How to Enable or Disable Windows 11 Update Restart Notifications

This article explains how to turn Windows Update notifications on or off when your device needs to restart to finish updating in Windows 11.

Why Does Windows Need to Restart After Updates?

When Windows installs an update, it sometimes needs a restart to complete the process. After the update is installed, Windows will notify you to restart your device.

This notification is called the Windows Update restart notification. It appears as a pop-up window or banner message in the Action Center.

The notification reminds you to restart so the update can be properly applied to your system.

Method 1: Use Windows Settings to Control Restart Notifications

You can disable Windows 11 update restart notifications through the Settings app by navigating to Windows Update > Advanced options and toggling off the ‘Notify me when a restart is required to finish updating’ switch, which is the simplest method available.

1. Open the Windows Settings app.
2. Select Windows Update on the left side.
3. Select the Advanced options tile on the right to expand it.

1. Look for the option that says Notify me when a restart is required to finish updating.
2. Toggle the button switch to the On position to enable notifications.
3. Toggle the switch to the Off position to disable notifications.
4. Close the Settings app when finished.

Method 2: Use registry-in-windows-11/" class="sal-link" rel="noopener" target="_blank" data-sal-id="10865">Registry Editor to Control Restart Notifications

Advanced users can control Windows 11 update restart notifications by opening Registry Editor, navigating to Computer\HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\WindowsUpdate\AU, and changing the RestartNotificationsAllowed2 value to 0 (disable) or 1 (enable).

⚠️ Admin privileges required for this method.

Warning: Editing the Registry can be risky. It may cause serious problems if done incorrectly. Back up your computer before making any changes.

1. Open the Windows Registry.
2. Navigate to this folder path:
   
   Computer\HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\WindowsUpdate\UX\Settings
3. Look for RestartNotificationsAllowed2 on the right side.
4. Double-click RestartNotificationsAllowed2 to open it.
5. Enter 1 to enable restart notifications.
6. Enter 0 to disable restart notifications.

If you don’t see RestartNotificationsAllowed2:

1. Right-click a blank area on the right side.
2. Select New then DWORD (32-bit) Value.
3. Name it RestartNotificationsAllowed2.
4. Enter your desired value (1 to enable, 0 to disable).

1. Save your changes.
2. Restart your computer for the changes to take effect.

Summary

You now have two ways to manage Windows Update restart notifications in Windows 11:

• Settings Method: The easiest approach. Simply open Settings, go to Windows Update, select Advanced options, and toggle the restart notification switch on or off.
• Registry Method: For advanced users. Edit the Registry to change the RestartNotificationsAllowed2 value to 1 (enable) or 0 (disable). Remember to back up your computer first.

Both methods let you control when and how Windows notifies you about restart requirements. Choose the method that works best for you. Always restart your computer after making changes so the new settings take effect.

Frequently Asked Questions