With recently released Windows 10 Insider Preview build 18282, Microsoft has introduced ability to pause Windows Updates. Using the initial release of this feature, users can pause Windows Updates for a week (7 days).

How To Pause Windows Updates In Windows 10

To use or configure Pause updates feature, you need to go to Settings app > Update & Security > Windows Update.

Then in the right pane, click on Pause updates for 7 days link.

How To Allow/Prevent Users To Pause Updates In Windows 10

This will immediately pause Windows Updates on your system. Meanwhile, if you need to resume Windows Updates again, you can click on Resume updates button.

How To Allow/Prevent Users To Pause Updates In Windows 10

Now in this article, we’ll see how to enable or disable this newly introduced Pause updates feature.

How To Allow/Prevent Users To Pause Updates In Windows 10

Registry Disclaimer: The further steps will involve registry manipulation. Making mistakes while manipulating registry could affect your system adversely. So be careful while editing registry entries and create a System Restore point first.

1. Press W8K + R and put regedit in Run dialog box to open Registry Editor (if you’re not familiar with Registry Editor, then click here). Click OK.

Windows 10 Registry Editor

2. In left pane of Registry Editor window, navigate to following registry key:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\WindowsUpdate

How To Allow/Prevent Users To Pause Updates In Windows 10

3. Now in the right pane of WindowsUpdate registry key, right click in blank space, select New > DWORD Value. Name the newly created registry DWORD (REG_DWORD) as SetDisablePauseUXAccess. This registry DWORD can be used to allow/prevent users to pause updates in Windows 10. Double click on this registry DWORD to modify its Value data:

How To Allow/Prevent Users To Pause Updates In Windows 10

4. Finally, set the Value data to 1 and click OK to prevent users from pausing updates. Close Registry Editor and reboot to make changes effective.

After restarting the machine, you’ll realize that user access to Pause updates feature is disabled. In short, users can’t pause updates now.

How To Allow/Prevent Users To Pause Updates In Windows 10

To allow users to pause updates later, simply delete SetDisablePauseUXAccess DWORD or set it to 0.

Group Policy Setting: If you want to allow/prevent users from pausing updates on multiple machines in your organization/workplace, you can deploy the relevant GPO setting(s). Configure Remove access to “Pause updates” feature setting at Computer configuration > Administrative templates > Windows Components > Windows Update to Enabled/Disabled. The setting is available on Windows 10 Version 1809 or later.

That’s it!

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