Windows 7 Turn off updates?

[Michelle]

I've heard that Woody Lenhard advises to turn off windows updates. Is this true only for Windows XP or is this good advice for Windows 7 as well?
Many thanks,
Michelle

[JoeP]

Woody still advises people to have Windows Update set to notify but not install. That may have been good advice for most people in the early years of Windows Update. Many people here, myself included, have multiple machines set to update automatically. It is inevitable that there will be a very few problems that crop up when there are literally millions of combinations of hardware and software in Windows systems that get updated every month. The vast majority get updated without problems. Many of us have had no problems in years from monthly updates. I recommend most people let Windows Update automatically install updates. If you choose not to automatically update you MUST be very vigilant about the fixes that are available and install within a reasonable time period.

Joe

[DaveA]

I agree with Joe and we have the "Auto update" set on all of our machines.

[HansV]

The last time I had a problem with an update from Microsoft was in April 2003. I agree with Joe and Dave. Woody's recommendation has been outdated for years.

[ChrisGreaves]

The last time I had a problem with an update from Microsoft was in April 2003.

Management Measures!
Thanks Hans, for providing a date.
Seven years without a hitch is a meaningful datum.
I suppose, then, that Woody's twice-monthly alert is a means of maintaining readership by providing a service, even if the service is largely meaningless nowadays.
(Wanders OFF to turn automatic updates ON ...)

[Michelle]

Thank you all for your help! Windows updates live on.

[BobArch2]

I have my Windows 7 update environment set to "Check for updates but let me choose whether to download...".

This is not because of Woody's recommendation but that I would rather control when the download and update will occur. If I happen to be in a process that is complicated, time consuming or downloading some sizeable apps, I don't want MS jumping the queue and interrupt what I'm doing. I take the attitude that it can wait.

I also know that 98% of the time, updates are available on the second Tuesday of the month so I always make it a habit of manually checking for updates at that time... regardless of the fact that the update icon will no doubt appear in the system tray. My AV - NOD32 also has a nice feature where it will turn its systray icon to orange indicating that there are some MS updates that need to be applied. This feature is there 24/7 so it acts as a security measure for those 2% off-cycle updates.

[DaveA]

If one was to leave their machine on 7/24 and have the time set for 1-3 AM, then there is no work being interrupted.

Unless one is working 7/24 like someone with 6 fingers