The Windows Update Restored website offers a tool for updating certain older versions of Windows, and the team behind the project hopes to help people who continue to use computers running Windows 95, NT 4.0, 98, Me, 2000, and XP. The project’s website hints at future support for Windows Server 2003 as well as other operating systems, including “Vista and later.”

Which systems can be upgraded?

Currently, the update site is limited to one copy Windows Update v3.1 From 1997, it covers:

• windows 95,
• Windows NT4.0,
• Windows 98,
• Windows SE.

The creators of the site, its not an official project and the update pages it links to are unofficial. By stating that their service packs are for “archival purposes” only, they warn users to proceed at their own risk.

Updating an old operating system: watch the video

The video provides examples of possible scenarios that users of older versions of Windows may encounter.

The Windows 95 upgrade demo makes the process seem surprisingly quick and easy.

• The user clicks on the “Product Update” button in the left column of the site after starting Internet Explorer.
• Next, a “Security Warning” is displayed asking you to verify the authenticity of the Windows Update Management pack.
• After the prompt “Please wait” a page appears with checkboxes where you can select the necessary updates for the installed version of Windows.

The video points out that the downloadable update files are small by today’s standards. The size of the critical update package for Windows 95 is only 3.1 MB, while the weight of the security update is only 124 KB.

The largest downloaded file is DirectX 8a, which is recommended but optional, measuring 11.2 MB. The update process may require multiple visits to the update page and restarting the computer to complete.

Other systems are also updating successfully

The following sections of the video show similar demos for other legacy operating systems. Speaker uses Windows Update Restored v3.1 site to update Windows NT4 to Service Pack 6a and Windows 98 SE with many critical and optional packages.

While all major updates are already available for these systems, some additional updates may not be available. For example, although users can select DirectX 8.1 on the upgrade page, it will not be downloaded and installed on Windows 95.

The table presented in the video lists the names of websites that provide access to cloned Windows Update pages. The Windows Update v3.1 website is specifically for updating Windows 95, NT 4.0 and Windows 98 (including SE).

While Windows Update Restored is an interesting project, the team behind it officially does not recommend using it for older versions of Windows. PC users are advised to upgrade to more modern operating systems such as Windows 10 and 11, the latest versions of Linux, or other modern alternatives to improve their user experience and get the latest security updates.