Windows updates are no longer mandatory but there’s catch

Windows updates have always felt a bit forced and intrusive. Frequent updates coupled with the mandate of downloading all the updates and updating your PC before restarting or shutting down can not only disrupt your workflow but get in the way of you working more efficiently. But that is about to change as Microsoft has announced new features that make forced Windows updates a thing of the past.

Windows users can pause updates for up to 35 days, (Microsoft)

Shweta Ganjoo is a Chief Content Producer at HT Tech. She has over 10 years of experience covering technology, during which time she has focused on consumer tech devices, AI, social media, gadgets, and tech policy, delivering authoritative and reader-focused insights across India’s fast-evolving digital ecosystem.

She began her career in the early 2010s, building a strong foundation in digital-first reporting as India’s tech landscape rapidly expanded. Over the years, she has worked with leading media organizations including India Today Tech, Indian Express Group, and Techlusive, where she played a key role in scaling editorial content and audience engagement. At HT Tech, she drives product recommendation coverage, combining newsroom leadership with hands-on reporting experience.

Her expertise spans smartphones, wearables, smart home devices, AI, and social media ecosystems, along with regulatory developments shaping the tech industry. Shweta is known for her analytical approach to product reviews and news coverage, grounded in hands-on testing and real-world usability. She has conducted industry interviews, tracked emerging tech trends, and produced research-backed stories using verified sources and expert inputs. She holds a masters in Mass Communication, which complements her professional experience in digital journalism and content strategy, and aligns with her academic background in technology. Shweta follows a reader-first editorial philosophy, prioritising accuracy, transparency, and fact-checked reporting to deliver reliable, insightful, and practical insights.

Pause your Windows updates indefinitely

First, Microsoft has announced that PC users can pause Windows updates when the company rolls and install them at a later date that is convenient for them. For instance, they can now plan their PC update at a time when they’re travelling or around the weekend when they are not busy in a conference or studying. However, users can pause Windows updates for up to 35 days at a time. When this 35-day-window expires, users can re-pause the updates for 35 days again.

Here’s the interesting bit. The company has put no limits on the number of times users can pause the updates. Simply put, Windows PC users can pause updating their PCs indefinitely 35 days at a time.

How to pause updates on your Windows PC

Here’s how Windows 11 users can pause updates on their PC:

Step 1: Select Start from the main menu.

Step 2: Click on the Settings option.

Step 3: Click on the Windows Update option.

Step 4: Select the amount of time you would like to pause the update for – Done!

Shutdown and Restart your PC without installing updates

Another pain point of Windows users is the inability to restart or shutdown their PCs without installing Windows updates. Microsoft is also fixing this issue. The company is giving Windows users separate Shutdown and Restart options that let users perform these actions without being forced to download and install the update then and there. This can come in handy when users are in a rush.

With this users will now get a total of 6 options — Lock, Sleep, Update and shut down, Shutdown, Update and restart, and Restart – instead of the standard four options, making updates easier and convenient.

Updating your PC multiple times in a month – no more

Lastly, Microsoft often releases updates to Windows PCs users multiple times in a month, which can be frustrating. To simplify this experience, Microsoft is unifying the update experience to reduce the number of reboots that users see every month.

The company said that it is coordinating driver, .NET, and firmware updates to align with the monthly quality update, which will reduce update experience to a single monthly restart. All these updates will download in the background and wait for a coordinated installation and restart. Users can then decide to install the updates and restart their PCs once all these updates have been downloaded, or with the next Windows quality update. Alternatively, they can also pause the installation until a later date within a 35-day window or re-pause the update.

Availability

As far as availability is concerned, Microsoft says that these updates are being rolled out to Windows users in the Dev channel and that regular users will get them soon.

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