Re: How do I make Windows/Microsoft Update really honestly automatic?
- From: "Torgeir Bakken \(MVP\)" <Torgeir.Bakken-spam@xxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Sun, 14 Aug 2005 18:05:01 +0200
Anon wrote:
I have a very small business with three pcs running Windows 2000 and XP Home and a home with five pcs running XP Pro and XP Home. The work pcs run 24 hours but the home pcs run only when needed. They are all connected to reliable broadband. I use a hardware firewall only. Virus checker is Etrust Antivirus. I have no server version of Windows nor any budget for this. My users cannot be trusted to have admin rights nor to reliably update anything. Just lately I seem to be spending my life running round from pc to pc checking and running updates - the pc shuffle.
The problem is that no setting of Windows or Microsoft Update seems to work without some sort of user intervention. I have set them all to "Automatic recommended" settings but no dice. I understand the updates come out on a "Tuesday" (whenever wherever) but by Friday midday (Australia Eastern) none of the PCs has upgraded. The pcs run as users and when I log in as admin I find that the upgrades have not been completed. Sometimes I see they have been downloaded but won't install until the user chooses an install upgrade and reboot option. Sometimes nothing has been done at all. In each case Start/Microsoft Update runs fine and completes the updates perfectly - just as long as I am there clicking away. So round the circuit of all eight pcs I go again.
My questions:
1. Exactly what date and time and time zone do the updates appear on "Tuesday"? If I am to do the pc shuffle I would like to know just when to start.
About 10 AM Redmond USA time, but note that if needed, Microsoft will release security updates outside the second Tuesday every month, so you should configure the computers to download and install every day (at a time that suits you and the users)
2. Is there a foolproof way to set Windows 2000 and XP to guarantee that the updates will download and install and reboot if necessary without any user intervention at all and preferably email me to say it has been done?
You will need to set the correct settings for this to happen (not including the e-mail part as there is nothing built-in that can make that happen automatically).
1. How do you configure the settings now? Are you using Control Panel --> Automatic Updates?
2. On one of the computers that doesn't behave as you thought it should, could you please export to a file the registry key HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\WindowsUpdate\AU and post the content of the file here?
3. Will we ever see a version of Windows that can install stuff without having to reboot?
Microsoft is working on some technology that will reduce the need for reboots in many cases, and hopefully we will at least see some improvements in Vista (Longhorn).
-- torgeir, Microsoft MVP Scripting and WMI, Porsgrunn Norway Administration scripting examples and an ONLINE version of the 1328 page Scripting Guide: http://www.microsoft.com/technet/scriptcenter/default.mspx .
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