Why Does Windows Keep Interrupting Me with Updates, and How Do I Stop It?
Windows interrupts you because it can only install updates and restart while your computer is switched on. If you never give it time to install the updates. It's going to install them when you don't want them installed. Microsoft's own Windows Update FAQ says you cannot stop updates entirely. Nor should you want to, because they are what keep criminals out of your computer. The fix is to restart once or twice a week at a time you choose, so Windows never has to choose for you.
The restart you keep putting off is the interruption
Picture a team member who shuts their laptop down every evening and switches it on at 9am. Their computer is never on when it is idle, so it never gets a quiet moment to finish installing updates.
The updates do not go away. They pile up, and the longer the computer goes without a restart, the more there are waiting. At some point, Windows stops asking and forces a restart. It does that during the working day, because that is the only time the computer is on. That is the interruption in the middle of your video call.
Instead, give Windows a few minutes to install these updates at a time that suits you; tell it to restart as you head to lunch or as you finish your day. Then you'll completely eliminate Windows from installing updates at times that don't suit you.
Why can you not just turn updates off?
Because the updates are the protection. The National Cyber Security Centre says most cyber security incidents come from attackers exploiting vulnerabilities that have already been made public. Attackers go after them "as soon as they have been disclosed". Its advice is to install security updates as soon as possible and turn on automatic updates.
Cyber Essentials, the UK government's baseline security standard, turns that into a deadline. The April 2026 requirements say updates that fix critical or high-risk vulnerabilities must be installed within 14 days of release. A computer that is switched off every night and never restarted can quietly fall outside that window. If your business holds or wants Cyber Essentials, that matters. Kimbley IT has written separately about how you pass Cyber Essentials on Google Workspace.
Windows itself will not let you turn off updates. You can pause them for up to 35 days, and when the pause ends, they install anyway. Microsoft's FAQ puts it plainly: "updates will eventually need to be installed and downloaded, regardless of your update settings".
Windows now asks for one restart a month
Until recently, Windows could ask you to restart several times a month. Driver updates, .NET updates, and firmware updates each arrived on their own schedule, and each wanted a restart.
Microsoft has stopped that. It explains the change in a support note published on 14 August 2026, One restart a month for Windows updates. From the updates released on 28 July 2026 onwards, Windows holds anything that needs a restart. It then installs the lot alongside the monthly security update. That update comes out on the second Tuesday of every month, which is why you often hear it called Patch Tuesday. The result, in Microsoft's words, is "a more predictable update experience with fewer interruptions".
There are two caveats. Microsoft says the change is rolling out gradually, so not every computer has it yet. And some things still install straight away, including Microsoft Defender's virus definitions and emergency fixes. Most of those do not need a restart at all.
The most useful sentence in that note is the last one. Windows "will not hold updates indefinitely". If the combined update has been pending for a long time, Windows will install it and restart whether you like it or not.
What does Kimbley IT do about this?
Kimbley IT manages updates on every computer it supports and sets the hours during which those computers are allowed to restart. Those hours are outside the working day. On a computer that is on and idle in the evening, the update installs, the restart happens, and nobody notices.
The catch is the same one from the start of this post. A computer that has been shut down cannot restart. Kimbley IT can schedule the restart for 8pm every day of the year, but if the laptop is in a bag, nothing happens. The updates wait, and eventually Windows forces the restart at a time nobody chose.
How do you actually stop the interruptions?
Restart your computer once or twice a week at a time of your choosing. Pick a moment that costs you nothing, such as when you are about to go for lunch, and choose Restart from the Start menu. Pending updates install then, in a few minutes, and Windows has nothing left to force on you.
Use "Update and shut down" when you see it. When an update is waiting, the power menu offers Update and shut down or Update and restart. Pick one of those when you finish for the day instead of plain Shut down, and the update finishes while you put your coat on.
Set your active hours. Windows lets you set a time window when you normally work, and it avoids automatic restarts during that time. Microsoft's guide to active hours shows the two options. Let Windows determine them based on how you use the computer, or set them yourself under Settings > Windows Update > Advanced options.
Leave it on overnight if an interruption would cost you money. Windows can only install updates while the computer is on. A computer that is never on when idle will only ever update while you are using it. Leaving it on overnight is not the greenest option, nor is it the default advice. But a night of electricity may cost less than getting thrown off a client call. If so, leave it plugged in and on, and let the update run while you sleep. Microsoft's FAQ recommends keeping laptops plugged in when not in use for exactly this reason.
Do not pause updates for weeks. Pausing is fine for a day when you cannot afford any disruption. Pausing for the full 35 days just moves the pile-up forward and makes the eventual restart longer.
| What Windows Is Telling You, and What to Do About It | ||
| What you see | What is happening | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| Orange dot on the power button (Update and restart) | An update has downloaded and is waiting for a restart to finish. Windows will restart outside your active hours if the computer is on then. | Choose Update and restart at a time that suits you, such as before lunch. It takes a few minutes. |
| Update and shut down (in the power menu) | The same waiting update, offered at the end of the day. | Pick it instead of plain Shut down. The update installs while you pack up, and tomorrow starts clean. |
| Working on updates. Don't turn off your PC | The update is installing. Cutting the power now can leave it half done and Windows will have to undo it. | Leave it plugged in and wait. If the screen has not moved for a long time, contact your IT support rather than holding the power button. |
| Restart scheduled (or a countdown to restart) | Windows has been waiting too long and is about to restart on its own, whether or not you are in a call. | Save your work and restart now, on your terms. Then get into the habit of a weekly restart so it does not happen again. |
| Updates paused | Someone has paused updates. Windows allows up to 35 days, then installs everything that has built up. | Resume updates unless there is a specific reason for the pause. A long pause means a long restart later. |
Frequently asked questions
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If the computer loses power part-way through an update, Windows normally undoes the half-finished install on the next start. You may see "Undoing changes" on screen, and it tries again later. Do not force it off with the power button, because that is the most common way people cause the problem they were trying to avoid. Keep laptops plugged in during a restart. If the update screen has not moved for a long time, contact your IT support rather than pulling the plug.
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Microsoft says the download time depends on your internet speed and the size of the update, and that monthly updates are "quite small". The restart to install them usually takes a few minutes. The annual feature update, which is a new version of Windows, takes longer, and that is the one Kimbley IT schedules out of hours. If you restart regularly you will rarely see anything but the short one.
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It does the computer no harm. It uses electricity, and that is the only real cost. Leaving it on and plugged in is the surest way to let updates install without you noticing. It is a reasonable choice for anyone whose working day cannot be interrupted.
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Because Microsoft releases a security update every month, on the second Tuesday, and other updates arrive between them. With the one restart a month change, those other updates now wait and install together with the monthly one. If your laptop seems to update constantly, it is usually because it has not been restarted for a while and is catching up.
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No. You can pause them for up to 35 days, and you can set active hours so they do not restart the computer while you work. Windows will install them in the end. Every computer Kimbley IT supports is kept up to date deliberately, because the updates are what stop known attacks working.
Book a call
If your team is losing time to forced restarts, book a video call with Kimbley IT using the form below. The same goes if you are not sure whether your computers are getting updates at all. You will get a plain answer on where your computers stand and what it would take to keep them updated without anyone being interrupted.