How to turn off automatic updates on Windows 10

[debbie.jean.bro]

To stop Windows 10 from automatically updating, here are the steps:


1. Go to your start menu and click on Settings.


2. Click on Updates and security.


3. Under Windows Update, you will have the option to NOT have Windows updated "while you are on a metered connection." Sorry, I forgot to save that screen. :-). But this (above) is what it looks like when you go to this screen again and have updates available. You have two choices: Windows will automatically update when you plug into an unmetered connection, or you can manually start the download at a time of your choosing (I'll do it during bonus bytes time).


I HOPE THIS HELPS! 🙂

[HughesNetCorpor]

Good Morning Chewagirl..

Hope you don't mind me adding that this only works if you are using a router.
If your computer is directly connected to your HughesNet modem via Ethernet cable, you will be unable to set your connection as 'metered' and all updates will continue to download automatically.

[dunahue]

in the case of a wired connection to modem, how can you stop Windows automatic updates?

[GabeU]

@dunahue

What's in the picture works in Windows 10 Fall Creators Update version.

If you have Windows 10 Pro, Enterprise or Education, you can use the following.  It worked perfectly for me for Pro.  I used the Group Policy Editor Method.  

https://www.windowscentral.com/how-stop-updates-installing-automatically-windows-10

[debbie.jean.bro]

Thanks for pointing that out, xoxo! I was not aware of that. That's the great thing about this community--we can all learn from each other. 🙂

[HughesNetCorpor]

No worries,
ROFL! I just learned it myself about 3 weeks ago.

[Liz]

Hi Chewagirl,

Thanks for offering your advice! Since you're on Windows, you can use the included Snipping Tool to create screenshots. Saves you the trouble of using your camera to take pictures of your monitor. 🙂

-Liz

[motobojo]

I am a user of the metered connection hack to control the timing of my update downloads.  Please be aware that Microsoft Office updates won't happen when you have metered connection set.  Office detects that updates are available and reminds you of that fact.  However, when you go through the series of prompts to actually get the update to download the download will silently fail.  This is despite the fact that it detects you have 'metered connection' set and verifies that you would like to override it for the purpose of the download.  I found that in order to get the update I needed to temporarily disable the metered connection setting.  I spent quite a number of cycles trying to figure out why the Office update would not complete. 

[MarkJFine]

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@motobojowrote:

I found that in order to get the update I needed to temporarily disable the metered connection setting.  I spent quite a number of cycles trying to figure out why the Office update would not complete. 

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Unfortunately, I just found this to be true this week. You have to go into the settings, temporarily unset the metered connection, and requery for an update. Otherwise you're just sitting around, waiting for something that never will happen.

The downside of this is that allows Win10 to do any other updates as well, so you have to make sure there's nothing waiting in the background in Security/Updates first.

And someone else mentioned an Ethernet connection can't be set to metered... I run Win10 in a VM on a Mac using a shared mode virtual ethernet connection. Unless this is something particular to running under a VM, you have to select the actual ethernet connection and flip it to metered separately, but it is there and it does work - for me at least.
Selecting the Ethernet Network.

 Switching metered connection.