Windows Update and Shutdown update confusion

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So, I only use windows @ work, and it confuses me what the relationship between applying the updates from the Control Panel and what applying them from the Shutdown button is.

I recently obtained an HP machine W7 OS that still has the recovery partition intact, and I reimaged the machine and tried to do the 1.6Gb of updates over night.

Being a top notch OS, it decided "just to stop" because it was tired, so I powered off and retried the updates. Several failed attempts and stalls I finally got it to "near modern" levels; I checked the "installed updates" and many were failed to I figure it is all garbaged up. I understand I might have to do 10 or 20 iterations of patches since I am starting with a 8-10 year aged copy.

Is there a strategy to applying updates? Should I be going to the control panel and installing them or do the shutdown and install? Are those both referring to the same updates? The control panel for updates seems to misrepresent things a lot, saying it is downloading updates, when it is, in fact, not. It is probably "evaluating whether the packages need updating and if some of the packages have already been download" Should I just stay away from that?


I'm not an idiot when it comes to this stuff; I just don't understand why patching a machine seems so nebulous

Just looking for some explanations, best practices, stories from the trenches, and maybe a hug...
 
Is this a work owned computer? They are most likely using a patch program to push patches to your computer.

If it is your own computer, you can have it apply patches automatically and reboot during non active hours.
 
Shut down update only installs already downloaded updates, control panel tries to download and install all updates.

Since it has already borked updates I would refresh and start again. Don't update automatically. This link is what I followed last time I installed Windows 7. It solves the "I need this update or the other updates won't work issues" https://www.howtogeek.com/255435/ho...l-at-once-with-microsofts-convenience-rollup/

You will still have updat...10-for-free-now-that-windows-7-is-dead/][/URL]

If you upgrade to Windows 10, you have 30 days to downgrade. If you decide to keep it, make sure it shows it is activated and genuine and do a clean install.
 
Originally Posted by JustinH
Is this a work owned computer? They are most likely using a patch program to push patches to your computer.

If it is your own computer, you can have it apply patches automatically and reboot during non active hours.


This is a good bet. Any company of consequence has a customized system that only pushes the patches that the IT dept wants to be installed, it filters out anything IT tells it to.
 
If you're going to try for Windows 7 updates last time I did one (in 2017?) it took me close to 72 hours.
There were web sites that no longer existed, expired certificates, and patches that hung during update that you had to Google to find ways to get around.
 
I'd suggest avoiding all of this mess and buying a copy of Windows 10. There are places that sell it at much lower cost than people realize and it's a legit copy (you have to activate it with MS and it works).
 
Many updates require at least a logout from your account and/ or more likely a reboot. Downloading and installing updates while you are logged in and operating is one thing; but they won't take full effeect until a logout/ login or reboot. I believe it is the latter that prompts you to full affect the updates.
 
I believe we use landesk @ work, but that might be just for software.

Big thanks to Jethro Bob for those links;
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I managed to get thru the entire process on my 3Mb link (apparently Frontier said I should be getting 12Mb for what I pay... working on that)

After that I upgraded to W10.

It still had the MS [censored] moments when it downloaded bunch of patches, told me W10 didn't support Norton and then downloaded the patches again. Probably about 8 hours for the whole thing to upgrade. (clean W7, other package, w10 upgrade)

Not a windows guy, but I've been forced to work @ home and I like to leave all my options open for accessing company resources; one of our external facing time entry systems says "must use Chrome or Firefox" What they really mean is "on windows too"
 
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