Windows 11 will tell you how long it will take to install updates

Ashwin
Jul 1, 2021
Windows
|
27

Ever wondered how long it takes for a Windows Update to install? Well, you don't have to guess because Windows 11 will give you an estimate.

ETA to install Windows 11 Updates

I enrolled in to the Insider Preview Program to install the first official build that was released yesterday. I have been using it extensively, and noticed an icon appear on the taskbar.

Windows 11 Update ready to install

It had a yellow dot on it (a badge) to indicate something's new, the tooltip said that the device needs to be restarted to install Updates. I clicked the icon, and it switched to the Windows Update screen, which had a cool new feature, it had an ETA for the update to be installed. It told me that this update would take 5 minutes to be installed.

But, instead of clicking the Restart Now option, I chose to go the manual route, aka Start > Power button. The Power button had the dot too, and clicking it showed a similar ETA for the Update and Shutdown, & Update and Restart options. That's nice, but is it accurate?

Windows 11 will tell you how long it will take to install Windows updates

I used a stopwatch to time the installation, and it only took about a minute and ten seconds for the update to install, and boot to the home screen. I think that's very impressive. Sure, the ETA of 5 minutes was wrong. But that's fine, it's probably a maximum (or average) that Microsoft estimates, that the computer needs to install the update.

In case you missed it, during the Windows 11 launch stream, Panos Panay mentioned that Windows updates are 40% smaller to download (compared to Windows 10), and install faster in the new OS. While that may seem trivial for those with high speed networks, it's actually quite important. Windows Updates are infamously slow to download even on fast connections, and often takes ages to complete downloading. The installation process is quite slow as well. It's good to see that Microsoft has improved in this area, though we'll need to see how it performs after millions of users have upgraded to Windows 11.

Windows 11 Update History

As for the Windows Update settings in Windows 11, not a lot has changed here. The main options page is a little different compared to Windows 10's. You may pause updates for 1 week, while on the Insider Preview Program. Delivery Optimization, aka Downloads from other PCs, is enabled by default, and you can toggle this from the Advanced Options page.

Windows 11 Update Advanced Options

The ETA for Windows 11 Updates is a welcome addition that will be appreciated by users who want to shut down or restart their computer, without being worried about huge delays. I still wish it had an Update Later option, that can be useful if the laptop's battery is running low, or if you don't have time waiting for the update to finish.

If you haven't taken part in the Insider Preview Program, read our previous article to know how to enroll, and get the Windows 11 Preview from the Developer Channel. Microsoft has confirmed, in a developer video, that the Windows 11 Insider Program's Beta Channel will start next week, and while it may not have as many features as the Developer Build does, the Beta is likely to have lesser bugs too.

Summary
Windows 11 will tell you how long it will take to install updates
Article Name
Windows 11 will tell you how long it will take to install updates
Description
Windows Updates on Microsoft's Windows 11 operating system include an estimate now that reveals how long it will take to install updates on the machine.
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Ghacks Technology News
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Comments

  1. Dan Donx said on January 15, 2023 at 10:29 am
    Reply

    What mental age of reader are you targeting with the first sentence? 10?

    Why not write an article on how to *avoid* upgrading from W10 to W11. Analogous to those like me who avoided upgrading from 7 to 10 for as long as possible.

    If your paymaster Microsoft permits it, of course.

  2. Dexter said on January 15, 2023 at 11:14 am
    Reply

    5. Rufus
    6. Ventoy

    PS. I hate reading these “SEO optimized” articles.

    1. cdr said on January 15, 2023 at 3:32 pm
      Reply

      I used Rufus to create an installer for a 6th gen intel i5 that had MBR. It upgraded using Setup. No issues except for Win 11 always prompting me to replace my local account. Still using Win 10 Pro on all my other PCs to avoid the bullying.

  3. sv said on January 15, 2023 at 6:40 pm
    Reply

    bit pointless to upgrade for the sake of upgrading as you never know when you’ll get locked out because ms might suddenly not provide updates to unsupported systems.

    ps…. time travelling?
    written. Jan 15, 2023
    Updated • Jan 13, 2023

    1. Martin Brinkmann said on January 16, 2023 at 5:49 am
      Reply

      This happens when you schedule a post in WordPress and update it before setting the publication date.

  4. Anonymous said on January 16, 2023 at 8:24 am
    Reply

    Anyone willing to downgrade to this awful OS must like inflicting themselves with harm.

  5. basingstoke said on January 16, 2023 at 11:18 am
    Reply

    I have become convinced now that anybody who has no qualms with using Windows 11/10 must fit into one of the following brackets:

    1) Too young to remember a time before W10 and W11 (doesn’t know better)

    2) Wants to play the latest games on their PC above anything else (or deeply needs some software which already dropped W7 support)

    3) Doesn’t know too much about how computers work, worried that they’d be absolutely lost and in trouble without the “”latest security””

    4) Microsoft apologist that tries to justify that the latest “features” and “changes” are actually a good thing, that improve Windows

    5) Uses their computer to do a bare minimum of like 3 different things, browse web, check emails, etc, so really doesn’t fuss

    Obviously that doesn’t cover everyone, there’s also the category that:

    6) Actually liked W7 more than 10, and held out as long as possible before switching, begrudgingly uses 10 now

    Have I missed any group off this list?

    1. Heinz Strunk said on September 19, 2023 at 3:57 pm
      Reply

      You have missed in this group just about any professional user that uses business software like CAD programs or ERP Programs which are 99% of all professional users from this list.

      Linux doesn’t help anyone who is not a linux kid and apple is just a fancy facebook machine.

  6. ilev said on August 24, 2023 at 7:34 pm
    Reply

    Microsoft has removed KB5029351 update

    1. EP said on August 24, 2023 at 9:21 pm
      Reply

      only from windows update though
      KB5029351 is still available from the ms update catalog site

  7. Anonymous said on August 24, 2023 at 11:05 pm
    Reply

    1. This update is labaled as PREVIEW if it causes issues to unintelligent people, then they shouldn’t have allowed Preview updates ot install.

    2. I have installed it in a 11 years old computer, and no problems at all.

    3. Making a big drama over a bluescreen for an updated labeled as preview is ridiculous.

    This is probably another BS internet drama where people ran programs and scripts that modified the registry until they broke Windows, just for removing stuff that they weren’t even using just for the sake of it.
    Maybe people should stop playing geeks and actually either use Windows 10 or Windows 11, but don’t try to modify things just for the sake of it.

    Sometimes removing or stopping things (like defender is a perfect example) only need intelligence, not scripts or 3rd party programs that might mess with windows.

  8. john said on August 24, 2023 at 11:17 pm
    Reply

    Windows 11 was a pointless release, it was just created because some of the Windows team wanted to boost sales with some sort of new and improved Windows 10. Instead, Microsoft cannot support one version well let alone two.

    1. John G. said on August 25, 2023 at 12:08 pm
      Reply

      Windows 11 is the worst ugly shame by Microsoft ever. They should release with every new W11 version a complete free version of Starallback inside just to make this sh** OS functionally again.

  9. EP said on August 25, 2023 at 3:10 pm
    Reply

    motherboard maker MSI has recently released a statement regarding the “unsupported processor” blue screen error for their boards using Intel 600/700 series chipsets & to avoid the KB5029351 Win11 update:
    https://www.msi.com/news/detail/MSI-On–UNSUPPORTED-PROCESSOR–Error-Message-of-Windows-11-Update-KB5029351-Preview-142215

  10. EP said on August 29, 2023 at 7:32 pm
    Reply

    check out the following recent articles:

    Neowin – Microsoft puts little blame on its Windows update after UNSUPPORTED PROCESSOR BSOD bug:
    https://www.neowin.net/news/microsoft-puts-little-blame-on-its-windows-update-after-unsupported-processor-bsod-bug/

    BleepingComputer – Microsoft blames ‘unsupported processor’ blue screens on OEM vendors:
    https://www.bleepingcomputer.com/news/microsoft/microsoft-blames-unsupported-processor-blue-screens-on-oem-vendors/

  11. Leonard Britvolli said on August 30, 2023 at 10:33 pm
    Reply

    While there may be changes or updates to the Windows 10 Store for Business and Education in the future, it is premature to conclude that it will be discontinued based solely on rumors.

  12. sembrador said on September 5, 2023 at 9:32 pm
    Reply

    My advice, I left win 15 years ago. Now I’m a happy linux user (linuxmint) but there is Centos, Fedora, Ubuntu depending on your needs.

  13. EP said on September 6, 2023 at 11:55 am
    Reply

    motherboard maker MSI has recently released new BIOS/firmware updates for their Intel 600 & 700 series motherboards to fix the “UNSUPPORTED_PROCESSOR” problem (Sept. 6):

    https://www.msi.com/news/detail/Updated-BIOS-fixes-Error-Message–UNSUPPORTED-PROCESSOR–caused-BSOD-on-MSI-s-Intel-700-and-600-Series-Motherboards-142277

  14. Raphael Benzo said on September 24, 2023 at 9:52 pm
    Reply

    I try to disable the Diagnostics Tracking Service (Connected Devices Platform User Services) but it wont let me disable it, any help will be greatly appreciated.
    Tank you for your help

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