I have a win 11 laptop (upgraded from win 10). It's not often used. However, I do turn it on regularly and check for updates and virus check (mainly to keep windows happy).
A month or so ago, it showed an optional preview update. Unlike most updates, an update check did not start the update automatically but just told me it was there. I never got the Patch Tuesday update for April. Until today, I didn't get the May update until I decided to let it download and install the optional update.
Once it finally came back after the restart, I let it set to "settle" (it's not the fastest device in the house). Then I looked for updates again and it finally found such as that monthly Malicious Tool Remover and two other updates. Why would an OPTIONAL update block the standard monthly updates from running?