How to Cancel Windows 10 Updates Midway Through

Once the Windows 10 update has started, you cannot directly cancel it while it's in progress. However, you can try the following methods to stop or pause the update process: 1. **Shutdown or Restart your PC**: This is not a recommended method but if you urgently need to stop the update, you can forcefully shut down or restart your computer. It may cause issues with your system, so proceed with caution. 2. **Using Services Manager**: - Press `Win + R` to open the Run dialog. - Type `services.msc` and hit Enter to open Services. - Locate the `Windows Update` service in the list. - Right-click on it and select `Stop`. This will stop the service, preventing further update activity. - To resume updates later, right-click and choose `Start`. 3. **Using Command Prompt** (This method works for pausing updates, not stopping an ongoing one): - Open Command Prompt as an Administrator by right-clicking the Start button and selecting 'Command Prompt (Admin)'. - Type the following command and press Enter: ``` wmic path softwareluauinstallsession where (sessionid='your_session_id') call endinstall ``` Replace 'your_session_id' with the actual session ID, which you can find in the Task Manager under the Processes tab. 4. **Prevent Automatic Updates**: - Open Settings > Update & Security > Windows Update. - Click on `Advanced options`. - Under 'Update Options', disable 'Automatically download updates'. Remember that stopping or pausing updates might leave your system vulnerable to security risks. It's always advisable to keep your Windows up to date. If you need to delay an update, consider setting active hours or using the 'Pause updates' option in the Advanced settings.

"I am exhausted from continually receiving Windows 10 updates since they download the update files onto my computer without seeking any approval, and then proceed to install themselves at shutdown without delay. I don't wish to disable all automatic updates, but I desperately need guidance on how to remove certain unwanted updates, even if they have already been downloaded. That's my main concern. I'm hoping there might be a method to cancel Windows updates once they have begun."

Can You Disable an Automatic Windows 10 Update on Your PC/Laptop?

It's helpful to understand how Microsoft delivers Windows updates to you and how they were installed on your computer beforehand.

Here's the overall process in English:

A new Windows 10 update is released -> Microsoft pushes the update to its Insider community -> By default, the update will be downloaded in the background -> Upon completion of the download, it will prompt you to either install the update immediately or install the updates and then shut down your device.

Where Can You Interrupt an Ongoing Update?

There are three stages through which individuals can undo an unwanted update, and the provided link offers the corresponding solutions.

Stage 1: Permanently disable Windows 10 automatic updates for each edition, including Home, Professional, Enterprise, or Education. Consider carefully before proceeding, as this action ensures that you will not automatically receive future updates.

Stage 2: You've received notification that the latest Windows 10 update has downloaded successfully on your computer, and the Shut Down option in the Start Menu has been replaced with Install Updates and Shut Down. At this point, you can still stop the ongoing Windows 10 update process.

Stage 3. Beware of this stage! Once the update is officially launched after the computer shutting down, there is no 100% safe way to stop it. Here comes the problem. When the update starts installing, it may take some time, maybe even forever (as discussed in this article: "Windows 10 Update Taking Forever in 2018"), and many users will lose their patience. Eventually, they forcefully shut down the computer to interrupt the updating process.

What happens if you forcibly stop the Windows Update while it's in progress?

Any interruption during the process could potentially damage your operating system. Generally, here are some commonly known issues caused by an abrupt shutdown of a computer while it's updating: 1. Corrupted System Files: Sudden power off or shutdown during an update can lead to corruption of essential system files. These files are crucial for the proper functioning of your OS, and corruption might result in instability or failure to boot. 2. Incomplete Updates: An interrupted update may leave your system with partially installed patches or software, which can cause instability, errors, or even render your system inoperable until the update is completed correctly. 3. Data Loss: If you had any unsaved work open when the shutdown occurred, you risk losing that data. This applies to documents, projects, or any changes made to your system settings. 4. Hardware Issues: Although less common, a forceful shutdown can stress hardware components, particularly the hard drive, leading to potential hardware failures in the long run. 5. Compatibility Issues: If an update was in progress to address driver compatibility, an abrupt shutdown can leave your system with outdated or incompatible drivers, causing conflicts with hardware or software. 6. Security Risks: Unfinished security updates can leave your system vulnerable to malware and other cyber threats, as the latest security patches might not have been properly installed. To avoid these issues, it's crucial to ensure a stable power source and to not interrupt the update process. If a shutdown does occur, you may need to perform a system restore, repair, or reinstall the operating system to recover from the damage.

• Computer hard drive fails to boot, showing a completely black screen with or without a cursor present.
• Appearance of the Blue Screen of Death accompanied by error messages indicating that the operating system is not found or system files have become corrupted.

Best Method to Cancel a Windows 10 Update Once It Has Begun

As you can gather, canceling an update while it's installing carries a significant risk. To prevent the possibility of rendering your computer unusable or "bricked," we have some alternative suggestions for you.

Here's how you should implement this idea.

Frequently back up your Windows 10 operating system using tools like Todo Backup. It's a dependable backup software for disk/partition backup, file backup, and system backup. Store the system backup image on external storage devices like a USB drive or cloud storage options.

When a Windows 10 update is attempting to install on your PC without your consent, wait patiently for the update to complete. Afterwards, utilize a backup tool such as Todo Backup to restore your computer to a previous system state.

* To perform system recovery on a non-bootable machine, try to boot the computer using the Todo Backup Emergency Disk.

Step 1. Launch Todo Backup, and click "Browse to Recover".

Step 2. Navigate to your backup destination, and select the system backup file you need. (The backup file created by Todo Backup tool is a PBD file.)

Step 3. Select the recovery disk. Ensure that the partition style of the source disk and the recovery disk are identical.

Step 4. You can customize the disk layout as per your requirements. Click "Proceed" to initiate system backup recovery.