Follow ZDNET: Add us as a preferred source on Google.
Earlier this year, Microsoft said it would work on fixing “pain points” in Windows 11. The first changes in that effort are beginning to appear, targeting one of the most painful points of all: Windows Update.
Everyone who’s ever owned a Windows PC has a story about an update that insisted on installing at the absolute wrong time, usually just as you’re getting ready to join an important online meeting or deliver a presentation.
Also: Microsoft’s Windows Insider Program is no longer a confusing mess
The latest round of improvements, announced in a blog post titled “Your Windows update experience just got updated,” should make those infuriating moments a thing of the past. But don’t celebrate just yet — they have to go through a full round of testing in the Windows Insider program before they reach the general public.
I’ve enabled the new Windows Update experience on a test PC running the latest build from the Windows Insider Experimental channel (formerly known as Dev), and I can confirm that at least one option is working now, although it won’t be possible to see the rest of the changes in action until the next round of updates are available.
Here’s what’s coming.
1. You’ll be able to delay updates for as long as you want
For years, Microsoft has offered the ability to pause updates for up to 35 days, using a drop-down menu on the Windows Update page with options ranging from 1 week to 5 weeks. But when that pause ended, no more delays were possible.
The new interface lets you choose a specific date from a calendar control on the Windows Update page, up to 35 days in advance.
Instead of pausing updates a week at a time, you will be able to choose a specific end date — and extend it indefinitely.
Screenshot by Ed Bott/ZDNET
And if you need more time?
When 35 days just isn’t long enough, we are also enabling you to extend the pause end date as many times as you need. This means you can now re-pause for up to 35 days at a time, with no limits on how many times you can reset the pause end date.
Delaying security updates indefinitely is a bad idea, of course, but it’s encouraging to see Microsoft give users the freedom to do even dumb things with the PC they own and control.
2. You’ll have more control over restarts
The flip side of that painful scenario is when an update is downloaded and ready to install, but you don’t have the time to finish the job. In that situation, you’re covered: On the Power menu, the regular Shut Down and Restart options will be available, alongside the corresponding “Update and shut down” and “Update and restart” choices.
Also: Microsoft account vs. local account: How to choose and set up your pick in Windows 11
I’ll be curious to see how this one works in practice. From experience, I know that a half-installed update that’s waiting for a restart can make Windows behave in unpredictable ways. But again, it’s good to have control over when that update gets finished.
3. You should see only one restart a month
The single biggest complaint I hear from readers about Windows Update is that there are Too. Damn. Many. Of. Them. The fix? Those updates will be consolidated to a single batch, with a single monthly restart.
We know this has been a major pain point for Windows users, so as of today, we’re unifying the update experience to reduce the number of reboots you see every month.
We are starting by coordinating driver, .NET, and firmware updates to align with the monthly quality update, reducing update experience to a single monthly restart.
[…]
Updates will download in the background, then will wait for a coordinated installation and restart. This installation and restart will align with the next Windows quality update or other update that you manually approve.
If you’re in one of the Insider preview programs, you’ll get weekly updates, although they can be delayed as well. If you’re what Microsoft calls a “Persistent Seeker,” who regularly checks for new updates, you’ll get two a month: the regular Patch Tuesday update and the preview update on the fourth Tuesday of the month, with any other available updates included in that batch.
4. You won’t be forced to install updates when setting up a new Windows PC
This one has driven me crazy, because the period to download and install those updates can easily take a half-hour or more, when what you really want to do is get to work and let the latest updates arrive in the background while you get the rest of the new PC ready for use.
That choice is available today on all Windows editions.
5. You’ll have more information on updates
At the end of 2025, Microsoft simplified its update titles. That process might have made things a little too simple. Exactly what is that driver update that’s ready to install? Who knows?
Also: If Microsoft really wants to fix Windows 11, it should do these four things ASAP
So, the commitment going forward is to add some of those details back, especially for driver updates, which “often have similar, if not identical, titles.”
To help provide you with more insights, we have added the device class to the driver title – ensuring pending or installed driver updates clarify whether they apply to display, audio, battery, extension, HDC, or other applicable driver update classes.
The new controls should begin appearing in Beta builds in the next month or two, and while there’s no word on exactly when they’ll begin appearing in public updates, my guess is that those could be ready as early as September.
Now, about those other pain points…
