Windows 10 update restores this crucial Windows 7 feature

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Take control of optional updates

(Image credit: Laptop Mag)

An upcoming Windows 10 update will restore a useful Windows 7 feature that makes updating the operating system more convenient than before. 

Windows 10 Build 19041.450 or newer brings back the optional updates page, which shows you new driver versions and non-security updates as well as minor, non-essential features (via Windows Latest). 

This way, you can pick and choose which of these updates you want to download without having to find the drivers in the outdated and congested Device Manager. 

Once you've installed the latest Windows 10 build, you can find optional updates by going to Settings > Update & Security > Windows Update > View optional updates. Here, there is a neat list of updates that Microsoft has pushed out to Windows 10 that, unlike important security patches or major feature updates, aren't mandatory.

As Windows Latest notes, Windows Update will automatically install some of these optional updates without permission unless you click "Pause update" or block updates using the Windows Registry.

Pausing optional updates is becoming an increasingly requested feature because the latest Windows 10 updates seem to cause more problems than they solve. With this easier method of pausing or installing updates, users will have more control over what gets downloaded onto their system. 

If you want to give it a try, install Windows 10 version KB4566782, or build 19041.450.

Phillip Tracy
Phillip Tracy

Phillip Tracy is the assistant managing editor at Laptop Mag where he reviews laptops, phones and other gadgets while covering the latest industry news. After graduating with a journalism degree from the University of Texas at Austin, Phillip became a tech reporter at the Daily Dot. There, he wrote reviews for a range of gadgets and covered everything from social media trends to cybersecurity. Prior to that, he wrote for RCR Wireless News covering 5G and IoT. When he's not tinkering with devices, you can find Phillip playing video games, reading, traveling or watching soccer.