Offline Updates for WD - Workaround

[Simon Zerafa]

Hi Guys,

MS not making these updates for WD seperately downloadable for manual
installation is a pain IMHO.

If you are installing or updating WD on a PC which is offline, (perhaps due
to spyware infection), then not being able to go online means you cannot
update WD to the latest database version.

Removing some spyware does also damage your Internet connection so the
ability to be able to update offline is a must when you are engaged in
cleaning a PC of spyware (which I do regularly as part of my business).

I tend to favour tools and utilities which do allow for offline updating and
downloading their updates manually as it makes my like easier.

Not everyone has a high speed Internet connection so having your tools on a
CD with the updates ready to install is a godsend.

The updates for MSAS were available for download and later installation when
offline so I hope this is something that is carried across to WD in later
Beta's and the Final Build.

Anyway there is a work-around for now; go to your
%SYSTEMROOT%\SoftwareDistribution folder and locate the file for the WD
update as it is downloading in Windows Upadate and copy it elsewhere when
the download is complete.

Extract the contents of the .EXE with your favourite unpacker (I used
WinRAR) and a .MSP file will be inside. Mine was called MPAS-FE.MSP and
3.11 MBytes in size.

Running the .MSP file appears to update the installed copy of WD to the
latest definitions.

It may also be possible to apply the .MSP to your base install of WD to
create a single installer which contains the updates as perhaps an
Administrative Install Point.

Kind Regards

Simon Zerafa

 

[Bill Sanderson]

Thanks, Simon--this is a much-requested workaround.

 

[Guest]

I too am experienceing this problem. I followed your instructions but I
receive an error that that "the installation source for this product is not
available. Verify that the source exists and that you can access it"

Think I am going to do a restore point, this error has been a problem every
since I followed this fix procedure:
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/915105/en-us

 

[Bill Sanderson MVP]

I'm not sure whether you've been able to get current or not?

Steve Dodson says that a troubleshooting KB on definitions is in the works,
but not available yet.

--

 

[Guest]

Nope, still on the 4/10/06 definitions. I went back and re-read that KB
article and it said that the update won't happen for me now till the next
update becasue i uninstalled and reinstalled. I also tried the manual update
process described elsewhere and it failed with the msg like below.

 

[Bill Sanderson MVP]

I wrote a comprehensive "update" reply earlier tonight, let me find it and
cut and paste--your next step is the Windows Installer cleanup tool--remove
just the Windows Defender signatures.
---------------
My order of fixes is: 1) get current via Windows Update Express scan, if
you haven't already.
2) Use the workaround paragraph of KB 915105
3) if that fails with an error message, use the Installer Cleanup utility
exactly the way you did--remove just Windows Defender signatures.
(and, further, for really obstinate cases, try a repair install (start,
control panel, add or remove programs, windows defender, click here for
support info, repair--followed by attempting to plug the definitions in via
a manual download
----------------

URL's:
http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=915105

Cleanup Utility:
http://support.microsoft.com/?scid=kb;en-us;290301
--

 

[Guest]

Thanks Bill, went thru these steps and now have the 4/20 updates
1.14.1404.6. your help is much appreciated.

Looks like it was the cleanup tool that made the difference, I had done all
the other steps previously.

 

[Bill Sanderson MVP]

I'd like to find a set of steps that avoids that tool--it has some side
effects which I believe are not permanent, but I haven't pinned down the
details--but it does do the job.

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