By default, when a user is working on something important, Windows is likely to restart automatically once the updates have been installed. Due to this sudden restart, the user may lose important unsaved work. Installing updates may not be as straightforward as it appears. The system may become unstable after some updates. Most of the time, Microsoft will provide a workaround but sometimes the user will have no other option but to reinstall the entire operating system. Windows 11 update functionality is very similar to Windows 10. Users don’t have a lot of control over Windows updates. We have already discussed how to disable Windows 10 updates. In this article, we will discuss several ways to disable Windows 11 update functionality, either permanently or temporarily.
Permanently disable automatic Windows updates using Windows Registry
Windows Registry is a database where Windows stores all its configurations and settings. All configurations related to the update process are also stored in the Registry. You can alter the Registry settings to disable Windows Update permanently.
Permanently disable automatic Windows updates using Windows Registry Permanently disable automatic Windows updates using Group Policy Permanently disable automatic Windows updates using Services Conclusion
This will disable the automatic Windows update process. But you will be able to check for, download, and install updates manually from the Settings –> Windows Update. If you don’t want to go through the Registry editing process yourself, you can download the following batch file which will automatically create the above mentioned keys and configure the appropriate settings for you. Disable Automatic Windows Update for Windows 11 (289 bytes, 449 hits) To start getting automatic updates again, run the following command in Command Prompt:
Permanently disable automatic Windows updates using Group Policy
Automatic Windows Update functionality can be permanently disabled using local group policies. This method is useful when you want to completely disable Windows Update. This will disable the automatic check, download and installation of Windows updates. You will need to manually check for and download updates from the Windows Update Settings.
Permanently disable automatic Windows updates using Services
Microsoft uses Windows Update service to check for, download and install new updates to Windows Operating System as well as other Microsoft software. We can disable the service so Windows stops checking for new updates every now and then. You can also use the Command Prompt to enable or disable Windows Update service. Here is how: Stop running Windows Service Disable Windows Update Service: To re-enable the service again:
Conclusion
There are other ways to disable Windows updates for your system, like temporarily pausing updates using the Settings app, enabling metered connections or enabling battery saver mode. Although Windows will stop the update process with these enabled, I do not recommend these because these are temporary methods and also affect other functionality of Windows 11. If you are an advanced user, you can use the Registry method to configure this setting. For others, disabling the Windows service would be enough.
