Skype for Windows 10 works in a slightly different manner than for the earlier versions of Windows. Skype for Windows 10 is installed as an app and you can download it from the Windows Store. As such, all the automatic updates for Skype in Windows 10 are handled by the Windows Store itself. If you want to disable the automatic updates for Skype in Windows 10, then you will have to disable the Windows Store automatic updates altogether. And here is how you can do that:
- Launch Windows Store by clicking on its icon from the Windows desktop taskbar. Sign in to your Microsoft account if needed in the Windows Store.
- Click on the user profile icon in the Windows Store window and then select Settings from the menu that appears.
- In the Windows Store settings window click on the Update apps automatically option to toggle it off.
By turning off the Windows Store app updates, you will stop Skype from receiving and initiating any updates but this will also stop other apps and games from receiving updates from the Microsoft server. The automatic updates for all the apps that you have installed from Windows Store should be disabled only for some special reasons that are temporary in nature.
Another problem that may arise when you have disable the Skype updates in Windows 10 is that Microsoft may force you to update Skype to the newer version when a newer version is released. If Microsoft servers detect that you are using an older version of Skype, they will forcibly sign you out and display a warning message regarding the older version of Skype that you have been using. It simply won’t let you use Skype unless you download the new version and for the new version you will have to enable the automatic updates in Windows Store once again.