

Pro and Enterprise Users: Stop Driver Updates with the Local Group Policy Editor If you enjoy fiddling with the registry, you can make your own registry hacks. reg file and select “Edit” to see exactly what they do. The “Disable Automatic Driver Updates” hack adds the value to your Registry, and the “Enable Automatic Driver Updates” file deletes it. These hacks just change the setting we covered above. RELATED: How to Make Your Own Windows Registry Hacks Double-click the one you want to use, agree to add its data to your Registry, and then restart your PC. Both are included in the following ZIP file. The other disables this option, restoring the default behavior. One enables this option, preventing Windows Update from automatically installing driver updates. If you don’t feel like diving into the registry yourself, we’ve created two downloadable registry hacks you can use. To undo this change, return to the above location in the registry, right-click the ExcludeWUDriversInQualityUpdate value, and delete it. You may need to restart your PC before your changes take effect. To get started, open the Registry Editor by hitting Start and typing “regedit.” Press Enter to open Registry Editor and give it permission to make changes to your PC. And definitely back up the Registry (and your computer!) before making changes. That said, if you’ve never worked with it before, consider reading about how to use the Registry Editor before you get started. This is a pretty simple hack and as long as you stick to the instructions, you shouldn’t have any problems. Standard warning: The Registry Editor is a powerful tool and misusing it can render your system unstable or even inoperable. RELATED: Learning to Use the Registry Editor Like a Pro Microsoft added this hidden option in the Anniversary Update. This should prevent Windows 10 Home from installing driver updates, but Microsoft could change this behavior at any time and ignore this setting on Windows 10 Home. (If you have Pro or Enterprise, though, we recommend using the Group Policy Editor, as described later in this article.) You can also do it this way if you have Windows Pro or Enterprise, but just feel more comfortable working in the Registry as opposed to Group Policy Editor. On Windows 10 Home, you can only change this option via the Registry. Home Users: Stop Driver Updates by Editing the Registry
