New Update Microsoft issues SECOND emergency out of band update for Windows 11 to address disastrous Patch Tuesday bugs — KB5078127 released globally

[Parkinsond]

Another out of band update has been issued to Windows 11 users to address a major bug that caused Outlook, Dropbox, and more to become inoperable after January's disastrous Patch Tuesday updates.

Microsoft just issued a second emergency OS update for Windows 11 this month

Another out of band update has been issued to Windows 11 users to address a major bug that caused Outlook to become inoperable after January's disastrous Patch Tuesday updates.

www.windowscentral.com

 

[stonjean633]

MS new logo.

 

[Parkinsond]

MS new logo.

Patches .. Patches everyday

 

[Wrecker4923]

Windows update sometimes; after all, new landscape is needed.

 

[Miraculix]

I was able to install the update on one PC. The installation fails on the second PC.
Installation error on 25.01.2026 – 0x80070005

 

[Zero Knowledge]

Failed to install on ‎25/‎01/‎2026 - 0x800706be

Typical POS Windows Update.

 

[Sorrento]

I haven’t been offered it...

 

[Divine_Barakah]

I haven’t been offered it...

Same here.

 

[Sorrento]

Maybe its because I am good looking??

 

[Parkinsond]

Maybe its because I am good looking??

MS: you will get it after we break something else

 

[Marko :)]

I just stick to my policy of not touching Windows Update and everything always works fine on my end. By going to Windows Update and manually installing all the updates you're just looking for trouble.
Windows Update will always offer updates to install, and there's a reason why they don't install them automatically, only offer it instead. It's because they aren't properly tested so by clicking to install it you're becoming guinea pig and just looking for problems.
When Microsoft confirms the update is alright, they will push the automatic update and you'll get the notification in the corner to restart your PC.

I'm offered to install one, but I won't. It will install on its own when it's ready.

 

[Minimalist]

I've had a feeling that January updates might come out filled with bugs so I paused them for 5 weeks. Lucky hunch. I hope that they fix everything by February 3rd when updates will get resumed.

Taking system image before installing updates was my practice for a long time. I think that I will add pausing updates before they come out to that practice also. I don't wanna be guinea pig

 

[Parkinsond]

I just stick to my policy of not touching Windows Update and everything always works fine on my end. By going to Windows Update and manually installing all the updates you're just looking for trouble.
Windows Update will always offer updates to install, and there's a reason why they don't install them automatically, only offer it instead. It's because they aren't properly tested so by clicking to install it you're becoming guinea pig and just looking for problems.
When Microsoft confirms the update is alright, they will push the automatic update and you'll get the notification in the corner to restart your PC.

I'm offered to install one, but I won't. It will install on its own when it's ready.

View attachment 294977

I skip the preview udpates at the end of the month, but always install the final ones on the second Tuesday.

 

[Parkinsond]

I've had a feeling that January updates might come out filled with bugs so I paused them for 5 weeks. Lucky hunch. I hope that they fix everything by February 3rd when updates will get resumed.

Taking system image before installing updates was my practice for a long time. I think that I will add pausing updates before they come out to that practice also. I don't wanna be guinea pig

I have installed the first Jan update with no single problem; I have no MS store, might be the explanation.

 

[Marko :)]

I skip the preview udpates at the end of the month, but always install the final ones on the second Tuesday.

Sometimes not even final ones are safe. As long as you don't manually press download & install button, you're fine. Just let it handle everything automatic, you don't even have to visit Windows Update at all.

 

[Parkinsond]

Sometimes not even final ones are safe. As long as you don't manually press download & install button, you're fine. Just let it handle everything automatic, you don't even have to visit Windows Update at all.

The worst case scenario it will break something and I have to reinstall W, but skipping update might leave unpatched vulnerabilities behind, if unlucky enought, it may facilitate a security breach.

 

[Divergent]

From a SANS and NIST perspective, this event underscores the "Patch and Pray" risk and the necessity of staged rollouts. NIST 800-40 (Guide to Enterprise Patch Management) emphasizes that while emergency patches should be prioritized, organizations should maintain a rollback capability for catastrophic regressions like those seen in this cycle.

Recommendation / Remediation​

For individual users and system administrators, the following actions are prioritized:

Immediate Verification
Check your Update History to see if KB5078127 has been successfully installed.

Manual Installation
If Outlook or Dropbox are failing and the update is not present, manually trigger a check via Settings > Windows Update > Check for updates.

Application Recovery
If application errors persist after patching, perform an "Online Repair" for Microsoft 365 apps to ensure corrupted hooks are restored.

Enterprise Staging
Per SANS Critical Security Control #7 (Continuous Vulnerability Management), enterprise admins should validate this OOB update in a test group before a full-fleet push to ensure no secondary regressions occur in custom line-of-business (LOB) applications.

Recommendations for Home Users​

Based on SANS Security Awareness best practices and NIST 800-40 principles adapted for personal use, I recommend the following:

Trigger the Update Manually
Do not wait for the "Scheduled Restart." Go to Settings > Windows Update and click Check for updates. Look for 2026-01 Update (KB5078127).

Verify the Build Number
After the restart, press Win + R, type winver, and hit Enter.

If you are on Version 24H2, you should see Build 26100.7628 (or higher).

End Frozen Processes
If Outlook is still "stuck" before you patch, press Ctrl + Shift + Esc to open Task Manager, find Outlook.exe, and select End Task. This is a temporary measure until the patch is applied.

Avoid "Update Pausing"
While it is tempting to pause updates after a "disastrous" cycle, this leaves your machine vulnerable to the 100+ security flaws fixed in the January 13th release. The OOB patch is the correct way to fix the bugs while staying secure.

Backup PST Files
If you use Outlook with local .pst files, this is an excellent time to follow the 3-2-1 Backup Rule (3 copies, 2 media types, 1 offsite) before applying system-level changes.

References​

NIST SP 800-40 Rev. 4
Guide to Enterprise Patch Management [S0]

SANS CSC #7
Continuous Vulnerability Management [S0]

Microsoft Knowledge Base
KB5078127 (Windows 11 OOB) [S1]

 

[Divine_Barakah]

I've had a feeling that January updates might come out filled with bugs so I paused them for 5 weeks. Lucky hunch. I hope that they fix everything by February 3rd when updates will get resumed.

Taking system image before installing updates was my practice for a long time. I think that I will add pausing updates before they come out to that practice also. I don't wanna be guinea pig

I do too take system images before installing W U, but unfortunately I had just received my laptop and after installing Windows the Jan update got installed.

The only problem I am experiencing is that my device never gets in hibernation when I close the lid. I left if for about 15 hours and it was in sleep.

 

[Marko :)]

skipping update might leave unpatched vulnerabilities behind, if unlucky enought, it may facilitate a security breach.

I'm not talking about skipping the update. I'm talking about leaving it like it is until Microsoft decides to install an update. Just because there's an update visible and Windows let's you download it, doesn't mean it's completely safe to do so. Windows doesn't install it for a reason because it hasn't been tested on the hardware you have and could cause you issues. Heck, the update could make your PC even more vulnerable than it was.

Nothing will happen if you don't install an update for two days. Remember: you're not the target of hackers, businesses are. And even businesses delay installing Windows Updates in order to not break their systems. Let's be clever, not be paranoid.

Beside, Windows is full undiscovered security vulnerabilities that may already be used. You don't seem to care about those.

 

[Parkinsond]

Nothing will happen if you don't install an update for two days

Agree; I usually follow this policy (waiting few days until getting sure the update is bug-free), unless I have decided to reinstall Windows as soon as possible, here I make my PC a "guinea pig" for all sorts of updates and new apps