How to disable Windows updates from using your bandwidth

Something that early adopters have found is that by setting up those faster updates described in previous tip, it will use your internet connection to share updates with other users. It's called the Windows Update Delivery Optimization and works in a very similar fashion to a peer-to-peer network that's commonly used for things like torrent sites.

If you'd prefer not to share the bandwidth love then there's the option to turn it off, but it's not as straightforward as you think.

To disable it, go to the Windows Start Menu and select Settings. Click on Update & Security and under the Windows Update tab, click on the Advanced options. Select the 'Choose how updates are delivered' option.

You should now see the option to select whether updates from Microsoft are received from 'PCs on my local network' or 'PCs on my local network and PCs on the internet'. Select the former if you value your bandwidth more than those speedier updates.

This also allows you to push Windows updates to other PCs in your home without downloading the update multiple times.