Well after quite a few deployments of new Server I noticed that Windows update will throw warring and notification “Your device is scheduled to restart outside of active hours” even do you set it not to do so – it is set do DownloadOnly.

It seems that this is a known bug in the Windows Update Settings UI in which the text does not correctly reflect the configuration of your Windows Update settings. MS Server Team will make fix soon but for now if you don’t want your server to automatically restart this is what you need to check and configure :

Validate your current Update settings using SCONFIG

To determine what updates your machine has already installed, follow these steps:

  • Open a command prompt with Admin permissions.
  • Type sconfig and press Enter.
    • NOTE: There may be a short pause as the tool inspects your system.
  • Option #5 shows the current configuration of your Windows Update settings.

     

Change your Windows Update Settings

To change your Windows Update Settings with SCONFIG, follow these steps:

  • Open a command prompt with Admin permissions.
  • Type sconfig and press Enter.
    • NOTE: There may be a short pause as the tool inspects your system.
  • Press 5 and then Enter. This will bring up the following options for you to choose from:

    • (A)utomatic – This will configure your machine to automatically scan, download, install and reboot after applying any updates.
    • (D)ownloadOnly – This will automatically scan, download and notify the admin if updates need to be installed. This is the default setting on Windows Server 2016.
    • (M)anual — This turns Automatic Updates off. Your system will never check for updates.

       

  • Press the letter specified in the “( )” and press Enter to apply.
  • When the tool applies the configuration you have selected, you will see a message pop-up similar to the one below. Click the OK button to dismiss the message. The tool will refresh the menu and option 5 will now show the new configuration.

That’s it, you are all set.