Who Got Caught Disabling Windows Update? - Comments Page 1

Bitdefender does this also, but they then manage the updating of patches.

I have purposely turned off update...it crashes my laptop everytime it automatically tries to update.

What if you are one those that doesn't plan to do the automatic update to Windows 10 on July 29th or thereabouts? I have a year to wait it out and see if I want to go that way or stay with windows 7 until support ends and move on to pure Linux. I select those updates that I want (critical or important) after a little research before doing so. Virus and malware free for years.

I have mine set to the "dreaded" let me chose, because this goes back to being on dial-up, and Windows always beginning it's downloads when I was trying to do something else online. Now I'm on satellite, and practically have the same problem. So I will stick with the "let me choose" until something better comes along. After I get through with what I am doing, then I let Windows do its thing. And it's always within an hour or so.

My recently installed upgrade to 8gb of memory becomes used up. I must restart my laptop and let windows upgrade take place (automatically) and then the ram is freed up.

Samsung shouldn't have done that, but it's the setting at which I keep Microsoft Update on my own machine.

I'd gotten a bit complacent, which is how I ended up with the recent (several months ago) updates that broke the System File Checker. I won't be so careless again. The fix wasn't hard, but it was annoying.

Given the number of times that Microsoft has broken Windows with updates (admittedly, rarer now than with XP and earlier), it makes sense to do some research before installing them.

I update programs daily (SUMo), and I haunt Microsoft Update on Patch Tuesday until the updates arrive (unless I've checked the announcement earlier and read about the expected updates), so I'm not in any danger of missing patches. I understand that not everyone is so...uptight, I guess, is the kindest word I can use. But for those of us who are meticulous about maintaining our machines, automatic updates are not the way to go.

I choose to be notified of Windows updates because too many times it has decided to automatically download items in the middle of my working time, which can slow down my computer and my down/uploads at inconvenient times. By choosing Notify rather than Automatic I can choose when to slow down and reboot my computer without interrupting my workflow. But I do check regularly--every time my computer wakes up from sleep mode.

I have to disagree with you and agree with Samsung. Windows updates have always caused problems and always will. Best to pick and choose since lots of those updates are not applicable to my system set up ... I have chosen to delete many of Microsoft's crap programs and features and do not need updates for them.

I do my own Windows updates manually. That is the way my computer came. It's a minor annoyance. However, I wouldn't trust Microsoft's automatic update.

I can't help wondering if "Give me recommended updates the same way I receive important updates" is the option that allows Microsoft to download (generic) hardware drivers? If so, there was no need at all for Samsung to DISABLE ALL Windows updates! All Samsung had to do was advise it's customers to un-tick that option or to check their own update programme for their specific USB drivers immediately after or as soon after running a Windows Update as possible. Then if their customers failed to heed their advice, Samsung could wash their hands of any problems resulting from those customers failing to heed their advice.

But whatever that option means in real terms, MS SHOULD make it clear precisely 'at the point of sale' WHAT ticking that option means!

Thank you again, Bob Rankin,
It appears there is plenty of blame to go around to many other PC OEMs. I have sworn off Toshiba laptops from my list of 'recommended laptop OEMs' for this exact reason. Toshiba (as with Samsung) prefers to divert their laptop owners for updates to their own 'dashboard'. This machine has caused nothing but turmoil and embarrassment for me. In the past 2 years, I have been able to undo most of the damage w/this laptop. Yet, not even Microsoft and their forums have been able figure out why this laptop will not update to InternetExplorer11 or why every available update continues to show up even after their installation. I just discovered that I cannot force this laptop to reserve an update to Win10 (although 5 of my other machines have confirmed Win10 reservations). I am going to have to dig deep into the registry to see if there is an equivalent key for this "Disable_WindowsUpdate.exe " executable, as nothing else has worked!

I set my system to 'notify me but let me choose what to install' a while ago. My computer had crashed several times after downloading automatic updates, and a lot of their 'critical' updates are for programs I don't even have installed.

One of the biggest reason I have disabled 'automatic' mode is for virus/malware scans. I set the scans to run overnight, and invariably, Microsoft will perform an update during the night, and then RESTART my computer, killing my scans. Very annoying.
I see this as similar to an email box which must be manually cleaned out from time to time so that it won't fill up and begin bouncing email messages. Allowing Outlook to 'automatically' empty the mailbox may be convenient, but your email won't be available from another machine. Convenience vs. control.
Chris

Long ago, I used to, but no longer trust "...automatically." Nowadays, I wait 2-3 weeks because of my nasty experiences with random faulty Microsoft updates. Guess what? - buying a Samsung is no longer in my future. Too many cooks...

I select "Notify me but let me choose..." Many times there are updates for programs from Microsoft that I do not even have on my PC such as Outlook.

Also, many of their updates have been withdrawn due to system crashes or for the internet to be disabled.

I'm also one of those who goes with "let me choose," and for pretty much the reasons cited. My time on-line is often limited, so having Windows go off and drag my system to a crawl doing updates in something I can't afford (the slowdown has caused some of my cloud applications to drag or crash at inopportune times). It gets especially annoying when Windows wants to download or install updates while I'm trying to shut down my laptop and leave where I'm at (often a meeting) and sitting there waiting for Windows to finish the process while the facility security people sit there tapping their feet glaring at you is no fun. Hey Bob, we're not all dummies you know. I suspect most of us here are smart enough to keep tabs on updates without being "nannied."

I go the "notify me of updates" route. Really I just want to do it after I have finished with my morning email and FB check and any research or bill paying I need to do that day. To my knowledge I have never had a problem with any Windows Update, but I could be mistaken- things do occasionally go wonky for no apparent reason. So perhaps it was WU. I have had to reset my computer via Backup and Restore a few times in recent years with Windows 7 (far easier and quicker than troubleshooting problems in the past). Some of those times may have been due to WU, but I don't know that.

Why can't Samsung automatically download their special drivers, and make them override Windows generic drivers?

I checked the settings on our computers, and confirmed that they were on "automatic update". However, in the process of doing that I discovered Microsoft's message asking if I wanted to "reserve" the Windows 10 update. WTF?? That was the first I'd heard about a Windows 10 update to Windows 7. So I did some Googling, and learned that Microsoft is going to be pushing that Windows 10 update very hard, with lots of nagging messages.

I paid a premium to buy our computers with Windows 7 on them rather than Windows 8.1, and I have no desire to change their operating systems. I'm satisfied with Windows 7; I've heard too many horror stories about Windows 8; and I won't trust Windows 10 unless and until it has had a long period of usage to work out all the bugs and ensure compatibility with all of my existing software applications.

According to what I've read, Windows 10 won't "automatically" update like other Microsoft security patches. But I'm not going to take any chances that I or my wife might inadvertantly say "Yes" to a request to update. So I turned OFF the automatic update feature. Now I will have to manually approve security updates instead of letting them automatically install. And I'm still going to be extra suspicious of every such request.

I would have preferred to leave the automatic installation option ON, but given the threat of Windows 10 I just don't trust Microsoft enough to do that.

When this story first broke, there was no explanation of why Samsung took this drastic action. Now we understand - they were issuing poor quality driver software for USB3 ports on Samsung PCs.

Maybe Microsoft should make WU more granular, so that drivers can be selected separately and left out of automatic updates. I take the view that once you have installed a driver that works, leave it be.

A similar thing can occur with printer drivers; my HP printer has a duplexer which the Windows 10 Tech Preview driver blissfully ignores and insists on printing single-sided only.

Why does MS behave in such a lazy and slipshod way? Do they believe they are the only game in town and that we have to accept whatever they provide?

Chris