Question Re Automatic Update Puzzling Behavior

[DLKR]

I have MSAS set to check for automatic updates daily @ 10 AM and to notify me
when updates, new versions,etc. are available.
The auto update feature has never worked. The manual update works fine and I've
used it several times to download new definitions when they are available.
Tonight at~8:30 PM, a window popped up with a message that new MSAS updates were
available and asking if I wanted to install them. I clicked "yes" and after a
few seconds, another window popped up saying that MSAS updates were installed.
The MSAS opening page now Spyware Definitions dated Feb 11, 2005 at 8:28.21 PM.
Clicking "Help/About Microsoft" shows Spyware Definition Version: 5687 (2/11/05
8:28:21 PM).
I'm not sure, but it seems like the last set of definition updates I manually
downloaded recently (don't remember the date) was 5687.
So I have a couple of questions:
Why did my auto update feature suddenly start working?
Why did autoupdate run at 8:29:21 PM instead of at the scheduled 10 AM?
If I'm correct that update definition 5687 is at least several days old (i.e.
issued prior to 2/11/05), why did autoupdate run and think it had to install
"new" updates?

 

[Ron Chamberlin]

Hi DK,

Exact same circumstances here tonight. I just checked, and the about page
had refreshed itself to 5689, tho it was still reading 5687 after the
update.

Ron Chamberlin
MS-MVP

 

[Bill Sanderson]

I don't know anything about the vagaries of the scheduler or automatic
update.

I do know there's an appearance bug in the definition number as reported by
Automatic Update, and/or displayed in Help, About.

I've always been able to correct it by doing a manual update (file, check
for updates), which in fact, doesn't do an update, as evidenced by the
messages you see go by--and then going to help, about, which will now show
the correct version number.

I learned about this from a Steve Dodson post, so I know Microsoft is aware.

 

[DLKR]

snip

I do know there's an appearance bug in the definition number as reported by
Automatic Update, and/or displayed in Help, About.

I've always been able to correct it by doing a manual update (file, check for
updates), which in fact, doesn't do an update, as evidenced by the messages
you see go by--and then going to help, about, which will now show the correct
version number.
snip

Bill,
Thanks for your reply.
I tried your "manual update correction" suggestion and it worked just as you
said - it didn't really download anything but the definition version changed
from 5687 to 5689 after the manual updating process.

 

[DLKR]

Ron,
Thanks for the reply.
Did your autoupdate just start working tonight also?
Did it check for new definitions at the scheduled time?
Do you know how I can tell if autoupdate is working. I can watch at the
scheduled time (10 AM for me) and see whether or not it checks, but since (at
least tonight). it ran at a weird time (8:28;21 PM) do you know of any way to
tell if MSAS autoupdater checks for new definitions?
Thanks again.

 

[AuntieKate]

Though my autoupdate is supposed to work at 9 am it did it a little while
ago (while I was happily playing Freecell). It said it had installed
version 5687. Then it did its automatic scan at 2pm and I had a look and it
then showed in both the first screen and "about" that it was version 5689.
Strange!

AuntieKate

 

[Bill Sanderson]

The display of the incorrect version after an autoupdate is a bug.