Too Many Updates

[Coldicote]

After an hour messing about with my laptop (Windows 7) I prepared to switch off but was told ‘please don’t power off - installing one of ten updates’. Why ten? This is a frequent sort of occurrence. Half an hour later it was installing the fourth of ten updates. I got fed up with waiting and switched off. Why are there so many updates and what do they actually do? I’m tempted to think whizz-kids are inventing things that are not really necessary.

[rojash]

Generally they are security updates to different parts of the system. You may get more updates than average, because your system was only recently reinstalled.

"I got fed up with waiting and switched off."

Well, that'll teach 'em a lesson won't it?
Either they'll get installed next time, or you will screw up your system.

[aelmpvw]

you can always put them in the background and do something else ... no need to wait

[VHG]

>>>I got fed up with waiting and switched off.

VERY VERY risky thing to do.

You could leave yourself with a totally unusable system and would probably need to pay a PC engineer £50 (or more) to fix it.

If you had just left the PC it would have eventually installed the fixes and turned itself off.

>>Why ten?

Because there were 10 fixes to install. These will be bug fixes and each fix may need to chance a large number of files so it can take a while.

The second Tuesday of each month is called "patch tuesday" where Microsoft release all their fixes.

These are usually important security fixes (and bug fixes) so it is always best to just let them install.

Note you can turn this "auto install" feature off (if you really want to ) though I would not suggest you do.

[VHG]

>>Why are there so many updates and what do they actually do?

Windows is a hugely complex system with thousands and thousands of files and many millions (yes many millions) of lines of computer code.

Hackers and other criminal types are constantly trying to find "holes" in Windows where they can "get in" and use those holes to install viruses and other dodgy programs used to steal personal information such as our banking details or passwords or other personal details.

So companies like Microsoft are constantly having to rewrite their code to block these security holes to stop criminals coming in.

Also "bugs" (problems) are constantly being found with Windows, or new products like tablets and smartphones (or all sorts of other devices) are created that need to work with Windows so the Windows code constantly need to be changed to fix these bugs or to change the code so it works with these new products.

These updates we all get are just Microsoft distributing these new changes to our computers.

NOT installing these updates just leaves your computer wide open for people to steal your personal information, but if you would rather have that then dont bother to install the fixes.

[gingejbee]

Coldicote: I find it bizarre that you think Microsoft would issue "important updates" that "are not really necessary".

[Coldicote]

Thanks everyone and I'm sure you are right - I deserved to have my knuckles rapped!! I guess there are others who get a bit fed up at times and will probably also benefit from your advice.

[Canary42]

Get an Apple

[malagabob]

On this subject of updates Every time I switch my laptop on I get the message Installing updates. When I have closed my laptop down and restarted it later, I get the message Configuring windows updates. Then shortly after a message. Failure configuring updates reverting changes. Any ideas why my laptop is not accepting these updates. I have McAfee and Windows 7 home premium.

[Old_Geezer]

They update as many as they update in one go. sometimes it's one, sometimes twenty, thirty, whatever. They help keep your PC safe from the bad guys. MS have no incentive to create and issue updates for fun. It points out how poor the previous verison of MS was.