A number of users have been wanting to know how they can possibly stop the forced updates policy of Windows 10 on their PCs.
While in essence, automatic updates should be a good thing, there are some of them which seemed troublesome and create more harm than good. Several issues have already been encountered by users since that time when Windows Update was launched. These include an unstable graphics driver which causes the monitor to suddenly switch off, a buggy security patch which in turn corrupted Windows Explorer and a patch which causes Windows 10 PCs to crash repeatedly. The said patch is identified as KB3081424.
During the patch's update process, it would suddenly show a failed warning before giving out a message to the user. It then says, "We couldn't complete the updates, undoing the changes."
Since there's no way of stopping Windows 10 updates, installing KB3081424 only ends up in a series of system reboots.
Luckily, there are now ways that have been discovered in order to avoid the annoyance brought by such type of updates.
For users who had the same trouble of installing KB3081424, they can do these steps in order to get rid of the annoying registry entry.
The Smaller Picture
According to Gordon Kelly of Forbes, they first need to type "regedit" in the Start menu.
Next, in the opened window, users should navigate to: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINESOFTWAREMicrosoftWindowsNTCurrentVersionProfileList.
Since the task on hand is risky, users should also backup the registry key. This can be done by highlighting the ProfileList, clicking File and Export and then choosing a backup name.
The next step is to scan through the ProfileList IDs and then delete those found with ProfileImagePath.
Lastly, they need to close regedit and then reboot.
If these steps are followed properly, there shouldn't be an issue the next time that the user tries to install KB3081424.
The Bigger Picture
There are at least three methods that users can choose from in order to stop the automatic updates on Windows 10. These are mostly applicable to those updates that are delivered through the Windows Update Service.
The first option is to "Stop the Windows Update Service."
In order to do this, the user should first open the Run command and then type "services.msc" before pressing the "Enter" key. The Services list would then appear. From here, the user should find the Windows Update service and then open it. Under the General tab, the user should change "Startup Type" into "Disabled." Lastly, he needs to restart his PC.
Re-enabling Windows Update is done using the same steps except in that part when the user has to change the "Startup Type." In this case, it should be changed into "Automatic."
The second option is to "Setup a Metered Connection."
The user needs to open the Settings app. Next, he should open the section called "Network & Internet." Afterwards, he should open "WiFi" and then click "Advanced Options." Lastly, he needs to look for the words that say "Set as metered connection" and then toggle it to "On."
The third and last option is the "Group Policy Editor."
The first thing to do is to open the Run command and then type "gpedit.msc before pressing "Enter." Next step is navigating to these four areas: Computer Configuration, Administrative Templates, Windows Components and Windows Update. Upon reaching the latter, the user needs to open it, look for "Configure Automatic Updates" and change the setting to "2 - Notify for download and notify for install." Afterwards, the user should open the Settings app and then navigate to: Update and Security, Windows Updates. He should then click "Check for Updates" and then restart his PC.
The Group Policy Editor is only applicable to certain editions such as Windows 10 Education, Enterprise and Pro. For users who don't have group policy access, they can do the following steps.
1. Open the Run command and then type "regedit" before pressing "Enter."
2. Navigate to:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINESOFTWAREPoliciesMicrosoftWi
3. Create a "32-bit DWORD" value called "AuOptions." Under "Value Data," type "2" and then click "OK."
4. Open the Settings app and navigate to: Update and Security, Windows Updates. Click "Check for updates."
5. Restart.
