Windows 10 automatically downloads and installs the updates to the system, thus ensuring a good user experience and higher security. With each update, multiple bugs and security issues are fixed.

Many users don’t want to install a particular update but if the automatic download and install feature is activated, there isn’t much they can do at the moment. In this article, we will discuss how to stop a Windows 10 update in progress and how to stop automatic updates.

Stop Windows Update in Progress

You can stop an update from being installed after it has been downloaded. It is however not recommended to stop an update while in the process since it can harm your computer and render it unusable.

To stop an update that has already been downloaded, open the Control Panel. To open the Control Panel, search for it in the start menu and then click on the icon.

In the control panel, select ‘System and Security’.

On the next window, click on ‘Security and Maintenance’ which is the first option.

In Security and Maintenance, select ‘Maintenance’.

Now click on ‘Stop maintenance’ under Automatic Maintenance.

Any update downloaded to your system will not install now. It will, however, not stop the Windows from detecting updates and download them. If you don’t want to download updates, then you have to modify the settings.

Stop Windows 10 Updates

Search for ‘Services’ in the Start Menu, right-click on it and select ‘Run as administrator’.

In the services window, scroll and look for ‘Windows Update’, right-click on it, and then select ‘Stop’ from the menu.

Windows Update automatically detects, downloads, and installs the updates for Windows. By stopping it, you’ve ensured that Windows will no longer download and install updates automatically.

If the need arises, you can revert any of the changes made above by following the same process.