Immediately after the release of the new operating system from Microsoft, called Windows 10, it was not originally planned to release updates for it at all. However, despite all the assurances of the developers, more and more update packages are released and installed automatically with enviable constancy. This also applies to the well-known patching of holes in the security system, and updating the assemblies of the system itself. But it turns out that it is far from always appropriate to trust the automated system settings, and sometimes it is even recommended to prohibit updating Windows 10. Many users simply don’t know how to do this, because using standard methods (through the simplest settings available to users) this is not always possible . Nevertheless, it is possible to get around all kinds of restrictions set by the system quite simply, but when performing any of the actions described below, it is necessary to take into account some important points and nuances.
Why do I need to turn off automatic updates?
Before proceeding with the selection of the optimal solution for deactivating the automatic installation of updates, let's briefly dwell on why all this is necessary. Almost all know that some packages are clearly incomplete. At one time, this was very clearly manifested in the seventh modification of Windows. But disabling Windows 10 updates, users began to use relatively recently. One of the most alarming signals was the release of the last October update, which disrupted the operation of many computers based on AMD processors.
In addition, some users began to complain about the loss of sound and even the deletion of the entire contents of the folder of user documents, not to mention the fact that when copying folders, merging became unavailable, and it was impossible to recover information by any known methods. A little earlier, when installing assembly 1803, another significant event occurred. The fact is that after searching for packages required for installation, it was impossible to cancel their installation, since the system itself suggested only installing them when the computer was turned off or restarted. In general, it became clear that Microsoft, if I may say so, palm off on users clearly unfinished software products, because of which it becomes absolutely impossible to work with the system and the programs installed in its environment. Next, we will try to consider all possible solutions to get rid of old updates and prevent a new Windows 10 update.
Partial deactivation of automatic download and installation of packages
So, let's start with the simplest. First of all, it is necessary to take into account that the section of the "Update Center" in the standard "Control Panel" has disappeared for some time, so in the best case, you will have to deactivate its services from the corresponding section of the options menu. But here you will not be particularly accelerated. Here you can only partially suspend the search and installation of new packages. How on Windows 10 to turn off the installation of updates at least partially? To do this, in the update and security section in the menu on the left, you need to go directly to the "Update Center" item and first try to change the activity period by setting the time period in which the computer is supposedly used (turned on). At this time, the system will be allowed to independently install new packages.
But who is stopping you from setting the period, say, from 11 am to 6 am, when your device will be turned off? At other times, installation of packages will be prohibited.
If you talk about how to turn off updates on Windows 10 using the same section, you can give one more tip.
Follow the link for additional parameters, completely disable downloading updates even through limit connections, and enable the delayed installation item. But in this case, you need to clearly understand that the installation can be delayed for a maximum of 35 days. Not the best solution, but for the first time it will do.
Restrictions on installation through limited connections
Now let's see how to disable updates on Windows 10 using the Internet connection settings. In the previous version, loading through limit connections was already disabled, but now you need to tell the system exactly which connection is of this type. How to disable automatic updating on Windows 10 in this case? Easy too!
In the settings menu, go to the network and Internet section, then in the data transfer use section, set the traffic limit and activate the background transfer ban for the system and “Store” services by checking the “Always” item.
Note: the above solution is available in assemblies 1803 and 1809, and if they were not installed, a similar procedure can be performed in the Wi-Fi wireless network section.
How to disable updates on Windows 10 using group policies
Finally, let's move on to the most cardinal methods of deactivating the installation of update packages that are unnecessary for users. It should immediately be said that, in spite of all the established prohibitions, the system will look for updates, and you can’t get anywhere from this. But she cannot install them.
So, disabling Windows 10 updates through group policies is as follows.
Call the appropriate editor from the Run console by typing gpedit.msc, and then through the computer section and administrative templates, navigate to the Windows components folder. In the list of folders, find the “Update center” item, on the right, double-click to open the window for editing the automatic update settings and on the top of the status items, select the shutdown. After that, just save the changes and just in case, perform a full reboot, although in this case this is not a prerequisite.
Note: if for some reason it is impossible to perform such actions (for example, if you do not have administrator rights), start the editor from the "Task Manager" by creating a new task and marking its start point as administrator.
Disabling the "Update Center" in the services section
Now let's see how to turn off updates on Windows 10 by deactivating the services responsible for this. To do this, just use the services section, access to which can be obtained from the same "Run" console with the services.msc command.
On the right side of the window, find the “Update Center” service, again, double-click to open the settings editing window, stop the service by pressing the appropriate button, and then set the disabled state in the launch type dropdown. Many users mistakenly believe that this will be enough. Alas, in practice it happens quite differently, since in addition to the main service, it is similarly necessary to deactivate the Windows Installer service, the module installer and the delivery optimization service. The last component must be disabled so that the system does not download updates from other computers on the network. After saving the set options, reboot the system.
How to turn off Windows 10 updates forever?
Finally, consider the most effective method, which involves the use of the registry. A little distracting from the main topic, it should be noted that the two previous methods of deactivation make adjustments to the registry, however, since the registry has the highest priority, changing its settings allows you to undo the changes made in the above sections. On the contrary - no! So, how on Windows 10 to turn off updates forever, using the registry for this?
Enter the editor through the Run console by issuing the regedit command, and then follow the HKLM branch to the WindowsUpdate section containing the AU subfolder, as shown in the image above. In the right editor window, through RMB, create a 32-bit DWORD parameter, assigning it the name NoAutoUpdate, double-click to edit the new option and set the unit to the value field. Exit the editor and reboot the system. In this case, restarting is a prerequisite, and changes must be saved only at the stage of assigning a value to the created parameter.
Disabling the installation of updates using the Win Update Disabler utility
How to turn off updates to Windows 10 using standard means systems, a little figured out. Now we turn to the use of third-party software products that help to simplify the actions performed by the user as much as possible.
In the proposed program, you just need to mark the first item (Disable Windows Updates) on the main tab, click the Apply button to save the changes and restart the computer just in case.
Note: the application is delivered in the form of a portable version (it does not require installation on the hard drive), but in order to deactivate the installation of updates, you need to run it exclusively on behalf of the administrator.
Removing Unnecessary or Bad Packages: Standard Method
How to turn off updates on Windows 10, figured out. It remains to consider several basic ways that will allow you to get rid of already installed update packages if they caused failures or you just do not need them. First, let's dwell on how to remove Windows 10 updates using all the same standard system tools. You can view their complete list either through the update section in the options menu, or use the programs and components section in the “Control Panel” for this, which many users call more convenient. Here in the list you need to select the unnecessary package and just click the uninstall button, as is done to uninstall ordinary applications. It goes without saying that a restart will need to be performed necessarily. But this technique has its drawbacks, as the uninstallers built into Windows do not always uninstall correctly and fully. And batch removal is also not provided here. To clean up the garbage at least a little, do not disdain the standard disk cleaning, but to perform such operations, additionally use the removal of system files, which will get rid of obsolete packages, and at the same time free up additional free space in the system partition.
Since we are considering all the existing ways to undo Windows 10 updates, this one should be remembered. In the simplest case, you can use the most common system recovery to the state that preceded the installation of the latest packages. But in this situation, the Update Center services will have to be disabled again.
Note: you can uninstall any update or even an embedded system application using the command line or through the PowerShell console, but such methods are not considered solely because for an ordinary user it may be too difficult to learn.
Using uninstallers
Much more powerful in terms of removing unwanted or unnecessary updates are specialized uninstall programs. Without exception, you can recommend a unique program of its kind called iObit Uninstaller.
In it you need to use the Windows update section, mark all unnecessary packages and perform the removal, as they say, in bulk, by pressing just one button. It is preferable to immediately set the automatic search and cleaning of residual components.
Disable update installation on next search
But let's assume that the user does not need some updates, and they should not be deleted at least because they may contain important updates for some platforms or virtual devices. But when searching for unnecessary packages, they can still get on the list! In this case, you can memorize or record the numbers of unnecessary packages, and then specify a manual search, and then mark them as those that do not need to be installed. But this one is extremely inconvenient!
In this situation, the easiest way is to use the "native" utility from Microsoft called Show or Hide Updates and select unnecessary updates. Upon completion of all actions, they will be automatically excluded from the list of required installations. If you don’t like such a program, a nearly similar Windows 10 Manager utility looks good in this respect, but its advantage is that it also allows you to disable processes or system components that are unnecessary for the user (including the automatic installation of updates). However, there are quite a lot of such programs posted on the Internet today, so the user's choice will depend solely on their own preferences.
Note: Microsoft's program is portable, but some other utilities require installation on your hard drive. If they are deleted, all the settings and parameters set by the user in these applications will be automatically reset, and then you will have to perform all necessary operations again, which is very inconvenient.
Conclusion
In conclusion, it remains to say a few words about the advisability of deactivating the automatic update. In general, most experts do not recommend a complete shutdown (after all, no fools are sitting at Microsoft). In addition, possible failures that arise precisely because of the installation of new packages are fixed quite quickly, and the system itself is at least slightly improved. Alternatively, you can simply postpone the installation of updates or enable the output of a reminder about their installation. Only in this case, a couple of days will not have to turn on or restart the computer completely, but keep it in sleep mode or use hibernation. It’s a little inconvenient, but in this case the updates will be installed and the problems, if they arise, will be fixed in a timely manner.