Another Reason not to use Automatic Updates

[Guest]

Short answer is Vista should ALWAYS (but does not) give the option to reboot
later, rather than forcing a restart of the computer to install automatic
updates. Forcing user into reboot can cause lost work as well as critical
time loss at time not chosen by user. CHANGE AUTO UPDATE OPTION TO ONLY
NOTIFY, NOT AUTO UPDATE.

More detail:

In XP when automatic update installed, it did not force a reboot while you
were in the middle of working, it would ask 'now or later'. In Vista, it
started a shutdown/restart without my permission and I get prompted by my
applications if I want to save or not. Problem is not all applications do
that.

In fact my daughter yelled at me this morning because she was playing
Microsoft game Mahjong Titans and IM chatting. Her IM session went away, and
the game didn't save (apparently if you have not previously used save game
feature manually, there is no save game file, and it gives you that message
when Vista restarts). Now I'm trying to convince her that the Vista computer
is ok to use. Losing your game or conversation with your friend shouldn't be
that big a deal, but YOU COULD BE IN THE MIDDLE OF CRITICAL WORK AND LOSE ALL
OF YOUR WORK SINCE YOUR LAST SAVE. NO EXCUSE FOR THIS MICROSOFT!

 

[Adam Albright]

Short answer is Vista should ALWAYS (but does not) give the option to reboot
later, rather than forcing a restart of the computer to install automatic
updates. Forcing user into reboot can cause lost work as well as critical
time loss at time not chosen by user. CHANGE AUTO UPDATE OPTION TO ONLY
NOTIFY, NOT AUTO UPDATE.

Yep, actually XP would do this also. A couple years back I was in the
middle of rendering a really large file, had 14 hours into the job was
about 90% done, I stepped away for a few minutes and when I returned
discovered the machine rebooted. Wasn't a error, some damn update that
failed to show the reboot permission window and just went ahead on
its' own and rebooted trashing my video file it had been working on
for so long.

I spend the next hour trying to find some MS "help" person, finally
got somebody that seemed to know what he was talking about then he
stood on a stack of bibles and tried to tell me Windows couldn't do
what I just saw it do.

 

[Bill Yanaire]

I know what really happened. You stated that you stepped away for a few
minutes then returned and discovered your machine had rebooted. Since you
have a security system in your home, I was lucky enough to view that tape
from that day and sure enough, a Linux guy snuck into your office while you
were in the other room, and rebooted you PC!

It was his way of trying to convert you to Linux!

 

[Guest]

This brings me back to some advice I received back in 99 when I first got a
PC.
Never...Never-ever allow ANYTHING to auto update.
And I still follow that advice.
This came along when alot of programs were made with thier own "Phone Home"
hijack-
Info gathering garbage.
If you value your PC/system you would dissable auto-update on everything
and set up a schedule to do them manually.
I check AV updates almost everyday when I first log on to the internet.
Windows update once a week. Programs like Adaware and Sybot about once a
month. It's not hard.
Take some responsibility of your own property. Never let someone else do it.
And I bet alot of identity theft comes around from systems auto connecting
to the internet.
You can put Windows Update Web page in your favorites and do updates from
there.
http://update.microsoft.com/windowsupdate/v6/default.aspx?ln=en-us
But you can go ahead and let a company that is intent on selling you their
next new OS manage your PC/Laptop.

 

[Debra Lichtenwalner]

Short answer is Vista should ALWAYS (but does not) give the option to reboot
later, rather than forcing a restart of the computer to install automatic
updates. Forcing user into reboot can cause lost work as well as critical
time loss at time not chosen by user. CHANGE AUTO UPDATE OPTION TO ONLY
NOTIFY, NOT AUTO UPDATE.

More detail:

In XP when automatic update installed, it did not force a reboot while you
were in the middle of working, it would ask 'now or later'. In Vista, it
started a shutdown/restart without my permission and I get prompted by my
applications if I want to save or not. Problem is not all applications do
that.

In fact my daughter yelled at me this morning because she was playing
Microsoft game Mahjong Titans and IM chatting. Her IM session went away, and
the game didn't save (apparently if you have not previously used save game
feature manually, there is no save game file, and it gives you that message
when Vista restarts). Now I'm trying to convince her that the Vista computer
is ok to use. Losing your game or conversation with your friend shouldn't be
that big a deal, but YOU COULD BE IN THE MIDDLE OF CRITICAL WORK AND LOSE ALL
OF YOUR WORK SINCE YOUR LAST SAVE. NO EXCUSE FOR THIS MICROSOFT!

I haven't had this problem at all. I have always received the choice to
reboot now or later option, or when logging off it will have the install
updates and log off option. Could it be a setting somewhere?

 

[John Barnes]

It has a time before the automatic restart takes place and you can delay it
all day if you want.

 

[Gary VanderMolen]

I haven't had this problem at all. I have always received the choice to
reboot now or later option, or when logging off it will have the install
updates and log off option. Could it be a setting somewhere?

Likewise. Windows Update has never rebooted any of my four
computers unless I gave it specific permission to do so.

 

[Frenchy]

Short answer is Vista should ALWAYS (but does not) give the option to
reboot
later, rather than forcing a restart of the computer to install automatic
updates. Forcing user into reboot can cause lost work as well as critical
time loss at time not chosen by user. CHANGE AUTO UPDATE OPTION TO ONLY
NOTIFY, NOT AUTO UPDATE.

More detail:

In XP when automatic update installed, it did not force a reboot while you
were in the middle of working, it would ask 'now or later'. In Vista, it
started a shutdown/restart without my permission and I get prompted by my
applications if I want to save or not. Problem is not all applications do
that.

In fact my daughter yelled at me this morning because she was playing
Microsoft game Mahjong Titans and IM chatting. Her IM session went away,
and
the game didn't save (apparently if you have not previously used save game
feature manually, there is no save game file, and it gives you that
message
when Vista restarts). Now I'm trying to convince her that the Vista
computer
is ok to use. Losing your game or conversation with your friend shouldn't
be
that big a deal, but YOU COULD BE IN THE MIDDLE OF CRITICAL WORK AND LOSE
ALL
OF YOUR WORK SINCE YOUR LAST SAVE. NO EXCUSE FOR THIS MICROSOFT!

Set the Automatic Updates to NOTIFY you they are ready to install. That way
you are in charge and don't miss any updates. You see the new icon in the
taskbar and it tells you updates are ready to install.

I think the same in XP as well if you want it

Frenchy

 

[Cal Bear '66]

I have never had an automatic restart either. In fact last week, after
a Windows Update and closing the Windows Update window without
restarting, the Update icon remained in the Notification Area, and when
I hovered the mouse pointer over it, it said "Restart Required".

 

[PTravel]

Yep, actually XP would do this also. A couple years back I was in the
middle of rendering a really large file, had 14 hours into the job was
about 90% done, I stepped away for a few minutes and when I returned
discovered the machine rebooted. Wasn't a error, some damn update that
failed to show the reboot permission window and just went ahead on
its' own and rebooted trashing my video file it had been working on
for so long.

I spend the next hour trying to find some MS "help" person, finally
got somebody that seemed to know what he was talking about then he
stood on a stack of bibles and tried to tell me Windows couldn't do
what I just saw it do.

Though it's quite possible that what you described happened, all offer
another explanation because this has happened to me. The key word is
rendering -- is that rendering video? If so, that's the most CPU intensive
activity you can do on a personal computer. I have a good UPS that meters
power consumption. I've noticed that, when I render, power consumption more
than doubles. When I noticed this, I started monitoring CPU temperature
during the render and found that, not only does it soar, but it can get up
to the shut-down temperature set in the BIOS. I adjusted the BIOS setting
so that it would shut down, rather than re-boot, on over-heat, and also
raised the shutdown threshhold temperature. After I did that, I didn't have
any more mid-render re-boots or shut-downs.

You might want to check your CPU temperature during a render. Particularly,
if you've over-clocked your CPU and not adjusted the BIOS re-boot
temperature, that might account for what you experienced.

 

[Hugh Wyn Griffith]

Windows Update has never rebooted any of my four 
computers unless I gave it specific permission to do so.

Although I think I've run into situations where you cannot actually do
anything except close down items -- the Close Down window stays stuck
there?

I'm not sure about this since I usually take care not to do an update
while anything else is running.

However I have my Automatic Update set to Notify of Updates but not
automatically to install.

 

[Guest]

Poatt wrote : "...you can go ahead and let a company that is intent on
selling you their next new OS manage your PC/Laptop..."

Good point. Not only their next OS, but I was also bugged while running XP
that Microsoft chose to put an upgrade of Internet Explorer as a "Critical
Update", to make sure more people would install their newer version, whether
they liked it or not. "Resistance is futile ... YOU WILL BE ASSIMILATED"