview at the end of April and is now officially live.  

On the page Microsoft has already listed the issue, acknowledging that "some customers are reporting that KB4494441 installs twice". 

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