How to limit Windows 11 PC data usage when tethering – Guide

In Windows 10 and 11, cellular connections are set to metered by default, but Wi-Fi and Ethernet connections are not. However, users can do it manually with a few clicks. Connecting as metered not only prevents Windows from installing updates automatically, it also prevents some apps from transferring data in the background. This saves valuable data and prevents certain apps from calling home, improving privacy. By default, Windows does not automatically download updates over metered connections. To ensure that the setting has not been changed on the device, go to Settings, click Windows Update at the bottom of the left sidebar, and select Advanced Options. Make sure the option “Download updates via metered connections” is turned off. Users can set multiple connections as metered in Windows 11, making it possible to stop most background data transfers on any network. Of course, users can always manually download and install updates over metered connections.

Choose your browser

There are two browsers you can choose from to reduce data usage while tethering: Chrome and Opera. Here it is how to use the features.

chrome

Opera

deactivate your cloud

Finally, let’s disable any cloud services you are using, such as Dropbox or Google Drive. For Dropbox, click the service icon in the lower right corner of the taskbar. If it’s not there, click the up arrow and you should see it in the little pop-up.up window that appears. When you click on the Dropbox icon, a small pop-upup window appears. Click the settings icon in the upper right corner and select Pause Sync. For Google Drive, find the icon again by clicking the up arrow on the taskbar, right-click the Drive icon and select Pause. You can also pause Microsoft’s OneDrive using this method, although you should stop syncing thanks to the options we previously disabled in the Settings app.

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