Step 1: Review WSUS Installation Requirements for Windows 2000 Server

Applies To: Windows Server 2003, Windows Server 2003 R2, Windows Server 2003 with SP1, Windows Server 2003 with SP2, Windows Server Update Services

This guide offers instruction for installing Microsoft Windows Server Update Services (WSUS) on Microsoft Windows 2000 Server operating systems. If you have a server running Microsoft Windows Server 2003, see the “Step-by-Step Guide to Getting Started with Microsoft Windows Server Update Services” white paper.

The following are the baseline installation requirements for installations that use the default options. You can find hardware and software requirements for other installations in the “Deploying Microsoft Windows Server Update Services” white paper.

Hardware recommendations for a server with up to 500 client computers are as follows:

  • 1 gigahertz (GHz) processor

  • 1 gigabyte (GB) RAM

Software Requirements

To install WSUS with default options, you must have the following installed on your computer. For more information about WSUS software requirements, see the “Deploying Microsoft Windows Server Update Services” white paper. If any of these updates require restarting the computer when installation is completed, you should restart your server prior to installing WSUS.

Disk Requirements and Recommendations

In order for you to install WSUS, the file system of the server must meet the following requirements:

  • Both the system partition and the partition on which you install WSUS must be formatted with the NTFS file system.

  • A minimum of 1 GB free space is required for the system partition.

  • A minimum of 6 GB free space is required for the volume where WSUS stores content; 30 GB is recommended.

Automatic Updates Requirements

Automatic Updates is the client component of WSUS. Automatic Updates has no hardware requirements other than being connected to the network. You can use Automatic Updates with WSUS on computers running any of the following operating systems:

  • Microsoft Windows 2000 Professional with Service Pack 3 (SP3) or Service Pack 4 (SP4), Windows 2000 Server with SP3 or SP4, or Windows 2000 Advanced Server with SP3 or SP4.

  • Microsoft Windows XP Professional, with or without Service Pack 1 or Service Pack 2.

  • Microsoft Windows Server 2003, Standard Edition; Windows Server 2003, Enterprise Edition; Windows Server 2003, Datacenter Edition; or Windows Server 2003, Web Edition.