Updates: What To Do With Them?

Posted on: September 30th, 2009

These are common questions that people have:
- What to do with these update notifications I’m getting?
- Should I install them, or ignore them?
- Will it mess up my computer?

While I can’t give you an all inclusive answer to this but I can give you some guidelines.

First of all what are software updates (or sometimes called patches)? There are usually minor modifications in the software to correct a malfunction, or sometimes to add a feature. They were very rare before the widespread use on the internet. Back then, you bought your disk(s) installed the software, used it and that was it. These days, in order to get a product out to the market as soon as possible, software are released sooner and then patched up later.

What updates should I install?

The most important software updates are security updates. These updates are designed to address one or more security weaknesses in a software, which if left unpatched, could allow a virus or other infection to make its way onto your computer.

Security updates are most commonly seen in the form of so called High Priority (or Critical) Windows Updates. These are the ones that get downloaded and installed automatically, unless you disabled that feature. It’s very much advisable to install these updates. Otherwise you might end up contracting a virus just by visiting a website – just an example.

The subject of Service Packs ties closely with the above. A Service Pack is a major update, a collection of dozens of previous updates plus, usually, some other changes. It’s good to install them but usually not right after they are released. Why? Because these introduce major changes into your system and if they have a glitch then your computer could have major issues. The truth is that security updates are for the pre-service-pack systems for months after the release of a service pack, so you are not really running a security risk if you postpone the installation of a service pack.
Also, before you install a service pack there are some precautionary steps that I’d recommend:
- Do a system backup, if you can. In case something goes wrong you will be able to go back.
- Before you start the installation of a Service Pack close all running programs that you can (including those little icons in the bottom right corner). Turn off your antivirus protection – and don’t forget to turn it back on when the process is finished!
- Make sure that your computer is clean as a whistle, as far as viruses and other malware goes. These can really interfere with a service pack update in a bad way! If you notice anything unusual in the computer’s behavior then make sure it’s checked out before doing the update.
- Make sure, as much as possible, that the installation does not get interrupted. This means leaving several hours available, if needed, for the update (as they sometimes run that long). Also don’t start it when a storm is coming, or already in progress, or anytime when there’s a possibility of a power outage.

Another very important updates are the Browser Updates. If you are using Internet Explorer then the browser updates are already part of the Windows Updates. If you are running Firefox, or other browsers then you usually get a notification about new updates available. Browser updates are something I recommend doing. The reason is that browsers are the front line defense against malicious software. Most infections spread via malicious website content. So you’d want the front line to be strong.

Other notable and worthwhile updates are Java updates. Java is used on many webpages and it can be abused by malicious people to infect a computer. So that’s good to keep up-to-date as well.

How about the other updates?

Other than security updates are not crucial and usually not even necessary. The “golden rule” here is “if it’s ain’t broken don’t fix it”. In other words: if the software works well, you don’t notice any malfunctions then keep it that way.

What can I do about those annoying update notifications?

Most of these notifications are generated by little programs that start up automatically. Using CCleaner you can look over the startup items and disable, or delete the updaters.

Another type is generated by the software itself when you start it. These check for updates when they are launched. Most of the times there is an option to turn this feature off. Just look over the available option of the software and most likely you’ll find where to turn it off. Sometimes this feature is configured during the installation, so before clicking Next, look over the available options.

Can updates mess up my computer?

Well, to be honest this is a possibility. It’s very rare but it does happen. The most important thing is to make sure that you close all the programs you can before doing the updates and do not interrupt updates once they started.And also make sure your computer is free of infections and unwanted software.

Summary

I hope I was able to shed some light on the subject of updates and help some people avoid some frustrations.