To use Windows Updates or not ?

D

I recently formatted my pc and reinstalled XP pro. And as expected automatic updates are on their way to get installed.

Here is my problem now. I remember last time when updates were downloaded my 20 GB partition (17.3 GB free) showed only 4 GB free space after that

I dnt knw if it was coz of downloaded updates or something else. Do these updates really occupy that much space ?

And once updates are downloaded and installed can i delete the files in

C:\WINDOWS\SoftwareDistribution\Download ???

select the downloads u want to download it also shows the size of the downloads besides i dont think updates take sooooo much space

Windows XP SP2 after clean installation will take around 100MB of updates download. It is always a good thing to keep it updated. Go for it.

Kiran_tech_mania said:
Windows XP SP2 after clean installation will take around 100MB of updates download. It is always a good thing to keep it updated. Go for it.

well i nvr go for these updates..as i feel that they make my PC realllllllllllllllllllllllllllly slow...now im not saying that im doing a very smart thing here..but i feel that the trade off b/w speed and security is jst nt worth it..

urs is the only pc that becomes slow after an update :lol:

^^use autopatcher(may one)...It contains all the updates upto may and then you can use autoupdate.

I think AP was there till Aug. Aug core or something.

Originally Posted by Jags
well i nvr go for these updates..as i feel that they make my PC realllllllllllllllllllllllllllly slow...now im not saying that im doing a very smart thing here..but i feel that the trade off b/w speed and security is jst nt worth it..

They make PC slow? Never heard that. Usually updates are fixes to bugs found in OS. It will improve performance and reduce vulnerability to threats.

goto *update.microsoft.com and manually select which updates you wanna install .

D

Zeeshan Quireshi said:
goto *update.microsoft.com and manually select which updates you wanna install .

Little problem here too.
I dnt knw which of the updates are essential and which are not.
Lets just get it simple, suppose i turn on automatic updates, now my question is whether i can delete the files in C:\WINDOWS\SoftwareDistribution\Download after updates are installed or not ?

Dhruv11 said:
Little problem here too.
I dnt knw which of the updates are essential and which are not.
Lets just get it simple, suppose i turn on automatic updates, now my question is whether i can delete the files in C:\WINDOWS\SoftwareDistribution\Download after updates are installed or not ?

Yes. You can delete them. These are uninstallation stuff of downloaded Windows hotfixes which are already installed. If needed, you can download them via updates again.

J

I feel the problem is that all the available updates are selected. I select the "custom" option which downloads critical ones only. Mine is upto date till the latest and out of 20 GB Of C drive about 15 is free.

Sorry, it is "Express" and not custom.

By going to www.update.microsoft.com you can download the Most Recomended Updates . try updsated the recomended ones and the thing will be done..

The best thing to do is get hold of Autopatcher August Core version (Its a heavy download tho, 350mb or so) or you may get it from some Mag CD/DVD (most of them bundle it every month).

Then the amount of updates you'll need to download will be quite less. But IMHO its better not to neglect any updates.

^^^ Dude, he is not ready to go for Automatic updates just because it occupies too much space. Forget about Autopatcher!

Yeah, after applying the patches, he can delete all the installation files. Plus he'll get all the patches in a single installer. He can decide what to patch and what not to!

D

Man this is getting more confusing.
ok 1 more question. lol before formatting i copied the files in
C:\WINDOWS\SoftwareDistribution\Download to another partition. Now if i copy them back to their original location, will Windows pick those updates too ? Or do i hv to download all updates once again ?

Dhruv11 said:
Man this is getting more confusing.
ok 1 more question. lol before formatting i copied the files in
C:\WINDOWS\SoftwareDistribution\Download to another partition. Now if i copy them back to their original location, will Windows pick those updates too ? Or do i hv to download all updates once again ?

Those files are uninstallers references of hotfixes which are not needed. You may delete them anytime.

D

Here comes the bad part !!!!
Im downloading most recommended updates and just now when i checked the free space available in my partition C:\ ; its only 12 GB out of 20 GB.

I dnt think apps i hv installed ate up that much of space. Y is it happening then ???
Same happened with me when i freshly installed installed XP last time

View attachment 1202

I think my pc is posessed by an evil spirit :twisted:

D

Sorry forgot to add these screenshots
All updates are downloaded and now installation is about to begin
This is the free space im left with

View attachment 1203

And now after all updates are installed

View attachment 1204

:???:

That's normal dude. No need to panic. Your system is not having any evil spirit! ;-)

Windows downloads after fresh installation is around 100MB. But after the updates gets installed, it occupies around 1GB of disc space. That very normal.

BTW, What is the size of WINDOWS folder in the root drive?

Hey check out the System Restore. Most prolly its that which is gobbling up most of the space. Plus the dllcache folder (tho I recommend you let this folder as it is).

iMav said:
urs is the only pc that becomes slow after an update

i think this wil prove my point a lil bit:-
*www.computerworld.com/securitytopics/security/story/0,10801,80605,00.html

*www.ozms.org/modules/newbb/viewtopic.php?topic_id=1555&forum=5

So, im not ENTIRELY wrong..

and jst bcoz its nt happening on ur pc doest mean it cannot happen anywhere lese

Instead of surmising one can download Jdiskreport from *www.jgoodies.com/ and analyse various partitions and folders to know exactly how much space each folder is occcupying. On my Desktop (Windows XP/Sp2) c:windows occupies 7.6GB with all updates uptodate.I have never found my PC to be slow on account of updates.Jdiskreport will also help you to identify and delete the unnecessary data which most programs leave in your C:documents and settings <user>.For example if you have used Nero express, or Nero recode or DVD shrink etc., to carry out a project they may leave huge amount of data which they temporarily used under various folders. After the project is finished you may delete these data files.Jdisk report will help you to locate and delete such space hoggers.