Windows Update Corporate Location (WIN XP)

[trebor]

There had been a reference to a WINDOWS CORPORATE UPDATE SITE where you could download and save (rather than install) the various security and critical updates. I had entered the URL in my Favorites but now get a message that the address has changed. Does anyone know where I can easily list the various updates and save them for my friends with slow dialup connections? Thanks.

[StuartR]

Microsoft download centre was at http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/ but that address is currently giving errors. I'm not sure if this is because of the pressure on the web servers due to recent worms or if the page has moved.

StuartR

[StuartR]

The downloads page I posted is working again now.

Another alternative is to go to the main WindowsUpdate web site, click on Personalise Windows Update, Choose "Display the link to the Windows Update Catalog" then click the Windows Update Catalog link

StuartR

[SMBP]

There is a relatively new Windows Update site from Micro$oft (oh boy!, oh boy!)

The Microsoft Windows Update Troubleshooter from Microsoft Windows Troubleshooting the Windows Troubleshooting Company

HTH,

SMBP

[SMBP]

Trebor I haven't noticed any significant difference in functionality anytime I worked with the corporate site and put the other site besides it except for a slight design difference. Windows has already saved them 99% of them for your friends and yourself on the web which won't require any storage space. 99% are security. That leaves other very occassional updates like say a Direct X update, or a WMP update. Those few you can search for in Windows Update, and if you wanted to save those or all of them for your friends one solution would be to paste into Word or Word Pad if WUCE doesn't have a save function. Again 99% of them are saved for you at the TechNet Security Sites and it's offshots. The rest take a second to search for and I'd personalize any edition you're using--it helps cut down on the duplicates that it's going to offer you you already have. This is one of several WU annoyances they have never fixed.

Take a look here and notice that all the security updates are listed, and if you want notification of all the security updates (99% of Windows Update) they will email you the bulletins with links to the downloads free.

But if you want the Windows Corporate Site, click this:
www.corporate.windowsupdate.microsoft.com Let me know if this has extra functionality and the save functionailty you want. All I had noticed was the blue web page design at the top was somewhat different.

WUCE References

Using the Windows Update Corporate Site
What is Windows Update Corporate Edition
Windows Update FAQ's
Win Update T'mT's
Quill on WUCE

Now to go to where Microsoft has saved 99% of the Updates for you--the security patches, hotfixes, updates or whatever you call them--
www.microsoft.com/securrity
Hotfix and Security Bulletin Service

hth, and let me know if it does or doesn't.

SMBP

[JohnGray]

This looks like it could end up in a recursive loop.

What happens if you have trouble with the "Troubleshooting Windows Update" website? <img src=/S/innocent.gif border=0 alt=innocent width=20 height=20> <img src=/S/shrug.gif border=0 alt=shrug width=39 height=15>

[SMBP]

Then you would immediately want to start the "Troubleshooting the Windows Update Troubleshoooting Site."

Microsoft Security: What You Should Know About the MS Blaster Worm

As you might have read, Microsoft is starting a Beta for a revamped Windows Update in a couple weeks, and seriously hopefully it will be much better and address some of the problems. I think thatMS Blaster is going to finally wake some people up that when there is a warning to critically patch something, not to ignore it since a huge percent of state government web sites in the U.S. and colleges, all with IT departments were hamstrung by MS Blaster by this morning.

I think those that say they are blowing off hotfixes because of one major widely publicized problem months ago, may be having second thoughts, because I got calls from people with it who can't stay in Windows for longer than 45 seconds, to go to anti-virus and other security sites to get the tools to blast blaster out of their machine.

I understand the colleges are partly dependent on student control of their computer networks, and student patching, and a lot of college students I know are more meticulous about their file share music downloads than security patches, but state governments have well paid IT departments, who inexcusably ignored the critical July 16, patch and all over this country there are some very embarassed IT departments right now, and if I were their boss, I would be anxious to hear 25 words or less on why they ignored that July 16 patch on my business machines or my employees who use home networks as part of the office routine. This includes Lockheed Martin here who employs a number of highly credentialed and highly paid computer engineers.

Microsoft to Change Distribution of Vulnerable Software NY Times: Redmond Gonna Really Turn their Low End Native Firewall All the Way On in Windows XP Shipments Now--They Mean Firewall Business!
<font color=448800>_____________________________________ _______________________________</font color=448800>
"Yet critics say that beyond the firewall setting, Microsoft continues to put its customers at risk by selling buggy software that must be fixed through periodically released software patches that can be downloaded from its Web sites.

After a new Windows vulnerability was discovered in July, Microsoft created a software patch. But only a fraction of the users of the affected versions of Windows took that step, leading critics to warn that someone would inevitably create a worm or virus to exploit the weakness on the millions of unpatched computers. Indeed, the worm carries a message blaming Bill Gates, Microsoft's chairman, for the vulnerabilities in the company's software."
"Microsoft's approach is absolutely broken," said Gregor Freund, chief executive of ZoneLabs, a computer security company in San Francisco. "You know ahead of time that 80 percent of the machines won't be patched. It's a public relations exercise."

----New York Times August 13, 2003

<font color=448800>_____________________________________ _______________________________</font color=448800>

Update Actions for Blaster Worm Microsoft Windows XP Site
MS Blast Infects Over 100,000 in 24 Hours
Software Fixes Routinely Ignored

SMBP