How to Specify Target Feature Update Version in Windows 11

Comparison of Methods

How to Specify Target Feature Update Version in Local Group Policy Editor

The Local Group Policy Editor is the built-in tool for managing system settings, and it is the cleaner way to set this limit. It is included in Windows 11 Pro, Enterprise and Education. It is not included in Windows 11 Home, so if you run Home, skip to the Registry method. An administrator account is required.

Pick your target with the dates above in mind. A Home or Pro PC pinned to 24H2 is already past its end of updates, so it gets no security fixes. Microsoft recommends 26H2 or 25H2 for these editions. Choose a release that Microsoft still supports for your edition.

1. Press Win+R to open the Run box, type gpedit.msc, and press Enter.
2. Click Yes if a User Account Control prompt appears. The Local Group Policy Editor window opens. If you see a “cannot find” error instead, you are most likely on Home.
3. In the left pane, go to Computer Configuration › Administrative Templates › Windows Components › Windows Update🔃 › Manage updates offered from Windows Update🔃. The policies for that folder appear in the right pane.

4. Double-click Select the target Feature Update version. A settings window opens.
5. Select Enabled. The options box becomes active.
6. In the options box, type Windows 11 for the product version. In the target version box, type the release you want to stay on, for example 26H2. Use a release that exists for your device, because a made-up or mistyped value will not give you the lock you expect.
7. Click OK. The window closes and the policy now shows as Enabled in the list.
8. Restart the🔄 PC so the policy is picked up. If you prefer not to restart, open Settings › Windows Update🔃 and click Check for updates🔃. The PC should keep receiving security updates but should not be offered a newer feature release.

That’s it. You should now have a Windows 11 PC pinned to your chosen feature release, still receiving monthly security updates for it.

Microsoft ships one feature update a year, in the second half of the year, so you only need to revisit this setting once a year. Version 26H2 continues that annual pattern. Test each new release before you move your target to it.

This policy does not roll back a PC that is already on a newer version than your target. Every Windows release also reaches an end-of-servicing date, after which it no longer gets security updates. Review your pinned version from time to time.

Microsoft expects this in May and June 2027, and it is not in Windows yet. Microsoft recommends upgrading to a supported version, so do not pin a PC to a release that is close to its end date.

To undo the change, open the same policy again, select Not Configured, and click OK. Windows will then offer feature updates normally again.

Specify Target Feature Update Version using Registry

On Home, Windows may not honor these policy values the way it does on Pro. Check afterward that the setting really holds. Also remember that 24H2 Home and Pro already reached end of updates on October 13, 2026, so do not pin a Home PC to that release.

1. Click the search🔍 box on the taskbar🖥️, type regedit, and open Registry Editor. Approve the User Account Control prompt if it appears. The editor opens with the key tree in the left pane.
2. Go to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\WindowsUpdate. Type the path in the address bar at the top of the window or expand the tree in the left pane.
3. If the last key in that path does not exist, right-click its parent key, choose New › Key, and name it to match the path. The new key appears in the left pane.
4. Create or modify the values shown below, using the type listed for each one. Right-click an empty area in the right pane and choose New to add a value. Then double-click the value to set its data.

"ProductVersion"="Windows 11"
"TargetReleaseVersion"=dword:00000001
"TargetReleaseVersionInfo"="26H2"

5. Close Registry Editor and restart the🔄 PC so the new settings take effect. For the target release, use the same annual-cycle thinking as in the Group Policy method. Pick a release that exists and is still supported for your edition, such as 26H2 or 25H2.

That’s it. You should now have the three policy values in place, so Windows holds the PC at the release you named. Review the target when the next second-half feature update arrives.

To remove the restriction, right-click each of the three values in the right pane and choose Delete, then confirm. Restart the PC afterward so Windows stops applying the old limit.

Verification via PowerShell

To check which settings are active, run the following command in PowerShell. Open PowerShell from the Start menu, and run it as administrator if the command reports an access problem. The output should show the product and version you set. If the values come back empty, the policy is not set.

Get-ItemProperty -Path "HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\WindowsUpdate"

Enterprise Management with Intune

If you manage many computers for a business, you can use Microsoft Intune to control the Windows 11 feature update version across all machines at once. This avoids editing each PC by hand. It also lets you change or remove the target from one place.

With one feature update each year, a central policy makes the yearly review quicker. You change the target once instead of touching every device. It also helps with the support dates: Enterprise and Education editions stay supported on 24H2 until October 12, 2027, while Home and Pro ended on October 13, 2026.

Heads-up: Microsoft has announced that Windows 11 version 23H2 Enterprise and Education editions reach end of updates on November 10, 2026. This is not in Windows yet. Microsoft recommends updating eligible devices to a supported version of Windows 11. Review any devices still pinned to 23H2 now, and move their target to a supported release.

Summary

Specifying a target feature update version puts upgrade control in your hands, whether you use Group Policy, the Registry or Intune. Pick one method, confirm the setting is active, and keep track of when your chosen version stops getting security updates. Recheck it each year when the new feature update arrives.