Preventing Windows 10 from updating to Windows 11

[avatar user="Jamie Poindexter" size="thumbnail" align="left" link="file" /]by Jamie Poindexter | Feb 8, 2022 | Jamie's Tech Corner, Our blogIf you are hesitant to install Microsoft’s new Windows 11 you are not the only one. Many Windows 10 users are being prompted to install the update and some even reporting it forces the update without permission to. Software compatibility, stability and the fear of change are good reasons to not update right away. Here are some ways to stop the upgrade from taking place so you can stay on Windows 10.Pause updates:This is the easiest way to prevent the upgrade from taking place. Open Settings and then Update and Security. Choose the Pause Updates for 7 Days option.

This will pause all windows updates from being installed. The downside to this method is it prevents all updates including Windows 10 patches from being installed. Also as the button states its only good for 7 days then you have to remember to do the same to keep pausing the updates.Stay on Windows 10 for now:As the below screenshot shows, you may have the option to stay on Windows 10 using the “Stay on Windows 10 for now” link next to the Windows 11 upgrade prompt.

If your PC has already downloaded the update and is ready to install you will see this option under Update and Security. Choosing this will keep you on Windows 10 but still allow patches to be installed. If you later decide to upgrade to Windows 11 you will need to use the upgrade assistant tool to install the update - https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/software-download/windows11This is a good option if you are getting the above prompt. If your PC is not yet ready for the update you may not have this option. The next option will prevent the download from taking place and stop it before it starts.Block the update in the registry:If you are not familiar with editing the registry you may want to choose one of the above options, but the method is pretty easy to do. Open regedit from the run box.Browse to the following key: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINESOFTWAREPoliciesMicrosoftWindowsWindowsUpdateYou may have to right click on Windows and choose New->Key and name it WindowsUpdateNow right click on the new key and choose New->Dword (32-bit) Value. The enter TargetReleaseVersion for the name and hit enter. Double click on the new key and enter 1 then click ok.

Now right click on the WindowsUpdate key again and choose New->String Value. Name it TargetReleaseVersionInfo and hit enter. Open the new key and enter 21H2 and click ok. Note that at the time of this writing the latest feature pack is 21H2. Microsoft may release new packs in the future so this value may need to be adjusted to reflect the latest version of Windows 10.

And that’s it! Restart the PC for the change to take effect.Reverting to Windows 10 from 11:If you accidently installed Windows 11 you can still revert back to Windows 10. Check out this link to walk you through the steps to go back to Windows 10:https://www.windowscentral.com/how-roll-back-windows-10-if-windows-11-preview-acting