Targeting Windows Versions for Feature Updates

This post will show you how to use registry keys to test, set and remove target versions for Windows Feature Updates. This allows you to prevent Windows 10 or 11 from updating past your configured limit.

The Script

<#
 .DESCRIPTION:
    Script to disable the Windows 11 upgrade
 .SYNOPSIS:
    This script can check the Windows 11 upgrade settings or be used to set/unset those settings using. `-Test` for test-only mode, `-Unset` to remove the block on Windows 11 upgrades and no parameters to set the block.
 .AUTHOR:
    Mikey O'Toole
    www.homotechsual.dev
 .REVISION HISTORY:
    2023-02-16: Parameterise the script to allow more control over the target versions
    2022-01-25: Initial version
#>
[CmdletBinding()]
[Diagnostics.CodeAnalysis.SuppressMessageAttribute('PSUseShouldProcessForStateChangingFunctions', '', Justification = 'RMM script - not useful to implement ShouldProcess')]
param (
    [Switch]$Test,
    [Switch]$Unset,
    [String]$TargetProductVersion = '22H2',
    [String]$TargetProduct = 'Windows 11'
)
function Test-UpdateSettings {
    $UpdateSettings = Get-ItemProperty -Path 'HKLM:\Software\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\WindowsUpdate\'
    $Message = [System.Collections.Generic.List[String]]::New()
    if ($UpdateSettings.TargetReleaseVersion -and $UpdateSettings.TargetReleaseVersion -ne 0) {
        $Message.Add('Windows Update is currently set to target a specific release version.')
        if ($UpdateSettings.TargetReleaseVersionInfo) {
            $Message.Add("Target release version: $($UpdateSettings.TargetReleaseVersionInfo.ToString())")
        } else {
            $Message.Add('Target release version is not set.')
        }
        if ($UpdateSettings.ProductVersion) {
            $Message.Add("Product version: $($UpdateSettings.ProductVersion.ToString())")
        } else {
            $Message.Add('Product version is not set.')
        }
    } else {
        $Message.Add('Windows Update is currently set to target all versions.')
    }
    if ($String -is [array] -or $String.Count -gt 0) {
        return $Message.Join(' ')
    } else {
        return $Message
    }
    
}

function Set-UpdateSettings ([switch]$Unset) {
    if ($Unset) {
        try {
            Set-ItemProperty -Path 'HKLM:\Software\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\WindowsUpdate\' -Name 'TargetReleaseVersion' -Value 0 -Type DWord
            if (Test-Path 'HKLM:\Software\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\WindowsUpdate\TargetReleaseVersionInfo') {
                Remove-ItemProperty -Path 'HKLM:\Software\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\WindowsUpdate\' -Name 'TargetReleaseVersionInfo'
            }
            if (Test-Path 'HKLM:\Software\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\WindowsUpdate\ProductVersion') {
                Remove-ItemProperty -Path 'HKLM:\Software\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\WindowsUpdate\' -Name 'ProductVersion'
            }
        } catch {
            Throw $_
        }
        $Message = 'Windows Update is now set to target all versions.'
    } else {
        try {
            Set-ItemProperty -Path 'HKLM:\Software\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\WindowsUpdate\' -Name 'TargetReleaseVersion' -Value 1 -Type DWord
            Set-ItemProperty -Path 'HKLM:\Software\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\WindowsUpdate\' -Name 'TargetReleaseVersionInfo' -Value $TargetProductVersion
            Set-ItemProperty -Path 'HKLM:\Software\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\WindowsUpdate\' -Name 'ProductVersion' -Value $TargetProduct
            $Message = 'Windows Update is now set to target Windows 10, 21H2.'
        } catch {
            Throw $_
        }
    }
    return $Message
}

if ($Test) {
    $Message = Test-UpdateSettings
    Write-Output $Message
} elseif ($Unset) {
    $Message = Set-UpdateSettings -Unset
    Write-Output $Message
} else {
    $Message = Set-UpdateSettings
    Write-Output $Message
}

Parameters

When you run this script you might want to pass some parameters - here's what they do:

• -Test - This will test the current target version settings and show you the results.
• -Unset - This will remove the target version settings.
• -TargetProductVersion - Specify the target version to aim for, examples would be 21H2 or 22H2.
• -TargetProduct - Specify the target product to aim for, examples would be Windows 10 or Windows 11.