Update: Windows Update gets update

Davey Winder
Sunday, 06 July 2008 04:28

Business IT - Technology

So to avoid a false sense of security the update client will automatically check for and install available infrastructure updates, irrespective of configuration, whenever that system uses the update service.

"Occasionally, we must update the infrastructure of Windows Update in order to ensure a high level of service quality, reliability, and operation" Haven explains, continuing "As part of this process, we update both the back-end infrastructure that supports the service as well as the client side code." Windows Update has been doing this same thing for many years, happening maybe once per year, and it was just such an update which caused the aforementioned media feeding frenzy.

You can opt out, but you will have to explicitly disable the update service to ensure this. Which means choosing either the 'never check for updates' or 'turn off automatic updates' option depending on whether you have Vista or XP.

"This particular update won’t really change the way the client looks or feels to you" Haven admits, but it will bring improvements to how long it takes Windows Update to scan your PC or server for updates which, in turn, will reduce the time it takes for signature updates to be received. "We’ve seen some instances of the scan times on some machines decreasing almost 20 percent" Haven insists.