Updates running for over an hour

It depends on the update, and your internet speed. The upgrade file for 1803, if that's what it's downloading- do you know? will be some 4Gb.

Installation will then take some time, with 1 or 2 restarts.

If you interrupt this once it starts installing you could well end up with an unbootable PC and need to clean install Win 10- or restore a disk image. (You are using disk imaging routinely as we continually recommend, I hope? - That will protect you if something goes badly wrong - and it can- by allowing you to restore a previously created disk image).

Imagine power failure with a desktop... a disk failure... a badly failed upgrade.. etc..

Patience can be its own reward... who knows- you might be lucky and find it even works... Always worth doing a routine disk check afterwards.

We also strongly recommend using disk imaging routinely- and update the image before and after a major change. Some have found themselves in difficulty after major upgrades. Insurance in case of disk failure, unbootable PC etc.

A disk image is a compressed copy of the used part of the disks or partitions selected. Once you have created your first, the second is faster and smaller, representing the differences from the first (base) image.

Recommended tool: Macrium Reflect (free)
- tutorials and videos on this site, on youtube and extensively documented by Macrium

Simpler GUI: Aomei Backupper.

Run the program, connect a large external USB disk, a couple of clicks and you are creating your first disk image.

Here's my write-up on the value of disk imaging.

Everyone who contributes regularly here uses and recommends disk imaging.

If you use it, you can recover from:
- a failed disk drive (restore to a new one)
- ransomware (which encrypts your disk)
- user error
- unrecoverable problems from failed updates to problem programs
- unbootable PC (hardware faults aside)

Images also act as a full backup- you can extract files too.

You can even use images to help you move more easily and quickly to a new PC.
Can be used with Laplink software to transfer your build automatically to another PC

Imaging can even help you sleep at night knowing you have a second chance.

Creating disk images lets you restore Windows and all your imaged disks and partitions to a previous working state from compressed copies you have created and kept updated on external storage media, quickly and probably without technical help.

Many here recommend Macrium Reflect (free) as a good robust solution and more reliable than some others. It’s
- more feature rich
- more flexible
- more reliable
than Windows Backup and Restore system images.

It's well supported with videos, help and a responsive forum.

There are other such programs, free/commercial, some with simpler interfaces, but Macrium R is one of the most robust and reliable.

How long does it take?
SSD+ USB3 - maybe 15 mins for the first system image, less thereafter
HDD + USB2 - maybe 40-50 mins
That’s with little personal data, few programs installed.
- of course, depends how much you have on C:
(You can and should image all your partitions and disks)

Once you've created your first image, keep it updated with e.g. differential imaging- which images just changes from the first image, more quickly, and creates a smaller image file.

You need a backup medium - say- twice as large as the total amount of data you are imaging to keep a reasonable number of differential images. This will vary dependent on the number of images you keep, so is only a rough practical guide.

Some comment that system restore isn't always reliable; if it works and solves the problem, great. But sometimes restores won't work or fail. And of course a restore point only covers a limited number of aspects of the system. That’s where disk imaging comes in.

(There's a tutorial on Macrium in the Tutorials section, and a couple of videos in the user videos section on this forum)
Backup and Restore with Macrium Reflect | Windows 10 Tutorials
https://www.tenforums.com/general-su...tml#post355809

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Macrium automatically selects all the partitions comprising Windows if you select that option.

You can of course back up any combination of disks and partitions.

Did the upgrade succeed? Hope so! If unhappy with it, you have 10 days to revert to the previous build. (But then you'd need to block upgrading- which can be done).

If you have Win 10 Pro it's relatively easy to have control of Windows updates. Mine tells me when an update is available- I can deal with it when I like. I have deferred upgrading to 1803 for 365 days- i.e. when I want. (I got my Pro license effectively for about $44- 'cos I bought a valid 8.1 license when MS was trying to sell them).

Home- one approach would be to disable updates (there's a utility for that posted here and on Major Geeks) and check manually. Windows Update Minitool (free) is useful.

Imaging: as I said above: about 15 mins to image a moderate-sized Windows (C: + related partitions) (assuming personal data is not on the disk) first time from SSD over USB3. Less subsequently for differential images.

Then you can image any data disks or partitions too.

You can still use your PC while the image is being created. Or do some gardening, stroke the cat, have a drink, phone a friend...

After all, you do have to back up periodically in some manner routinely by whatever means- whether over a network or to a USB disk, say.

Imaging can be scheduled- e.g. overnight- but that implies the backup medium is connected for longer. I prefer to have it disconnected and powered down.