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Patch My PC - Not bad, not bad at all.

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Grand Master

+warwagon Subscriber²

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captureozx.jpg

Patch My PC

How Patch My PC Works.

Patch My PC Vs File Hippo

I was recently browsing the software section of Neowin and saw a free app called "Patch my PC". For the longest time I have been using a program called "Secunia". It was an OK program but once it found out of date applications went to automatically update them, the process seemed to take MUCH longer than it should. Would always say "Waiting for update to finish" for a few minutes even on something as simple as a flash update.

So I gave Patch My PC a try. As someone who has a lot of out of date machines come into my office, this one seems pretty nice. It's a self contained EXE which requires no install so it can be put on and run from a USB stick. It seems to find the updates fast. Once you click install, it downloads and automatically installs silently all the updates for all the applications that need updating. As far as a customers machine on your work bench, you click install and walk always, and it installs of the important software updates for you.

So download it and throw it into a VM and see what you think.

The /auto switch - This switch will allow the current logged user to see the Patch My PC GUI. The update process will started automatically. If browsers are open Patch My PC will notify user in the log textbox browsers need to be closed before updates can continue.

The /s switch - This switch will run Patch My PC in hidden in the background. If browsers are open it will recheck every ten seconds until browsers are closed then continue with the install.

The /update switch - This switch will run Windows updates automatically after third party updates. This can be used with the /auto or /s switch.

The /applyallcommon switch - This switch will install all the programs in the common list that aren't installed unless the program is marked as skipped.

Examples:

PatchMyPC.exe /s (Will run any needed common updates automatically with no graphical interface).

PatchMyPC.exe /auto (Will run any needed common updates automatically with a graphical interface).

PatchMyPC.exe /update (Will automatically run windows updates with graphical interface).

PatchMyPC.exe /s /update (Will run any needed common updates and then run Windows updates automatically with no graphical interface).

PatchMyPC.exe /auto /update(Will run any needed common updates and then run Windows updates automatically with a graphical interface).

*Update 12/2/2012*

One other nice thing about patchmypc that i've started using is it makes it really to install a handful of common applications after a clean install.

Open it and right click on all the applications you wish to install and select "Install / reinstall". The item will then turn red. Do that for every item you wish to install and then click the "Preform X number of updates" button. Then in 1 click all of the applications you selected will be downloaded and installed

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Grand Master

Shaun N.

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Yeah, I'd trust this as much as I trust the auto driver update programs, not at all. It's windows update or manual/programs own updater. Only way to go.

+1

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c.grz

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Yeah, I'd trust this as much as I trust the auto driver update programs, not at all. It's windows update or manual/programs own updater. Only way to go.

Care to elaborate?

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Neyht Member

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Yeah, I'd trust this as much as I trust the auto driver update programs, not at all. It's windows update or manual/programs own updater. Only way to go.

I would plus one that as well but that thing is updating his 64 bit java install. That beats the programs own updater right there.

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Marshall Veteran

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I've got something just like this. It's called Windows Update.

Since when does Windows Update download updates for programs like firefox, adobe flash and skype?

  • neevarp, Simon- and Guth
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farmeunit

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Usually for updating stuff on someone else's computer, I use Ninite.com, but I thought about trying this when I saw it. Thanks for posting about your experience Warwagon!

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Nashy

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Since when does Windows Update download updates for programs like firefox, adobe flash and skype?

You're right. Sorry.

Firefox does it for me. Flash does it for me. Skype does it for me.

Anyway, glad it works, just seems like another pointless program that will also need to be updated.

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dafin0

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I'll give it a shot.

You're right. Sorry.

Firefox does it for me. Flash does it for me. Skype does it for me.

Anyway, glad it works, just seems like another pointless program that will also need to be updated.

tools like this can be usefull for computer techs who have to update multiple computer every day, its nice to be able to just tell a program to do it all for you.

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+Runtime Error Subscriber²

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Secunia PSI v2 did occasionally stall a lot for me. The v3 beta was good stuff when I tried it.

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c.grz

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Well; it found a few programs that were out of date and updated them all except for Adobe Reader X. I ran the update through Adobe Reader and install was successful.

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dafin0

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Come back and report!

will do, most likely will be tomorrow, all my jobs right now are fresh installs or totally dead laptops

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Miuku.

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Anyway, glad it works, just seems like another pointless program that will also need to be updated.

And what if you have an application that doesn't have an auto-updater function in it or the updating is broken in the application itself?

The lack of a "package management" is one of the many things that originally turned me away from Windows and people still resist it? Do not understand.

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+warwagon Subscriber²

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Just tried it, not bad as you say ;)

I may add this to my USB drive and run it on machines that come into our workshop as well :)

Glad you liked it!

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+Xinok Subscriber²

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I've seen this program in the past, but I decided to give it another try. For some reason, I was under the impression it was going to install a bunch of software I didn't want. Instead, it only updated programs I already had installed, and it also found I still had Java 6 installed and uninstalled it for me.

I originally used a Ninite installer to update Flash / Java, but I think I'll use this from now on.

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Alwaysonacoffebreak

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^ If they do it the same way Piriform did it, only remove support I'm fine with it but some cripple the program along side, now that's stupid.

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