NotiRewind
Missed the Windows Update restart notification? Check for a pending restart
Some updates need a restart to finish installing. If you missed the notice, you can't tell when your PC is going to restart.
Check for an update waiting on a restart
Open Start > Settings > Windows Update to see your update status and available updates. Finished updates are listed with their dates under Update history (Microsoft Support).
When an update is waiting on a restart, you can restart in any of these ways (Microsoft Support).
- Select Restart now in Settings > Windows Update
- Go to Start > Power and select Update and restart or Update and shut down
- Select the Windows Update icon in the tray, then Restart now
Starting with updates released on July 28, 2026, driver, .NET and firmware updates that need a restart are held until the monthly security update (usually the second Tuesday), so you only restart once a month. This is rolling out to Windows 11 version 24H2 and later on PCs not managed by an IT department.
Pick the restart time yourself
Windows tries to restart when you aren't using the PC. If it can't, it asks you to schedule the restart. To set it ahead of time, select Schedule the restart in Settings > Windows Update and choose a time (Microsoft Support).
Set active hours to the hours you usually use the PC, and Windows avoids restarting then. Open Settings > Windows Update > Advanced options > Active hours and set Adjust active hours to Automatically or Manually (Microsoft Support).
Get notified when a restart is needed
In Settings > Windows Update > Advanced options, turn on Notify me when a restart is required to finish updating. You then get a notification as soon as a restart is pending. It's off by default (Microsoft Learn).
Hold off for a while
In Settings > Windows Update, pick an end date under Pause updates to pause for up to 35 days from today. While paused, updates that need a restart aren't downloaded or installed, and the PC doesn't restart automatically to finish updates. Updates resume on their own when the pause ends (Microsoft Support).
Read the notice after it's gone
If the Windows Update notification reaches the notification center, NotiRewind saves it like any other. After it leaves the notification center, the history still shows what arrived and when.
Notifications that arrive while NotiRewind isn't running, such as during a restart, are saved the next time it starts if they are still in the notification center. Ones that disappeared before then are lost. The history marks when NotiRewind wasn't running, so you can see the gap.