Windows 10 PCs automatically
check for updates and install any updates they find. You can take some control
over this and have Windows 10 install updates on your schedule, but these options
are hidden. Windows Update really wants to automatically update on Windows 10.
Professional, Enterprise, and
Education editions of Windows 10 have access to group policy and registry
settings for this, but even Home editions of Windows 10 give you a way to stop
updates from automatically downloading.
Prevent Automatic Downloading
of Updates on a Specific Connection
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Windows Update on Windows 10
When you set a connection as
“metered,” Windows 10 won’t automatically download updates on it. Windows 10
will automatically set certain types of connections — cellular data
connections, for example — as metered. However, you can set any connection like
as a metered connection.
So, if you don’t want Windows
10 automatically downloading updates on your home network connection, just set
it as a metered connection. Windows 10 will automatically download updates when
you connect your device to an unmetered network, or when you set the network
it’s connected to as unmetered again. And yes, Windows will remember this
setting for each individual network, so you can disconnect from that network
and reconnect all you like.
Do you have an Internet
connection with limited data? Just mark it as metered and Windows 10 won’t automatically
download updates on it. If your connection offers unlimited downloads at a
specific time — for example, during the middle of the night — you could mark
the connection as unmetered occasionally at these times to download updates and
mark it as metered after the updates are downloaded.
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How to Set an Ethernet
Connection as Metered in Windows 8 and 10
To change this option, open
the Settings app, head to Network & Internet > Wi-FI, and click “Manage
Known Networks”. Choose your Wi-Fi network and click “Properties”. From there,
enable the “Set as metered connection” option. This option only affects the
Wi-Fi network you’re currently editing, but Windows will remember this setting
for each individual Wi-Fi network on which you change it. (If you haven’t
gotten the Anniversary Update yet, this option will be in Settings > Network
& Internet > Advanced Options.)
This option isn’t available
for Ethernet networks, but you can set your Ethernet connection as metered
using a registry hack.
After enabling this option,
Windows Update will say “Updates are available. We’ll download the updates as
soon as you connect to Wi-Fi, or you can download the updates using your data
connection (charges may apply.)” By marking a connection as metered, you’ve
tricked Windows into thinking it’s a mobile data connection–for example, you
might be tethering your PC to your smartphone. You can click the Download
button to download and install updates at your leisure.
Stop Windows Update From Automatically
Rebooting Your Computer
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How to Set “Active Hours” So
Windows 10 Won’t Restart at a Bad Time
So maybe you don’t mind the
automatic downloads, but you just don’t want Windows to restart while you’re in
the middle of something. Windows 10 is okay about this, since it lets you set a
12 hour window called “Active Hours” in which it won’t automatically reboot.
To set Active Hours, head to
Settings > Update & Security > Windows Update. Click or tap “Change
Active Hours” under Update Settings. From there, you’ll set the times you don’t
want Windows to automatically restart.
You can also override those
active hours to schedule certain reboots when an update is ready. You can read
more about how to do that here.
Prevent Windows Update From
Installing Specific Updates and Drivers
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How to Uninstall and Block
Updates and Drivers on Windows 10
If Windows 10 insists on
installing a specific update or driver that’s causing problems, you can prevent
Windows Update from installing that particular update. Microsoft doesn’t
provide a built-in way to block updates and drivers from automatically being
downloaded, but it does offer a downloadable tool that can block updates and
drivers so Windows won’t download them. This gives you a way to opt out of
specific updates–uninstall them and “hide” them from being installed until you
unhide them.
Use Group Policy to Disable
Automatic Updates (Professional Editions Only)
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Professional Edition of Windows 10?
Editor’s Note: This option,
while it still exists, seems to no longer work in the Anniversary Update for
Windows 10, but we’ve left it here in case anyone wants to try it. Proceed at
your own risk.
You should really consider
leaving automatic updates enabled for security reasons. But, there is an option
that will let you choose how updates are installed on your own schedule, but
it’s buried in Group Policy. Only Professional, Enterprise, and Education
editions of Windows 10 have access to the Group Policy editor. To access the
group policy editor, press Windows Key + R, type the following line into the
Run dialog, “gpedit.msc” and press Enter:
gpedit.msc
|
Navigate to Computer
Configuration\Administrative Templates\Windows Components\Windows Update.
Locate the “Configure
Automatic Updates” setting in the right pane and double-click it. Set it to
“Enabled,” and then select your preferred setting. For example, you can choose
“Auto download and notify for install” or “Notify for download and notify for
install.” Save the change.
Visit the Windows Update pane,
click “Check for updates,” and then select “Advanced options.” You should see
your new setting enforced here. You’ll also see a note saying “Some settings are
managed by your organization,” informing you that these options can only be
changed in Group Policy.
To disable this later, go back
to the Group Policy editor, double-click the “Configure Automatic Updates”
setting, and then change it from “Enabled” to “Not configured.” Save your
changes, visit the Windows Update pane again, click “Check for updates,” and
then select “Advanced options.” You’ll see everything change back to the
default setting. (Windows Update only seems to notice the setting change after
you click “Check for updates.”)
Use the Registry to Disable
Automatic Updates (Professional Editions Only)
Editor’s Note: This option,
while it still exists, seems to no longer work in the Anniversary Update for
Windows 10, but we’ve left it here in case anyone wants to try it. Proceed at
your own risk.
This setting can be configured
in the registry, too. This registry hack does exactly the same thing as the
above Group Policy setting. However, it also only seems to work on Professional
editions of Windows 10.
Download our Disable Automatic
Updates on Windows 10 registry hack and double-click one of the included .reg
files to make Windows Update notify for download and notify for install, auto
download and notify for install, or auto download and schedule the install.
There’s also a .reg file that will delete the registry value the other files
create, allowing you to go back to the default settings. This only worked when
we tried it on Windows 10 Pro, not Home.
After changing this option,
visit the Windows Update pane in the Settings app and click “Check for
updates.” You can then click “Advanced options” and you’ll see your new setting
here. (You have to perform a check for updates before Windows Update notices
your changed setting.)
If you’d like to do this
yourself, the exact setting you’ll need to change is under
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\WindowsUpdate\AU —
you’ll need to create the last few keys there. Create a DWORD value named
“AUOptions” under the AU key and give it one of the following values:
00000002 (Notify for
download and notify for install)
|
00000003 (Auto download and
notify for install)
|
00000004 (Auto download and
schedule the install)
|
There’s another “trick” making
the rounds for this. It involves disabling the Windows Update system service in
the Windows services administration tool. This isn’t a good idea at all, and
will prevent your computer from receiving even crucial security updates. While
it would be nice if Microsoft offered some more choice of when to install
updates, you shouldn’t opt out of security updates entirely. To prevent Windows
from automatically downloading updates on any PC, just set its connection as
metered.
