win 7 updates

Any way to prevent the updater from sneakily rebooting your system when you're not looking? Like even if programs are up and running? Ready to launch tactical nukes at Redmond.

 

If I remember right you can disable that with UWT. Ultimate windows tweaker. I like the program a lot. It puts vista and windows 7 hidden setting in a easy to use program. You get several tabs of stuff to adjust. You can even change or update your OEM Logo for your windows install with it.

Ultimate Windows Tweaker, a TweakUI for Windows 7 & Vista

Ultimate Windows Tweaker - Download.com

 

Don't you just love that when it happens...main reason why I have auto update...OFF .

 

I expect there are people at M$ tasked with thinking of ways to charge us for those updates.
Like Garmin. £89 to update maps from 2010 to 2012.
Without Linus and all those other open source heroes unknown to me who help to keep big business in check we would probably be much poorer.

 

Click Start -> Run
Enter “gpedit.msc”
Go to Local Computer Policy -> Computer Configuration -> Administrative Templates -> Windows Components -> Windows Update
Double-click on “No auto-restart for scheduled Automatic Update installation”
Enable it!

copypasted from Home - Microsoft Answers

P.S. I think the default setting is correct. If you have mission critical applications - just change it
Reboot the computer

 

many thanks. I'll give that a try

 

You absolutely should not let Windows Update decide what to update. For Win 7: Control Panel>All Control Panel Items>Windows Update> Change Settings: "Check for updates but let me choose whether to download or install them". (might be in your start menu)
Avoids the part where you find out you have installed Internet Exploder 9 without knowing it.
CAP

 

I think I remember a friend's W7 "starter" version on a 10" tablet didn't have those update choices but my memory's often wrong.

 

Why not?
Say, you already have IE 8 and OS updates it to IE9. It's better, newer etc
My Win8 updates automatically every day and I'm sure it becomes more stable and safe
If you trust OS (you use it = you trust it) - give it what it needs

P.S. Just installed Google Chrome beta after 2 (I think) years of using IE and Mozilla Nightly. Uninstalled Chrome earlier because it worked bad with RAM.
Now Chrome doesn't eat 20-30% CPU (Mozilla and IE do) and battery life is muuuch better

 

Why?, Because I don't use IE unless it's absolutely necessary, I don't need my hard drive full of bloat security updates, I don't want Silverlight messing things up, I don't need Windows Genuine Advantage, I could go on and on. IT professionals do not allow automatic updates from Microsoft, they look at them first. Over the years there have been disastrous messes created by Windows updates. Check out "Tech Republic" (thanks Mnem), they do a report every month on the latest Windows updates. you'd be amazed how many of them you don't need.
CAP
Edit: For example, I just checked, "Bing Desktop" 1.4 MB, Definition Update for Windows Defender 16.8 MB. That's 18.2 MB of unwanted junk just this afternoon!

 

You are using Windows Defender, but don't want it to be updated?
Your min.HDD is 160GB. Plenty of space against 18MB of updates
Ok, everyone has it's own opinion

 

go to control panel>system and security>windows update> change settings

and change your settings to check for updates, but choose wheter to download or install. This way you choose what to install and when. I hate windows as much as the next guy, but Windows 7 gives you many options. the fact that it sets most of them for "safety for dumb people" is just economics. Otherwise you would have people ing that their pc got infected by some simple thing that windows update would have prevented.

and I see Capt. Dogfish just pointed this out. Still Windows has many faults but Win 7 is very customizable.

 

I'm not using Windows Defender, that's the point, update still wants to dump all that crap on my hard drive. Minimum hard drive 160GB? Bought any 160GB SSD's lately? The 18MB is just yesterday afternoon, it's already nagging me about more this morning. Everyone is entitled to their own opinion, the OP wanted to know how to get Windows Update under control. I posted one solution to his problem.
CAP

 

Hope it's just a discussion

 

No, I bought a 600Gb 320 from Intel Ow and a Patriot 250 and two OCZ 160Gb's.... Mhhhh, been on a spending spree I guess....
But SSD's rule!