If you know why you’re disabling updates, use the methods we’ve recommended above. However, if you’re on the fence about disabling Windows updates, maybe a little more information about them will help you decide.
When you turn off Windows updates, you will not receive the regular cumulative updates for Windows 11, nor will you receive any of the frequently released security patches or bug fixes.
It’s possible that you won’t get any system driver updates for a while. If you need to install drivers and patches while Windows updates are disabled, you must do so manually.
How to stop updates on Windows 11
Before you do anything else, keep in mind that Windows updates, for the most part, are quite safe, and it is recommended that you keep them turned on if you want to take advantage of all the cumulative updates and performance boosts that come with them.
However, now and then, a bad patch is released that introduces bugs and breaks features. So, if you like to review updates before downloading and installing them, or if you want to stop them entirely, here’s how to do it in Windows 11.
Pause updates for 1 week from the Settings menu
- To open Settings, press Win + I, then select Windows Update from the left panel.
- Pause for 1 week can be found on the right, next to ‘Pause updates.’
Because Windows 11 is still in its early stages, you won’t have any other time-frame options for pausing updates, nor will you be able to specify one. More ‘Pause updates’ options are expected as newer builds of Windows 11 are released via — you guessed it — Windows updates.
Turn off the Windows Update Service.
You must use the ‘Services’ window to completely disable Windows 11 updates. Here’s how to go about it:
- To open the RUN dialog box, press Win + R, then type services. msc and press Enter.
- Now, scroll down to Windows Update and double-click it.
- If it’s already running, click Stop.
- Then, next to ‘Startup type,’ select from the drop-down menu.
- Disabled is the option to choose.
- Click the OK button.
Using Group Policy Editor, you can disable or limit updates.
For Windows Professional, Enterprise, and Education editions, the Group Policy Editor is a useful tool. Here’s how to limit or completely disable Windows updates:
- To open the RUN box, press Win + R, then type gpedit.msc and press Enter.
- Then, in the left panel, navigate to the following path:
- Double-click Configure Automatic Updates on the right.
- Select Disabled to completely disable Windows updates.
- Then press the OK button.
- If you don’t want to completely disable Windows 11 updates, there are a few other Windows update configurations to consider. Here’s how to do it:
- Select Enabled on the same ‘Configure Automatic Updates’ policy window.
- Then, under ‘Configure automatic updating,’ select one of the following options from the drop-down menu:
- 2 – Notify for download and auto-install. (recommended)
- 3 – Automatic download and installation notification.
- 4 – Schedule the download and installation.
- 5 – Allow local administrators to configure settings.
- 7 – Allow download, notify installation, and notify restart.
- We’ll go with option number two, ‘Notify for download and auto install.’ Updates are not downloaded automatically when you select this option. Instead, you must manually activate them from the Windows Update settings page.
- After you’ve chosen your Windows update configuration, click OK.
- To make the changes take effect, restart your computer.
Disable or limit updates from the registry
Similarly to the previous method, you can disable Windows updates entirely or change the configuration of Windows updates via the Registry. Here’s how to do it:
- To open the RUN box, press Win + R, then type regedit and press Enter.
- Navigate to the next key:
- Computer\HKEY LOCAL MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\
- Microsoft\Windows
- Alternatively, copy the preceding and paste it into the Registry Editor’s address bar, then press Enter.
- Now, right-click on the chosen ‘Windows’ folder and choose New > Key.
- Enter WindowsUpdate as the key name.
- Now, right-click this key and select New > Key to create a sub-key.
- AU is the name of this key.
- Right-click in the space on the right and select New > DWORD (32-bit) Value with the newly created AU key selected.
- This key AUOptions should be given a name.
- Change the value of ‘AUOptions’ to one of the following numbers (their corresponding change is listed below):
2 – Notify for download and auto install. (recommended)
3 – Automatic download and installation notification.
4 – Schedule the download and installation.
5 – Allow local administrators to configure settings.
7 – Allow download, notify installation, and notify restart.
Enter only the number, depending on how you want the Windows updates to be configured. For example, we want to be notified for download and auto-install, so we set the value to ‘2’. Then press the OK button.
It should be noted that these options function identically to the Group Policy method, with the sole exception of not being able to completely disable updates. The recommended option number 2 is the only one that comes close to disabling Windows Updates. To make the changes take effect, restart your computer.
Set a Metered Connection
Setting up a metered connection is another way to prevent Windows from automatically updating. This informs Windows that you have limited bandwidth and that updates are not a high priority. Here’s how you can do it:
- To open Settings, press Win + I, then select Network & Internet from the left panel.
- Select Wi-Fi.
- Choose your Wi-Fi connection.
- Turn on the Metered connection.
That’s all there is to it! You’ve now configured a metered connection, and Windows updates will be disabled for the time being. However, this is not the best way to stop Windows updates because critical security updates can still be downloaded and installed. Furthermore, with a metered connection, some critical apps, such as OneDrive or any of the ‘Store apps,’ may not be updated.
Microsoft’s Show/Hide troubleshooter can be used to hide updates.
- Microsoft provides a Windows update troubleshooter tool that allows you to hide (or show) specific updates that you do not want installed while keeping everything else up to date.
- Run the show/hide tool after downloading it from the above link, and then click Next.
- The troubleshooter will now begin its work.
- Hide updates by clicking the button.
- Now, choose the available update that you want to conceal. These will no longer be installed. Then press the Next button.
- Once the selected updates have been hidden, click the Close button.
- The only drawback to using this troubleshooter tool is that updates must be downloaded first and then installed.
- If you believe you accidentally hidden an update, open the troubleshooter tool again and select Show updates.
- Select your hidden update and press the Next button.
- Your hidden update should now be available once more.
To disable or stop Windows 11 updates, use a third-party app.
On Windows 11, several third-party apps can disable or completely stop updates. In addition to the Show/Hide troubleshooter that we previously discussed, the Win Update Stop application is another tool that can be used to disable updates.
All you have to do is run the setup, launch the application, and use the one-click interface to enable or disable updates quickly.
