Delaying Windows 10 Updates

Some version of this will be part of the upcoming new version of the Win10 Tweak Guide. This article is as much to keep my thoughts straight as it is for your info.

Lately it seems every update released by Microsoft breaks something. I can no longer recommend installing Windows Updates when they are released. Instead I tell folks to wait before installing updates and watch the usual Geek sites for news on if/what the newest updates broke. To delay updates in Win10 you must be running Windows 10 Pro, Enterprise, or Education. Or, not Windows 10 Home.
We’re going to be doing this via Group Policy. If you are unfamiliar with Group Policy see:
Microsoft – Group Policy for Beginners
Microsoft TechNet – Group Policy Management Console
Microsoft TechNet – Group Policy Overview

To open the Group Policy console press the Windows + R keys and type gpedit.msc .
Navigate to: Local Computer Policy > Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > Windows Components > Windows Updates > Defer Windows Updates.
FYI there are 2 kinds of updates: Feature Updates are things like the Anniversary Update and Quality Updates are security and bugfix updates.

Double-click on Select when Feature Updates are received > click the radio button next to Enabled >
in the Options section set the number of days to what you desire. I use 30 as a default. If you want to max out the delay which is 180 days the check the Pause feature updates box. This allows you to extend the delay by another 60 days.
Click Apply and OK to Save your settings.
Here are the registry keys:
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\WindowsUpdate]
“DeferFeatureUpdates”=dword:00000001
“BranchReadinessLevel”=dword:00000010
“DeferFeatureUpdatesPeriodInDays”=dword:0000001e

(“DeferFeatureUpdatesPeriodInDays”=dword: —– values: 0000001e=30 , 0000003c=60 , 000000b4=180

To add the Pause feature updates option:
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\WindowsUpdate]
“PauseFeatureUpdates”=dword:00000001

Double-click on Select when Quality Updates are received > click the radio button next to Enabled >
in the Options section set the number of days to what you desire. I use 15 as a default. If you want to max out the delay which is 30 days the check the Pause quality updates box. This allows you to extend the delay by another 35 days.
Click Apply and OK to Save your settings.

[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\WindowsUpdate]
“DeferQualityUpdates”=dword:00000001
“DeferQualityUpdatesPeriodInDays”=dword:0000000f

(“DeferQualityUpdatesPeriodInDays”=dword: —– values: 0000000f=15 , 0000001e=30)

 

Disable Driver Updates
To disable driver updates via Window Update open the Group Policy console by pressing the Windows + R keys and type gpedit.msc .
Navigate to: Local Computer Policy > Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > Windows Components > Windows Updates. Scroll down and double-click on Do not include drivers with Windows Updates > click the radio button next to Enabled > Click Apply and OK to Save your settings.
Registry settings:
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\WindowsUpdate]
“ExcludeWUDriversInQualityUpdate”=dword:00000001

– – – – – – – – – –
All registry entries. Maxed out.

Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00

[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\WindowsUpdate]
"ExcludeWUDriversInQualityUpdate"=dword:00000001
"DeferFeatureUpdates"=dword:00000001
"BranchReadinessLevel"=dword:00000010
"DeferFeatureUpdatesPeriodInDays"=dword:000000b4
"PauseFeatureUpdates"=dword:00000001
"DeferQualityUpdates"=dword:00000001
"DeferQualityUpdatesPeriodInDays"=dword:0000001e
"PauseQualityUpdates"=dword:00000001

– – – – – – – – – –

 

Helpful sources for this article:
Microsoft – Configure Windows Update for Business
Microsoft – Manage updates using Windows Update for Business
Microsoft – Group Policy Settings Reference for Windows and Windows Server
 

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