- Microsoft is rolling out an option to skip updates during the installation of Windows 11
- This will speed up the process greatly for some users
- However, without updates, you won’t have the latest security fixes – but this is still a situationally very useful (and much in demand) ability
If you’ve ever sat around waiting for Windows 11 to finish installing for what feels like forever, then you’ll appreciate a new change Microsoft has made to help the operating system complete setup much faster.
Windows Central reports that Microsoft is now introducing an option that lets you skip the part of the installation where Windows 11 pulls in and applies relevant updates, speeding up the process tremendously.
This was flagged by Ariupdated on X, who provided a screenshot of the feature, which is now actively being rolled out.
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How does it work? When you get to the part of the Windows 11 installation where it downloads all the updates and security fixes that have been released (on top of the core OS installation), this will still start, but you can click an option to ‘Update later’ if you want to skip it.
This fulfills one of the promises Microsoft made to improve Windows updates by allowing them to be bypassed during the OOBE, or out-of-box experience, the initial setup of a Windows 11 PC. Another much bigger move is also in the works, allowing users to pause updates for as long as they want (whereas five weeks is the maximum time you can delay an update at the moment).
Analysis: options on the installation table
It’s always good to have a choice, and the choice in this case is to get through the installation and to the working desktop much faster than you can now (with updates automatically applied). This can save you maybe 20 to 30 minutes of waiting for the setup to complete, depending on various factors (including the speed of your internet connection, of course). And it can be very practical in certain situations.
For example, you may be on a metered or very slow Internet connection while performing the installation, so you’ll appreciate the ability to postpone chunky downloads until later when you have a better connection.
What you should be aware of is that a standard Windows 11 installation, minus initial updates, will lack a whole host of security fixes and some features as well. It’s the gaps in security that pose a danger, but as if you start surfing the web, for example, you leave yourself more open to potentially being exploited by something malicious lurking on a website or downloaded file.
So taking a shortcut like this with installation is fine – and can be very useful depending on your situation – but I’d be wary of doing much online before applying all these updates (via Windows Update).
A useful tactic here could be to skip updates during installation and then have them run as soon as you get to the Windows 11 desktop. This way, you can have these updates tick away in the background while you start configuring your preferences for the system, desktop, themes, and so on. In other words, you’re doing something useful with the time spent waiting for updates to come through, instead of being stuck at installation screens for an extra half hour.
In any case, it is good to have options in this regard and to see Microsoft realize some of the promises it has made to improve Windows 11 in a fast way. That said, there are cynics on Reddit who believe that Microsoft is only now taking these actions because of the threats posed by Linux (mainly powered by SteamOS) and Apple’s popular new MacBook Neo, which is definitely a challenge to Windows 11’s laptop dominance at the budget end of the market.
As one Redditor put it: “Interesting timing with everyone jumping to Linux or the MacBook Neo.”
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