Windows – With Windows 10 how can I shut down without installing updates

windows 10windows update

With Windows 7 it was possible to use the task manager screen to shut down without applying updates (see How to shut down the computer without the update on Windows 7? ). But that did not work for me on Windows 10.

How can I shut down Windows 10 without installing updates. I might want this because:

  • I need to shut down or reboot quickly
  • The computer is acting funny and that's why I need to reboot (yeah, it's still Windows), and I don't trust running updates at that time. No point in making a bad problem worse.

My Window 10 shutdown menu reads:

  • Sleep
  • Update and shut down
  • Update and restart

The old Windows 7/8 trick does not work. New versions of Windows 10 have altered previous workarounds. Microsoft has lots of feedback on the topic, but has not taken action. See for example:

feedback-hub:?contextid=158&feedbackid=1e175952-a19f-4cca-b1fb-d248945e9fe1&form=1&src=2

Or search "Allow users to defer updates: on shutdown and on startup." in the Microsoft Feedback Hub (search for "Feedback Hub" in Windows 10).

Best Answer

Edit: This solution is deprecated for current versions of Win 10. See other answers for possible solutions.

I had the same problem - @TNALLY almost had it.

My solution:

  • Power Options -> Choose what the power buttons do
  • set option to shutdown
  • press power button once - hurray: shutdown without updates
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