Due to a Microsoft error, servers running Windows Server 2022 suddenly upgraded to Windows Server 2025

Numerous system administrators complained on the Reddit forum that systems on Windows Server 2022 suddenly began to upgrade to Windows Server 2025. One of them reported that the problem occurred on his client’s servers and there was no way to roll back to Windows Server 2022.

Image source: Microsoft

From the point of view of the average user, upgrading from an old version of Windows to a new one, and even free of charge, may seem like a great idea. But this situation can be a nightmare for system administrators and heads of IT departments of companies. Before installing an update on the server, the new operating system must, at a minimum, be tested for compatibility with the corporate software and unique hardware being used.

According to one system administrator, all of their servers running Windows Server 2022 were automatically upgraded to Windows Server 2025 or “were about to do so.” To complicate matters, this is not just an operating system update, like Windows 11 24H2. Windows Server 2025 requires a new license because it is classified as a completely new OS version and not an upgrade.

According to an employee at third-party update service Heimdal, Microsoft made a mistake and classified an optional operating system update associated with Windows 11 and a security update for Windows Server 2022 as the same update. As a result, the new OS begins installation, “disguised” as a regular security update due to confusion in the repository.

«Our team discovered this discrepancy in our patch repository because the GUID for Windows Server 2025 updates does not match the normal entries for KB5044284 associated with Windows 11. This appears to be a bug on Microsoft’s end. It affected both the speed of release and the classification of the update. After cross-checking with Microsoft’s KB repository, we have confirmed that the KB number indeed refers to Windows 11 and not Windows Server 2025,” a Heimdal employee posted on the Reddit forum.

The worst part is that this type of update is not officially supported for Windows Server. As a result, system administrators have no official method of rolling back from Windows Server 2025 back to Windows Server 2022 unless they have third-party solutions that offer the ability to restore the system from previously created backups.