How To Pause Windows Updates – Complete Guide

Windows updates are essential for maintaining the security of your computer. Most of the updates are security fixes for removing any vulnerability from the system. Pausing the Windows update is not the ideal thing to do.

However, constant Windows updates can drain your limited internet connections as most of them are in GBs. This issue is quite relevant for many users. Some of the users prefer to manually update when necessary than letting Windows update automatically.

In this article, we have discussed how to pause Windows Updates to help these users. By pausing the Windows update, you will have complete control over when to update it. However, you can only pause the Windows updates for 35 days at a time. After that, you can either get the latest update or you can pause it again.

Also, check out this article if your Windows update is stuck.

How To Pause Windows Updates?

You can use various methods to pause the Windows Update. Some of these methods are given below.

Method 1: Pause Update From Settings App

To pause Windows 10 update, follow the steps given below:

1. Press the Windows key and type Settings in the search bar.
2. Select the top option in the search result to open the Settings app.
3. After the Settings app opens, click on the Update and Security option.
4. Next, select the Windows Update option.
5. Click on the Pause updates for 7 days option. This will pause the only for 7 days, but you can change it to up to 35 days as mentioned in the next few steps.

6. Locate and select the Advanced options.
7. Now, in the Pause Updates section change the date to extend the pause period. You can only pause the updates for 35 days max.

Method 2: Suspend Feature Updates And Quality Updates Using Group Policy Editor

Another way to pause Windows 10 update is by using the suspending the Feature and Quality updates using the Group Policy Editor. To suspend Feature updates, follow the steps given below:

1. Press the Windows key and type Edit Group Policy and select the appropriate option to launch the Local Group Policy Editor.
2. Navigate to the following location:
   Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > Windows Components > Windows Update > Windows Update for Business
3. Open the setting Select when Preview Builds and Feature Updates are received option.
4. Set this policy to Enable and enter 365 in the After preview build or Feature Update is released, defer receiving it for this many days option’s space.
   The maximum you can suspend is 365 days.

5. Click on Apply and OK to save the changes.

To suspend Quality updates, follow the steps given below:

1. Navigate to the Windows Update for Business folder in the Group Policy Editor again.
2. This time open the Select when Quality Updates are received option.
3. Set it Enabled and enter 30 in the After a quality update is released, defer receiving it for this many days option.
   30 days is the maximum you can suspend Quality updates.

4. Click on Apply and OK to save the changes.

(Bonus Tip) How To Turn Off Pause Updates In Windows 10?

If for some reason you want to Turn Off Pause Updates in Windows 10 or disable it, then you can do so using the following method.

To disable the Pause Updates in Windows 10 using Local Policy Editor, follow the steps given below:

1. Press the Windows + R key to open the Run utility.
2. Type gpedit.msc and press Enter. Local Group Policy Editor will open on your screen.

3. Navigate to the following location:
   Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > Windows Components > Windows Update
4. Locate and double-click on the Remove access to “Pause updates” feature policy.
5. Set the policy to Enabled.

6. Finally, click on Apply and OK to save the changes.

After the above steps, the Pause Updates feature will be turned off.

Wrapping Up

So, there you have it. Now you know how to pause a Windows update. Follow the steps given above carefully and you should not face any issues. If you have any questions related to this topic, then ask them in the comment section below.