Do Not Include Drivers With Windows Updates Group Policy

If you've been looking for a way to stop Windows from replacing a GPU or audio driver you'd rather keep, you've probably encountered a Group Policy setting called "Do not include drivers with Windows Updates" and paused at the wording. To block driver updates through this policy, you set it to Enabled, not Disabled, which can seem backward at first.

Here's the baseline: Windows 11 can automatically install applicable drivers through Windows Update, and that behavior is enabled by default. Leave the policy at Not Configured or Disabled, and Windows Update can continue offering and installing driver updates according to the PC's update settings. That's fine for most people, but it also means a driver you'd rather keep can be replaced by a newer one.

Who can change this setting depends on which Windows edition is installed. Group Policy access to this control exists on Pro, Enterprise, and Education. Home doesn't include the Local Group Policy Editor, so Home users can configure the equivalent registry value instead.

The goal in both cases is to exclude routine driver updates without stopping security or other quality updates. The steps below explain what the policy changes, how to enable it, what it leaves untouched, and how to troubleshoot unexpected driver installations.

What does "Do not include drivers with Windows Updates" actually control?

Think of this policy as an exclusion filter, not a master switch. It doesn't turn off Windows Update. Enabling it excludes driver update packages from the normal quality update cycle, while security and other quality updates remain available according to the PC's update settings.

Microsoft confirms this behavior in its Windows Update policy documentation. The important exception is that drivers included in security or critical updates, or installed as part of feature updates, aren't covered by the exclusion.

You'll find the setting under Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > Windows Components > Windows Update > Manage updates offered from Windows Update, labeled "Do not include drivers with Windows Updates."

Whether Windows checks for updates automatically or requires you to click Check for updates depends on other update settings already configured on the PC. The separate Configure Automatic Updates policy controls scanning, downloading, and installation behavior.

If your driver exclusion doesn't appear to be taking effect, review those settings before assuming the driver policy itself is broken.

That's the scope of this setting: a targeted exclusion against routine driver updates, not a blanket pause for Windows Update or every possible driver installation.

How to use the Do not include drivers with Windows Updates Group Policy (Pro, Enterprise, Education)

This method works on supported Windows 10 or 11 Pro, Enterprise, and Education editions. If you're running Home, skip to the registry section below, since Local Group Policy Editor isn't included with that edition.

Not sure which edition you have? Open Settings > System > About and check the Windows specifications section.

Once you've confirmed your edition, follow these steps:

1. Press Windows + R, type gpedit.msc, and press Enter to open Local Group Policy Editor.

2. Navigate to Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > Windows Components > Windows Update > Manage updates offered from Windows Update.

3. Double-click Do not include drivers with Windows Updates.

4. Select Enabled, then click Apply and OK.

5. Open Command Prompt as an administrator and run gpupdate /force to refresh Group Policy.

6. Wait for the message confirming that the computer policy update completed successfully.

The confirmation message means Group Policy refreshed successfully. It doesn't independently prove that Windows Update has excluded every applicable driver.

To verify the setting, reopen the policy and confirm that it still shows Enabled. You can also run gpresult /scope computer /r in an elevated Command Prompt to review applied computer policies.

If a driver is subsequently installed, check Windows Update history and the installation source before concluding that the exclusion failed. A restart may help apply pending policy changes, but it won't prevent drivers installed through mechanisms the policy doesn't cover.

Reversing the setting is just as simple: reopen the policy, select Not Configured, click Apply and OK, then refresh Group Policy again.

Microsoft's Windows Update settings reference confirms that Disabled and Not Configured both allow Windows Update to include updates classified as drivers.

Disable automatic driver updates in Windows 11 Home with the registry

Home edition isn't locked out of this control. It uses the registry instead of the graphical Group Policy Editor.

The value ExcludeWUDriversInQualityUpdate, placed under HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\WindowsUpdate, configures the same exclusion behavior.

Before editing the registry, create a restore point or back up the relevant key. Incorrect registry changes can cause system problems.

To set the value manually:

1. Press Windows + R, type regedit, and press Enter.

2. Navigate to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\WindowsUpdate. If the WindowsUpdate key doesn't exist, create it under the Windows key.

3. Right-click an empty area in the right pane and select New > DWORD (32-bit) Value.

4. Name the value ExcludeWUDriversInQualityUpdate.

5. Double-click it, set Value data to 1, and click OK.

6. Restart the PC to ensure the change is applied.

Prefer the command line? Open Command Prompt as an administrator and run:

reg add "HKLM\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\WindowsUpdate" /f /v ExcludeWUDriversInQualityUpdate /t REG_DWORD /d 1

Microsoft's policy reference confirms that setting this DWORD to 1 excludes Windows Update drivers from the normal quality update cycle.

After entering the value, confirm that it reads 0x00000001 (1) in Registry Editor. That confirms the value was saved, not that Windows Update has already evaluated it.

Restart the computer, then check Windows Update history for subsequent driver installations. Remember that a driver installed through a feature update or another mechanism doesn't necessarily indicate that the registry setting was ignored.

To undo the change, set the value to 0 or delete ExcludeWUDriversInQualityUpdate, then restart.

One caution worth repeating: don't manually change the registry value while also managing the same setting through Group Policy. They control the same underlying policy, and a Group Policy refresh may overwrite a manual registry edit. Use the method appropriate for your Windows edition and management setup.

What this policy doesn't stop

Much of the confusion surrounding this setting comes from expecting it to block every driver Windows will ever install. It doesn't.

The exclusion affects several driver-delivery mechanisms differently:

• Routine driver updates through Windows Update: Blocked when the policy is enabled, provided the driver is delivered through the normal quality update cycle.

• Drivers included in security or critical updates: Not blocked by this policy. Microsoft explicitly excludes these from its scope.

• Drivers installed during Windows feature updates: Not blocked. Windows may dynamically install drivers needed to complete an upgrade.

• Plug-and-play driver installation: Not universally blocked. Windows can install compatible drivers when new hardware is detected.

• Manufacturer utilities and manual installations: Not blocked. Software from a PC or component manufacturer may install drivers independently of the Windows Update policy.

Connect a new printer or webcam, and Windows may still install a compatible driver despite the exclusion. That doesn't necessarily mean the policy failed.

Device Installation Settings provides another control for automatically obtaining manufacturer-provided device software and related content, but it isn't equivalent to the Windows Update driver-exclusion policy.

The two settings address different behavior, so changing one shouldn't be treated as proof that every driver installation path is disabled.

Feature upgrades are another exception worth watching. After installing a major Windows update, recheck the driver-exclusion policy and any driver versions you deliberately kept in place.

If a driver was replaced, Windows' Roll Back Driver option in Device Manager may restore the previous version. When that option is unavailable, downloading the known-good driver directly from the PC or hardware manufacturer's website is another option.

A managed-network caveat

On domain-joined or WSUS-managed PCs, driver delivery involves additional policies and infrastructure that can affect what gets offered or installed.

One Windows administrator described trying to deploy driver updates through WSUS to roughly 800 machines, only to find that drivers were listed as needed but never downloaded after changes to Group Policy and registry settings, according to a Spiceworks Community discussion.

That's one administrator's reported experience, not an independently verified pattern or something to expect on a typical home PC.

Logs in that case pointed to error 0x8024C004, associated with missing driver-update metadata. The administrator ultimately extracted and installed the driver manually.

A separate commenter suggested checking driver compatibility on Windows 11 systems, but the discussion doesn't establish that compatibility was the cause.

Home users and people managing a single Pro-edition PC are unlikely to need that level of troubleshooting.

If drivers are failing to deploy across a managed fleet, check the client's Windows Update logs, setupapi.dev.log, WSUS configuration, and applicable update-source policies rather than repeatedly changing the same exclusion setting.

Microsoft's Windows Autopatch documentation also notes that excluded driver updates may still appear as applicable or pending in management reports even when installation is blocked.

What to do next

Check your Windows edition first. Pro, Enterprise, and Education users can enable "Do not include drivers with Windows Updates" through Local Group Policy Editor, refresh the policy with gpupdate /force, and confirm the setting remains enabled.

Home users can set ExcludeWUDriversInQualityUpdate to 1 in the registry, confirm the value was saved, and restart. Avoid manually configuring both methods on the same PC, since they govern the same policy.

If a driver still appears unexpectedly, determine whether it arrived through routine Windows Update delivery, a security or feature update, hardware detection, a manufacturer utility, or an enterprise management system before changing anything else.

Each mechanism has different controls, and changing the wrong one won't solve the problem. If an installed driver causes trouble, try Device Manager's Roll Back Driver option or reinstall a known-good version from the hardware manufacturer's website.

The key is understanding what the exclusion actually covers. It can stop routine driver updates through Windows Update without disabling security patches, but it isn't a universal block on driver installation.