Lappy changed the size of itself :-(

[Undercover Elsa]

Re: Lappy changed the size of itself :-(

[SXGuy]

Re: Lappy changed the size of itself :-(

Prob shouldnt admit this, but my work pc hasnt had a windows xp update in about 10 years.

Fastest PC in the house, so that says it all really! lol

[vossy]

Re: Lappy changed the size of itself :-(

Prob shouldnt admit this, but my work pc hasnt had a windows xp update in about 10 years.

Fastest PC in the house, so that says it all really! lol

XP was and is a very stable platform, XP3 is needed to run a lot of new software but if it suits you as it is then that's good. In fact the XP machine is very rarely switched off.

[alwaysskint]

Re: Lappy changed the size of itself :-(

Aaaaaargh! useless piece of whatsit did it again!! Only this time I was in the middle of doing something and it flickered, went black, and came back all the wrong size.

There is now a pop up though : it's titled cwindows\system32\cmd.exe
and displays in a black box:
cprogram files (x86)\asus\asus live update\temp\33>setup.exe - uninstall


Oh FFS, that box went and now it says:
cprogram files (x86)\asus\asus live update\temp\33>start /w setup.exe - install


HELP!!

[kilasuit]

Re: Lappy changed the size of itself :-(

Sounds like a startup program attempting to update specifically an Asus one.

You can disable it via msconfig but a download called ccleaner will work well and is simple to use.

[mauijim]

Re: Lappy changed the size of itself :-(

This sounds like a case of a fight between Asus Live Update and Windows Update and if that's the case then I would suggest you forget Asus and let Windows do your updates.

The chances that your drivers are going to cause an issue are slim, unless you've already had driver issues; excluding this one of course! I just mean the drivers are going to function just fine and Windows will alert you if there is a problem.

I would go into Control Panel and remove the Asus update software. I had it on a couple of desktops and removed it for similar reasons.

When you perform a Windows Update it will also check for driver updates and I find letting the system run this way will generally offer a smoother ride. Admittedly if you're a techie, which you admit you are not, then manual updates of drivers can have its advantages.

HTH

MJ

[PlanB]

Re: Lappy changed the size of itself :-(

Prob shouldnt admit this, but my work pc hasnt had a windows xp update in about 10 years.

Fastest PC in the house, so that says it all really! lol

Can I ask whether I actually need my Windows Updates because I have the same problems as Always with everything *going funny* after it does them

And do I need Windows Firewall & Windows Defender switch on if I've got AVG protecting me - so many updates going on?

I'm on a lappy with Windows Vista Ultimate which I inherited from my daughter so goodness knows what settings are on there but she's downloaded Apple Mac (and Safari) which keeps wanting to update too but I say No No No whenever it asks me

[mauijim]

Re: Lappy changed the size of itself :-(

Can I ask whether I actually need my Windows Updates because I have the same problems as Always with everything *going funny* after it does them

And do I need Windows Firewall & Windows Defender switch on if I've got AVG protecting me - so many updates going on?

I'm on a lappy with Windows Vista Ultimate which I inherited from my daughter so goodness knows what settings are on there but she's downloaded Apple Mac (and Safari) which keeps wanting to update too but I say No No No whenever it asks me

It's a good idea to allow security updates on Windows as people are always probing the OS. Microsoft are not the best at ensuring their software is secure when it's released hence the patches. I suggest setting the update to "Check for updates but let me decide what to install" and then be selective.

MJ

[kilasuit]

Re: Lappy changed the size of itself :-(

It's a good idea to allow security updates on Windows as people are always probing the OS. Microsoft are not the best at ensuring their software is secure when it's released hence the patches. I suggest setting the update to "Check for updates but let me decide what to install" and then be selective.

MJ

Yeah especially if you have a cracked copy

[PlanB]

Re: Lappy changed the size of itself :-(

The only trouble with that is I would have no idea what I want to install Are there some obvious updates to accept or avoid

[mauijim]

Re: Lappy changed the size of itself :-(

The only trouble with that is I would have no idea what I want to install Are there some obvious updates to accept or avoid

You should get optional and important updates so just choose the important ones. The drivers will appear in optional so unless you're having issues there is no need to update them.

[mauijim]

Re: Lappy changed the size of itself :-(

Yeah especially if you have a cracked copy

Lot's of systems I have been asked to fix over the years have a "cracked" copy. These days it's so easy to get a copy then can perform as a genuine copy and allow all the updates.

I can always tell when a client has a cracked copy as they get a bit and try to apologise in advance

[kilasuit]

Re: Lappy changed the size of itself :-(

I switched off automatic updates with XP because often it just wouldn't start after an update and I ended up with around 7 partitions over 2 HDs from having to re-install Windoze (and all the apps, plugins, extensions, etc. I use!)

Vista was a bit better, I only had to reinstall once in 4 years. I still went for the option to let me choose what updates to install or not to install. My Vista disk is a OEM version so not cracked and it's been on my old PC since 2008, only recently (I mean less than 2 months ago) it's started asking me to activate it!

IIRC with vista an activation crack was to disable the needed activation files for a period of 3 years.

This was because everyone techy-wise hated vista due to its instability. It was like running windows ME all over again.

[PlanB]

Re: Lappy changed the size of itself :-(

Here's my decision: I'm going to switch off all Windows automatic updates for a month and see what happens

I just can't take those heart-stopping moments anymore when it won't restart and I get a black screen with white gobbledygook

[Undercover Elsa]

Re: Lappy changed the size of itself :-(

Trouble with that PlanB is when you turn it back on it will install all the accumulated updates at once, which is even more likely to cause problems!
More importantly, the updates are necessary to keep your pc safe from trending threats.
I think windows does an automatic system backup before more significant updates, but if you want to play safe you can set your update preferences to download and inform you they are ready, without installing them.
Once it does that, go to system restore and set up a new restore point before installing the updates.
That way you can roll back if they cause problems, and then refuse those particular updates when they download again.