Offline Windows Update?

[Robin L. ZX]

*** Sent as a Feature Request to Microsoft ***

Hi,

I have been using Microsoft OS since Dos 3.3 and
WindowsXP Pro is simply great! But ... (there is always a
but!) ... the windows update feature while offering a
very useful means for keeping the OS uptodate, fails
miserably when considering an organization for around 50
pcs (or more) and using dial-up networking!

While some of the updates are specific to each PC or
notebook (such as drivers), most of the updates are
common across the machines (such as critical updates and
WindowsXP files). Having to let every user (some 50 over)
to take turns in connecting to the internet to do a
windows update is a sheer waste of precious user time,
electricity and phone line when you consider that most of
the updates downloaded are common to them all.

SUGGESTION:
Let organizations (such as mine, a monastery) download or
receive the updates on a CD for installation on the
intranet (LAN) so that users can update their machines
without going through the dial-up to the internet. That
way, they can get going with their use of the PC for
religious purposes and not waste hours downloading
service packs and security updates (which come up every
week!).

Then once a month, they can do an update of their
hardware drivers that are specific to their machines.
And, in my experience, most of the hardware drivers do
not change so often, unless you happen to own the latest
greatest nVidia or ATI Radeon video chipset, *AND* need
to get the most optimized drivers, which the monastic
community here do not need to.

Well, my thanks to the Windows folks for WindowsXP (I am
a developer myself and was in MCS sometime back, though
now I am a monk) but no thanks to the long download time
for windows update.

PS: I just installed a new hdd and just resetup
WindowsXP, OfficeXP and the other apps, and now I have 48
critical Updates / Service Packs, 24 Windows XP updates,
and 3 drivers to download.
PPS: The IBM thinkpad came with a "Software Installer"
program which allowed me to automatically scan a series
of user-defined directories for the correct drivers and
IBM utilities for installation. This way, although the
standard XP installation left my system with almost ten
unknown devices, running the IBM "software installer"
took less than 15minutes and now everything is setup and
ready to go.

Further, if I download any new files from the IBM web
site, it is stored on my harddisk, which can be backed up
if I reinstall my system's OS using the Rapid Recovery
software ... which is another story altogether.

 

[Rick \Nutcase\ Rogers]

Hi,

Updates for Win98, WinME, WinXP, WinNT, and Win2000 through October 2003 on
CD:
http://www.microsoft.com/security/protect/cd/order.asp

Download any other updates you want to distribute locally through the
Windows Update Catalog. You can do this from any machine running any Windows
version. Just go to the update site and click on catalog in the left column.
If you don't see it, add it by clickin on personalize.

Manage updates on your Windows network using SUS:
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsserversystem/sus/default.mspx

Let Microsoft know what you want to see in future products:
http://register.microsoft.com/mswish/suggestion.asp

--
Best of Luck,

Rick Rogers aka "Nutcase" MS-MVP - Windows
Windows isn't rocket science! That's my other hobby!

Associate Expert - WinXP - Expert Zone

 

[Alex Nichol]

SUGGESTION:
Let organizations (such as mine, a monastery) download or
receive the updates on a CD for installation on the
intranet (LAN) so that users can update their machines
without going through the dial-up to the internet. That
way, they can get going with their use of the PC for
religious purposes and not waste hours downloading
service packs and security updates (which come up every
week!).

This is not a route for sending in such suggestions: Try
http://register.microsoft.com/mswish/suggestion.asp

You can do a lot for yourself though. Use one machine as the master
one. Whenever you get an update (and do it manually, so as to be in
control) the downloaded .exe file is put in the first instance in
Temporary Internet files. So first go to Internet Options and click
the Delete files for it; get the upgrade then before the download gets
deleted open the Temp Int Files - Settings; View files and copy the
files out. You can then make your own CD.

In addition In Windows Update you can take Windows Update catalog on the
left which allows you to set up a download basket to get the critical
updates for any system

Also there *is* a consolidated CD of security updates (which includes
SP1 - order at
http://www.microsoft.com/security/protect/cd/order.asp

If as well you get the specific consolidated patch downloads from
http://support.microsoft.com/?scid=kb;en-us;nnnnnn
where nnnnnn is

835732 (Sasser worm patch)
837009 (OE Cumulative)
832894 (IE Cumulative)
828741 (XP Cumulative)
828028 (ASN 1)
837001 (Jet Engine)

you are pretty near up to date. But these days a 'monthly' updating
would not be nearly often enough. You need more like daily - or at
least twice a week. The safe window in which a patch is out but
exploits of it are not yet written is getting shorter and shorter; for
Sasser it was about a week

 

[Terry]

A really simple approach would be to get one PC of each specific OS used to
go online and run the update procedure, find out which updates need
applying, download them manually (and store them on the network) and then
perform the update(s) on all PC's of the same OS. Once this has happened,
let the other PC's of the same OS run the update online, just to check that
they appear up to date on patches. this can also be done if using the later
Office products.

It's a sort of caveman approach, but really simple.

Of course Microsoft's Software Update Services (SUS) would be prefential
(but you have no choice in how much it wants to download, so it includes the
Service Packs at a huge 100MB plus each), but it will only support the later
OS's, not Win9x.

Terry
New Zealand

 

[Sunny]

An option that lets you update the critical stuff for Win98/SE/ME/2000/XP.
(up to Nov 2003) :
Update Windows CD (free):
http://www.microsoft.com/security/protect/cd/order.asp
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;833242&Product=winme