group policy for Windows update on Windows 11

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hi all,

Susan Bradley had written an excellent article on using group policy for Windows updates on Windows 10.  I used her instructions on all my Windows 10 computers.  I thought that I could still use that guide for Windows 11, but Windows 11 group policy editor is different.  Is there a similar guide out there for Windows 11?  TIA

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The settings are basically the same in Win11, but in a different location.
Here are my Group Policy settings that will give the same results as for Win10 in AKB2000016.

Legacy Policy – old settings, none configured

EndUserExperience – Set “2” (Notify download/install) and disable drop-in “features”

WindowsServer – settings for Business w/ updates controlled by Servers, none configured

From WinUpdate – exclude drivers in WU and set Target Release Version

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lmacri

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okay just glancing over your screen shots, I see Susan’s article gets into a little more detail, if that is the right word, in that she actually sets deferral periods (20 days for quality updates and 180 days for feature updates).  Forgive my not being the sharpest knife in the drawer, but if you select option 2 to notify to download and auto install, what happens then?  When does the said notification come and what do you do when you get it?  Just sit on it for awhile?  Let’s say I am lazy and want to put things on autopilot using the above deferral periods.  How would I do that?  Use the legacy folder?  TIA

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With “2” set, the updates appear in the Windows Update queue on Patch Tuesday, but they DO NOT download to the PC and install until you click on the “Download” button (that is not “Check for updates”).
When you use this method, you do not set “Pause.” When you set Pause, it disables the Windows Update Service so it cannot scan for updates for the Pause period. This prevents the updates from showing up in the WU queue so you will not see any available updates. And when you un-Pause (Resume updates) it results in an immediate download/install of ALL available updates. Using the “2” setting, the updates do not download/install until YOU click on the “Download” button. So there is no need for for deferral either. You could actually let them sit there until the next Patch Tues (not usually recommended).

If you want to hide updates (not install certain ones) you can use wushowhide to do so, because all the updates just sit there until you choose to install them. Wushowhide will list all the available updates and you can just check the boxes for the ones you don’t want.

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oops PK I didn’t hit refresh before I edited my previous post.   I get it now.  Thanks for explaining it.   What you said is great advice for ME, but I was thinking more about my daughter that is about to be leaving for college.   She is not tech savvy when it comes to pc’s.  Cell phones yes.  I am looking for a way to set her computer up so she doesn’t have to do anything.  The updates will be deferred so an untested update won’t hose her computer, but she won’t have to worry about it.  I HOPE she will be too busy with her studies to worry about her pc lol!

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