Setting an Automatic Software Update Schedule
TMO Quick Tip - Setting an Automatic Software Update Schedule
by , 7:30 AM EST, January 19th, 2007
Apple's Software Update application is a great tool for finding and installing Mac OS X and Apple application updates, but sometimes the auto-check feature can get in the way. If you like letting your Mac automatically check for updates, you can set exactly when that happens so it best fits your schedule. Here's how:
- Launch System Preferences. You can find it by selecting Apple Menu > System Preferences.
- Click the Software Update Preference Pane.
- Choose Daily, Weekly, or Monthly from the Check for updates pop-up menu to set how often your Mac checks for updates.
- Clicking the Check Now button sets the current time for your Mac's routine checks. Whenever you click the Check Now button, you are resetting the update schedule to match the current date and time.
 Choose how often you want to check for system updates. |
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For example, if you want to check for updates automatically updates every Monday at noon, make sure that the Check for updates pop-up menu is set to Weekly. Then click the Check Now button at noon on Monday. That's it.
 Click Check Now to set the day and time for your update checks. |
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If you prefer to check for updates on your own instead of automatically, just uncheck Check for updates in the Software Update Preference Pane.
This Quick Tip was adapted from The Designer's Guide to Mac OS X Tiger.
Jeff Gamet is TMO's Morning Editor and Reviews Editor. He lectures, teaches and speaks on Mac OS X and design-related topics, and is the author of The Designer's Guide to Mac OS X from Peachpit Press.
if you have tips or tricks to share, or Mac-related questions you want answered.
Observer Comments
Fri Jan 19, 2007 3:36 pm Subject: Auto-check from user acct?
Fri Jan 19, 2007 4:47 pm Subject: Admin accounts
Quoteerictheb wrote:
For security reasons, I work under a user account as opposed to an admin account. I noticed that software update wasn't running. My guess is that only schedules in an admin accts will work. Since I never have an admin account running, no auto-updates. Is that right?
Unfortunately, this is correct. And a bug in my book. Apple is being lazy here. I guess because the default user is an admin user, they figure this works for most people. This is a problem because Apple really should: 1) not be encouraging people to use admin accounts for day-to-day use, as they do now by default, and 2) make Software Update a little more user-friendly for non-admin users. The two seem to be intertwined.
Hopefully Leopard will bring new functionality in Software Update. Ideally, one should be able to receive an eMail or alert notice in non-admin accounts that an update is available. Also, there should be a way to tell the system to automatically download system and security updates. I know there’s that checkbox to download “important†updates in the background, but as far as i can tell, it doesn’t do anything because even with it checked, i still have to wait for the system to download security updates.
At any rate, if Apple gets enough feedback on this, maybe they’ll make the change.
Fri Jan 19, 2007 4:50 pm Subject: I recommend against using Automatic Software Update
Too many people come into Apple Discussions claiming the update killed their machine, or destroyed data on their machine. How many people use automatic software update and end up in this scenario, I don't know, but I'm sure it is significant. Rather I use Software Update strictly to find out when updates are available. Then I take proper precautions before updating listed in my FAQ:
http://www.macmaps.com/upgradefaq.html
And then update. If more people did that, and didn't blindly go about automatic software update, Apple would have many more friends.
Fri Jan 19, 2007 5:28 pm Subject: Apple, why is there no auto-install for security updates???
Software Update needs an automatic install feature.
If Apple comes out with a security update/patch, I want it installed automatically. I don't want it to just *check* and tell me later "oh by the way there is this critical security update which I've downloaded but not installed."
I can easily do this with Windows Update - why can't OS X's Software Update do the same thing?
Fri Jan 19, 2007 7:11 pm Subject: Re: Apple, why is there no auto-install for security updates
QuoteAnonymous wrote:
Software Update needs an automatic install feature.
If Apple comes out with a security update/patch, I want it installed automatically. I don't want it to just *check* and tell me later "oh by the way there is this critical security update which I've downloaded but not installed."
I can easily do this with Windows Update - why can't OS X's Software Update do the same thing?
The problem with that is some security updates break if you don't repair permissions before and after
Sat Jan 20, 2007 12:09 am Subject:
Sat Jan 20, 2007 12:41 am Subject:
Sat Jan 20, 2007 2:53 am Subject: A bunch of thumbs
QuoteLaurieF wrote:
I agree. The number of times repairing permissions has actually fixed something I can count on the fingers of one thumb. And I've never had a security update fail because of malformed permissions. Ever.
I've found a few more cases, Laurie. I agree that it's not many, but repairing permissions is a common first step in attempting to fix problems on OS X. Often, permission problems cause slowdowns, rather than breaking something.
I've always repaired permissions after a software update and any software installation that required an admin password. I've found dozens of cases where the installation farkled the permissions. (I confirmed them by uninstalling the software, repairing permissions, then reinstalling and repairing again: the same errors showed up.) Some will reset the permissions on the Applications folder, for example. That is not the way it should be--it's probably due to ignorance or sloppiness on the part of the developer, but it happens.
Sat Jan 20, 2007 3:16 am Subject:
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