Turn off Microsoft Updates in Windows XP

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Windows XP is no longer supported by Microsoft as of April 8th, 2014, however the Windows Update service is still able to provide updates from Microsoft if you have installed Service Pack 3 (SP3) which will cause the Update system to become active. Turning off Automatic Updates will prevent updates for Windows and you can permanently disable

Steps

Turning off Automatic Updates

  1. Access Automatic Updates from the Control Panel. Turning off automatic updates will prevent Windows from automatically installing updates to your computer. Click on Start>Control Panel. computer.[1] Click on Automatic Updates to bring up the Automatic Updates properties window. You may need to enable “Classic View” on your Control Panel which can be done by clicking on “Switch to Classic View” on the left hand side of the Control Panel window.
  2. Access Automatic Updates from the Run Command. Alternatively you can access the Automatic Updates properties window by clicking on Start>Run then type in “sysdm.cpl” and press ↵ Enter.
  3. Turn off Automatic Updates. In the Automatic Updates window, click on “Turn off automatic updates.” Once you are finished click on Apply then click on OK
    • You can also choose other preferences to how you download updates by setting Automatic Updates to “Download updates for me, but let me choose when to install them.” or “Notify me but don’t automatically download or install them.”

Editing the Registry to Disable Windows Update

  1. Create a restore point for your computer. Editing the registry will allow you to disable the Windows Update function by providing an exception for how the software runs on your system by causing it to not run. You run the risk of causing your computer to become unstable if the registry is damaged and can be safely repaired by using a restore point. Create a restore point by clicking on Start>Run then type in “%SystemRoot%\system32\restore\rstrui.exe” then click on OK to open System Restore. Click on “Create a restore point” and click on Next. Type in a name for the restore point and click on Create. Once the restore point is created, click on Close.[2]
  2. Open the Registry Editor. The Registry Editor is a program that allows you to edit your Windows Registry. The registry provides information to your system and is used to change the behavior of a program and how it works with Windows. Click on Start>Run then type in “regedit” and press ↵ Enter.
  3. Expand the Image File Execution Options subkey. The subkey is located in the HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE hierarchy which is designed to contain information for both hardware and software.[3] On the left hand side is the hierarchy of your system’s registry. Expand the following paths: “HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Image File Execution Options”[4]
  4. Add the Windows Update Manager subkey. Right-click on “Image File Execution Options” then click on New>Key. A new subkey will be created and will be prompted to enter a name. Type in wupdmgr.exe then press ↵ Enter.
  5. Add a Debugger string value to the Windows Update Manager subkey. Right-click on “wupdmgr.exe” then click on New>String Value. Type in “Debugger” to name the new string value. Double click on the Debugger string value to enter into the Value Data text field “ntsd --”then click on OK. Quit the registry editor. Windows Update can no longer be opened on your computer unless you revert your edits to the registry or perform a System Restore. You can still manually update Windows by downloading patches from Microsoft’s website.

Warnings

  • Your computer will be at risk if you do not run updates on your computer to prevent security flaws.
  • In order to continue receiving support from Microsoft, you will need to update your computer to a newer version of the Windows operating system. Consult their End of Life (EOL) support page for information on when their products will expire to determine which operating system to upgrade to.[5]

Sources and Citations

  1. ↑ https://www.microsoft.com/resources/documentation/windows/xp/all/proddocs/en-us/hsc_autoupdate_turn_on.mspx?mfr=true
  2. ↑ https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/kb/322756
  3. ↑ http://www.enigmasoftware.com/what-are-registry-subkeys-how-they-work/
  4. ↑ https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/kb/892894
  5. ↑ http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/lifecycle
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