PC rebooted overnight

Hi Rich,
You have already selected the correct notification settings. However, “Notify me when a restart is required” does not prevent an eventual automatic restart. Windows 11 can still restart outside the 18-hour active-hours window.
Also, “Get the latest updates as soon as they’re available” is unrelated to restarting. It simply provides non-security fixes and feature improvements earlier. You may leave it on or turn it off.

First confirm that Windows actually restarted​

Closed applications alone do not prove there was a reboot.

1. Open Start.
2. Type reliability.
3. Select View reliability history.
4. Select the column corresponding to last night.
5. Look for Windows Update, Windows was not properly shut down, or an application failure.

Also check:

1. Open Settings.
2. Select Windows Update.
3. Select Update history.
4. Check whether an update was installed overnight.

Recommended settings​

1. Open Settings > Windows Update > Advanced options.
2. Leave Get me up to date turned Off.
3. Leave Notify me when a restart is required to finish updating turned On.
4. Open Active hours and select Manually.
5. Set the 18 hours to cover the period when an unattended restart would be most disruptive.
6. When Windows Update displays Restart required, open Windows Update and choose Schedule the restart.

Windows 11 should display a toast notification and may also put a restart/update indicator in the notification area. Unlike older Windows versions, however, the indicator is not guaranteed to remain permanently visible until you act.

If the PC has Windows 11 Pro​

There is a Group Policy named No auto-restart with logged on users for scheduled automatic updates installations, but Microsoft warns that it does not always behave exactly as its name suggests and could leave updates awaiting a reboot indefinitely. I would use it only if the normal notification arrangement proves insufficient.

1. Create a restore point first.
2. Press Windows + R.
3. Enter gpedit.msc and press Enter.
4. Navigate to Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > Windows Components > Windows Update > Manage end user experience.
5. Open Configure Automatic Updates.
6. Select Enabled.
7. Choose 4 – Auto download and schedule the install.
8. Enable No auto-restart with logged on users for scheduled automatic updates installations.
9. Restart the computer once manually.

To undo this, set both policies back to Not Configured.
Do not use registry edits or disable the Windows Update service for this. Those approaches can interfere with security updates and Windows may recreate the settings anyway.
The important first step is checking Reliability History. If there is no Windows restart entry, one or both applications probably closed or crashed independently.

Good points, moreau. Windows Update history is the best first check.
Turning off Get the latest updates as soon as they’re available may reduce how soon optional, non-security improvements arrive, but it does not disable automatic restarts. Required security updates still install normally.
To identify the cause more reliably, Rich should compare Update History with:

1. Reliability Monitor — search Start for View reliability history.
2. Event Viewer > Windows Logs > System.
3. Look for Event ID 1074 for a planned restart, 6008 for an unexpected shutdown, or 41 for power loss/crash.

That should distinguish a Windows Update restart from an application crash or unexpected power event.

Rich73Kelly said:

I recently purchased a Win 11 PC so, I am not "up to date" on where to find these settings.

I have a couple of apps I leave on 24/7 so, I generally (properly) close these apps prior to rebooting. I got up this morning and noticed these apps closed.

I have already gone into settings and turned off "Get me up to date" and turned on "Notify me when a restart is required to finish updating" under Windows Update > advanced Options. I have, however turned on "Get the latest updates as soon as they're available" under the main Windows Security tab.

I have also tried to adjust active hours but, that has a max of 18 hours.

My old Win 10 PC (Win7 Pro upgraded to win 10 Pro) always left a notification near the (right end of the) taskbar when a restart was required. I would like this to happen on this PC. It is an action I have grown accustomed to.

Click to expand...

Turn off “Get the latest updates as soon as they’re available” since it can make updates arrive sooner than expected. Also, Windows 11 doesn’t reliably offer the old Windows 10 style of a persistent restart notification in the taskbar. Keep “Notify me when a restart is required” enabled, and for apps you need running 24/7, enable their start with Windows/restore session option so they come back after an unexpected restart. No recovery software is needed here.