Why am I not receiving notifications for MS updates?

You may find it interesting to know that most long-term Windows experts, do not allow any Windows Updates automatically, and they have their setting at NEVER.

In the last 6 or 8 months Microsoft has been installing "updates" on your computer that enable it to change your system to Windows 10 and gather all sorts of intelligence about how you use your computer.  As a result, old-timers have a hit list of specific updates which we do not allow on our Windows 7 machines.

I suggest you set yours to Never and do updates once a month about a week after Patch Tuesday which is the 2nd Tuesday of each month.  The following updates are on my prohibition list:

KB3035583
KB2952664
KB2977759
KB3075249
KB3080149
KB3083710
KB3083324
KB3090045
SFC : KB3022345
SFC:  KB3068708

Once a month, start windows update and check for new updates, if you find any of these on the list, right-click and choose Hide and proceed to update.

You might also want to check to see if any of these are installed and remove them.  In the WU window, bottom left, click on View installed updates.  WAIT a long time while the list is completed.  You will see a green bar come across the top and you must wait for it to complete.  You can then use the search box to look for these updates.  If you find one or more, uninstall.  Now remove the search box content and wait again.  Enter the next.  You do not have to restart until you have completed all your searches.

http://www.infoworld.com/article/2983777/microsoft-windows/how-to-clean-the-windows-10-crapware-off-your-windows-7-or-81-pc.html?nsdr=true

http://www.infoworld.com/article/2993131/microsoft-windows/disable-windows-10-upgrade-nagware-on-windows-7-windows-81-computers.html

[Pay no attention to that man behind the curtain.]

Assuming Win7 64-bit with Internet Explorer 11 (IE11) installed...

We'll need to "dig a little deeper" here. Please answer each of the following [admittedly tedious] diagnostic questions in a correspondingly-numbered list in your very next reply, preferably without quoting my post:

1a. When (approx. date) did you purchase the computer?

1b. Did Win7 64-bit come preinstalled on the computer when you bought it, did you do a clean install of Win7, or did you upgrade the computer to Win7?

2. What is the full name of your installed anti-virus application or security suite and when (approx. date) does your current subscription expire? What anti-spyware applications (other than Defender) are installed? What third-party firewall (if any)?

3. Has a(nother) Norton application or a McAfee application EVER been installed on the computer since you bought it?

4. Did a Norton free-trial or a McAfee free-trial [PICK ONE] come preinstalled on the computer when you bought it? (Doesn't matter if you never used or Activated it.)

5a. Is KB3100773, KB3100213, KB3097877, KB3101722, KB3097989, KB3092601, KB3101246, KB3101746 and/or KB3081320 listed in Installed Updates (not Update History)? [1]

5b. How about KB3102810 [or KB3083710], KB3035583, KB2952664 and/or KB2990214?

6. Assuming Java is installed => Is Java Version 8 Update 65 (or higher) installed? TEST HERE USING INTERNET EXPLORER ONLY! => http://java.com/en/download/uninstallapplet.jsp [2]

7. Is Adobe Flash Player v19.0.0.245 (or higher) installed? TEST HERE USING INTERNET EXPLORER ONLY! => http://www.adobe.com/software/flash/about/ 

8a. When (exact date) was Internet Explorer 11 installed according to Installed Updates?

8b. What Update Version & KB number are displayed in the second line of text in IE11's Help | About [Alt+H+A] tab; e.g., Update Version: 11.0.99 (KB1231231) ?

8c. Is Firefox, Chrome or any other alternate browser installed?

9. Are you in the habit of using "Registry cleaners" (e.g., Registry Mechanic; System Mechanic; RegCure; RegClean Pro; Advanced SystemCare; Registry Booster; McAfee QuickClean; Glary Utilities; AVG PC TuneUp; Norton Registry Cleaner; PCTools Optimiser; SpeedUpMyPC; PC Doctor; TuneUp Utilities; WinMaximizer; WinSweeper; Comodo System Cleaner; Advanced System Optimizer; CCleaner's Registry Cleaner component)?

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[1] Start | Control Panel | Programs and Features | View installed updates (in left-hand menu)
[2] No need to install Java if it's not already installed!

Reply:  I appreciate the time you spent on this - it's so very rare these days - too much hurry up and little thought.  I had to re-send because all my formatting was "lost."

Title: Why am I not receiving notifications for MS updates?

Reply

[Pay no attention to that man behind the curtain.]

Assuming Win7 64-bit with Internet Explorer 11 (IE11) installed...

Win 7 32-bit with Internet Explorer 11 installed

We'll need to "dig a little deeper" here. Please answer each of the following [admittedly tedious] diagnostic questions in a correspondingly-numbered list in your very next reply, preferably without quoting my post:

1a. When (approx. date) did you purchase the computer?

Approx 5 years ago

1b. Did Win7 64-bit come preinstalled on the computer when you bought it, did you do a clean install of Win7, or did you upgrade the computer to Win7?

Win XP 32-bit pre-installed

Win 7 32-bit upgraded approx. 1 year ago

2. What is the full name of your installed anti-virus application or security suite and when (approx. date) does your current subscription expire? What anti-spyware applications (other than Defender) are installed? What third-party firewall (if any)?

Comodo Internet Security with firewall expires 01/2016

3. Has a(nother) Norton application or a McAfee application EVER been installed on the computer since you bought it?

No

4. Did a Norton free-trial or a McAfee free-trial [PICK ONE] come preinstalled on the computer when you bought it? (Doesn't matter if you never used or Activated it.)

Unsure, but I don't think so.

5a. Is KB3100773, KB3100213, KB3097877, KB3101722, KB3097989, KB3092601, KB3101246, KB3101746 and/or KB3081320 listed in Installed Updates (not Update History)? [1]

All of the above are listed within Installed Updates

5b. How about KB3102810 [or KB3083710], KB3035583, KB2952664 and/or KB2990214?

Not listed within Installed Updates: KB3083710, KB3035583

Listed within Installed Updates: KB3102810 on 11/25/2015

Listed within Installed Updates: KB2952664, KB2990214 on 04/15/2015

6. Assuming Java is installed => Is Java Version 8 Update 65 (or higher) installed? TEST HERE USING INTERNET EXPLORER ONLY! => http://java.com/en/download/uninstallapplet.jsp [2]

In Internet Explorer, Java Version 8 Update 60

7. Is Adobe Flash Player v19.0.0.245 (or higher) installed? TEST HERE USING INTERNET EXPLORER ONLY! => http://www.adobe.com/software/flash/about/ 

Unsure of the information in IE being returned for Adobe Flash Player link.  Looks like Adobe Flash Player v19.0.0.226 installed 10/29/2015.  I have no need for the features of this package - probably uninstalled earlier, but some programs may have required it.

8a. When (exact date) was Internet Explorer 11 installed according to Installed Updates?

Installed 01/02/2015

8b. What Update Version & KB number are displayed in the second line of text in IE11's Help | About [Alt+H+A] tab; e.g., Update Version: 11.0.99 (KB1231231) ?

Update Version: 11.0.25 (KB3100773)

8c. Is Firefox, Chrome or any other alternate browser installed?

Firefox is installed and accessed daily; Chrome was installed (probably over a year ago) and uninstalled after a couple of weeks

9. Are you in the habit of using "Registry cleaners" (e.g., Registry Mechanic; System Mechanic; RegCure; RegClean Pro; Advanced SystemCare; Registry Booster; McAfee QuickClean; Glary Utilities; AVG PC TuneUp; Norton Registry Cleaner; PCTools Optimiser; SpeedUpMyPC; PC Doctor; TuneUp Utilities; WinMaximizer; WinSweeper; Comodo System Cleaner; Advanced System Optimizer; CCleaner's Registry Cleaner component)?

Use CCleaner's Registry Cleaner when there's suspicion of a need

[Please don't quote or copy/paste my posts in your replies, just answer-by-number. THX]

Q: When (approx. date) did you purchase the computer?

A: Approx 5 years ago

Q: Did Win7 64-bit 32-bit come preinstalled on the computer when you bought it, did you do a clean install of Win7, or did you upgrade the computer to Win7?

A: Win XP 32-bit pre-installed - Win 7 32-bit upgraded approx. 1 year ago

1a. Was it a brand-new, never-been-used WinXP computer when you bought it approximately five (5) years ago or was it a used/previously-owned/refurbished computer?

1b. Where did you purchase the WinXP computer (e.g., eBay; craigslist; local shop; etc.)?

2. Did you literally upgrade the WinXP computer to Windows 7 or did you format the hard-drive & then do a clean install of Win7?

3. In Windows Explorer [WinKey+E], navigate to & right-click on:

• C:\Program Files\Comodo <=this folder

Select PROPERTIES: What's the CREATED date displayed on the resulting GENERAL tab?

4. What anti-virus application or security suite was installed before you installed the Comodo suite in January 2015 (I assume)?

[On 25 Nov-15, I] discovered that there were 41 updates to be downloaded/installed.  The updates hadn't been run since Sept, 2015.  I have set the option to notify me when updates are to be downloaded and installed.  Since Sept, 2015 I have not been notified of updates.

5. When (exact date) were KB3100773, KB3100213, KB3097877, KB3101722, KB3097989, KB3092601, KB3101246, KB3101746 and KB3081320 installed according to Installed Updates (not Update History)?

6. Is KB3035583 offered to the computer when you run a manual check for updates?

  • HOW TO Run a manual check for updates
     https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/kb/3067639

7. Is Automatic Updates still set to the Download updates but let me choose... option?

8. As a test, can you temporarily change your Automatic Updates setting to the Automatic option & then change it back again?

9a. When you opened IE11 to the java.com page I cited in my previous post, were you prompted to upgrade to Java Version 8 Update 66 or...?

9b. Is it time to disable/uninstall Java? See http://securitygarden.blogspot.com/2013/01/java-zero-day-again-time-to.html

10. Can you successfully upgrade to Flash Player v19.0.0.245 (or higher) by opening Internet Explorer ONLY to this page? => http://www.adobe.com/go/getflash

• BEWARE the pre-checked options to "drive-by" install unwanted, third-party software (e.g., Google Toolbar; Google Chrome; McAfee Security Scan)!

11. Is Firefox version 42.0 (or higher) installed?

12. [Almost finished, for now!] Do you have backups of ALL the changes CCleaner's Registry Cleaner component has EVER made to the computer? [1]

=====================================================
[1] Injudicious use of registry cleaners may be playing a major role here. TIP: If you ever again think your Registry needs to be cleaned, repaired, boosted, tuned-up, cured, tweaked, fixed, maximized, "swept" or optimised (it doesn't), read this article and this older(but still valid) one (and related links cited therein) then draw your own conclusions. Also related => http://support.microsoft.com/kb/2563254

1a - brand new Win XP

1b - purchased from Staples Office supplies

2 - upgraded from Win xp pro 32-bit to Win 7 pro 32-bit (custom install)

3 - Comodo Jan 21, 2015

4- System Mechanic Professional

5 - All referenced updates installed 11/25/2015

6 - Manual update will be run on 12/15/2015 as my temporary work around as suggested from earlier reply

7 - Updates are temporarily set to Never; however, since the updates are only monthly and on a specific day I may need to leave the Never setting and follow my own scheduled prompts

8 - Automatic setting just to test?

9a, 9b, 10 - I'll have to troubleshoot IE Java - problem with the download.  I  try to steer away from adobe, java; perhaps I created a problem

11 - Firefox 42 is installed

12 - I doubt I've maintained CCLEANER backup; however, as I mentioned I run CCLEANER when there's an obvious problem e.g. virus attack about 3 weeks after the Win 7 upgrade

Note:  I must have missed the latest notification

Welcome back!

...I doubt I've maintained CCLEANER backup; however, as I mentioned I run CCLEANER when there's an obvious problem e.g. virus attack about 3 weeks after the Win 7 upgrade

1. Tell us more about this "virus attack about 3 weeks after the [custom install of] Win 7...approx.. 1 year ago" (i.e., November 2014)? [1]

2. Did you install System Mechanic Pro before or after the "virus attack?"

3. Did you purchase System Mechanic Pro or was it the 30-day free-trial version?

4. Had your System Mechanic (free-trial? subscription?) already expired by the time you installed the Comodo suite on 21 January 2015 (i.e., before IE11 was installed)?

5. Did you keep any of your WinXP data when you did the custom install of Win7?

6. How long was the WinXP computer connected to the internet between April 2014 and November 2014?

7a. How long as Automatic Updates been turned off (i.e., set to Never)?

7b. Any particular reason Automatic Updates isn't turned on & set to, e.g., the "Check for updates but let me choose..." option (e.g., you can't change the setting at all)?

7c. How have you determined that "Windows Update is run at Startup" when Automatic Updates is turned off?

8a. Any particular reason you're waiting until 15 December (or later) to run a manual check for updates, despite the fact that I asked you to do so over a week ago to see if KB3035583 was offered?

8b. Any particular reason you hadn't run a manual check for updates between September and late-November 2015?

9. Do you have backups of all the changes System Mechanic made to the registry before you uninstalled it about a year ago?

==============================================

[1] If you did a "custom install" of Win7, you did not literally upgrade the WinXP computer to Win7.

1. Searching through my notes: 12/1/2014 references Trojan.win32.Generic!BT.  Looks  like about mid-Jan 2015 before I had a stable system

2. I had been running System Mechanic Pro prior/post win 7 upgrade.  Note: The Trojan had been reported within their quarantine program, but I was unable to delete it from the referenced folder (the owner/privs. set couldn't be overridden). 

3.  I purchased System Mechanic - perhaps at least a year earlier

4.  I cancelled/removed System Mechanic after installation of Comodo Internet Security (Comodo was one of the "tools" recommended to clean up my system due to the virus)

5. Yes, most of my Win XP data was maintained

6. Win XP remained on my computer, connected to the internet daily until my move to Win 7

7a.  Automatic updates have never been turned on, but prompt me is always on

7b.  "Prompt me before running updates" is always my choice, BUT I did see that I have IE set to automatic (since I don't directly use IE) therefore when I checked for IE updates today, response was returned that I have the most recent IE update for Win 7. 

7b. Yes, I can set it to notify me prior to download/update, but I haven't been notified in 2 months.

7c.  I don't set Windows updates to run at Startup

8a.  I was waiting because 1) I run monthly backup on 12/13 2) I learned earlier in this discussion that MS updates are run on the 2nd Tues. of each month.  I can certainly run on 12/8 with backup on 12/7 (Over the years I've had too many problems with updates in general altering my customizations resulting in days of re-setting environment)

8b.  I didn't run a manual check because I'd gotten accustomed to notifications so I didn't check for MS updates.  Currently, since I set notification updates to Never, I've added this to my reminder calendar now that I know there's a particular month/day they are run - news to me!

9.  I doubt I have backups of System Mechanic registry changes mainly because after my system was stable at the beginning of this year, I did some cleanup.

Yes, it wasn't literally an upgrade since one couldn't "upgrade" from Win XP to Win 7.  I couldn've wiped out my computer and installed Win 7 - then simulated upgrade seemed to be better, but now I'm not so sure.

8a.  I did check for updates - KB3035583 is not listed nor is it listed from an earlier update.

[revised & reposted below]

1. How did you determine that the computer was no longer infected when you were still running WinXP?

2. How have you determined that computer is no longer infected now?

3a. Assuming Automatic Updates is enabled (turned on), is it set to the Install updates automatically (recommended) option, the Download updates but let me choose... option, or the Check for updates but let me choose... [1] option?

3b. If Automatic Update is disabled (turned off) - i.e., set to the Never check for updates (not recommended) option [2] - can you change the setting to any of the above, restart the computer & then find the setting has not changed? [Yes, I want you to test this.]

==================================================

[1] With this option selected, you'll always know when an update's released so you won't miss any (i.e., out of band updates released on other days). You'll still be able to choose which updates you want to download as well as when they're installed.

[2] Which would explain why you're never notified of available updates.