Win Tip: Block SP upgrades in XP or Vista for 1 year

If you want to wait until you’re sure that all the bugs are out of the latest Windows service pack for your OS, you can use a registry entry to block the automatic installation.

1. Open up Notepad and copy the following:
Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00 [HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\WindowsUpdate] “DoNotAllowSP”=dword:00000001

2. Save the text file and rename it to “Block Windows SP.reg?“. Then merge it into the registry by double clicking it.

Note: This registry entry will only block the automatic installation of the service pack for 12 months. After that, the service pack will install automatically.

If you change your mind later, follow these steps:

1. Open up Notepad and copy the following:
Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00 [HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\WindowsUpdate] “DoNotAllowSP”=dword:00000000

2. Save the text file and rename it to “Allow Windows SP.reg?“. Then merge it into the registry by double clicking it.