Stopping QuickBooks Automatic Updates from Installing
If you have the QuickBooks Automatic Update feature enabled, QuickBooks will download updates and then tell you that they are ready to install. There are times when you do NOT want to install an automatic update, but the message will keep nagging you. Here is how to turn that off.
First, some background on QuickBooks Automatic Updates.
Should I Use QuickBooks Automatic Update?
Let’s start with this question – but the answer is complicated. If you are running a supported version of QuickBooks you will find that Intuit pushes out bug fixes (and possibly new features) via their update mechanism. The Automatic Update feature will obtain these updates and put them on your computer, and then ask you if you want to install them the next time that you start QuickBooks.
Keep in mind a few things about updates:
- The update process can take time once started.
- Sometimes the update process requires that a file be converted. This may involve making a backup, getting everyone else out of the program, shutting down your business processes for some time.
- If one user installs updates, you will most likely find that every user has to install the update.
- Sometimes there are problems in updates, and you may want to wait. On occasion there are bugs in the updates that are a bigger problem than the ones that are being fixed by the update.
So should you use automatic updates?
- It is Critically Important: Many times the updates are fixes for significant bugs. For example – there may be a bug in the sales tax feature that impacts your reports that should be fixed. So it can be very important to keep your product up to date.
- It is a Pain in the Rear: When you see the update notice it is VERY EASY for one person to say “sure, go ahead, do the install”. There isn’t a central control over this feature, every user will see the notice. Someone is bound to click Install Now at an inappropriate time.
Am I giving you mixed messages here? Yes, I certainly am. So, some recommendations:
- If you are on your own, without a lot of support, turn on automatic updates and be aware of the problems you can run into. Don’t let anyone click Install Now on their own. If you don’t have good support, you really should install the updates.
- If you can work with a good advisor who really understands QuickBooks, you may want to turn automatic updates OFF. Your advisor will tell you when a good update should be installed. If you have a Certified ProAdvisor or Sleeter Group Certified Consultant they can work with you to ensure that the update is installed on ALL workstations, at the right time, in the proper fashion.
Keep an eye on our blog, as new updates are available we’ll post information about them.
Stopping an Automatic Update
So, you are getting the message that an update is ready to install, but you don’t want to install it at this time. Perhaps you don’t want to see that message, because someone might click the Install Now button at the wrong time. Sometimes you may see that message even though you have ALREADY installed the update, and there really isn’t anything TO install. How do you stop this message from showing?
In QuickBooks select Help and then Update QuickBooks. in the Options tab, find the Download Location. Take note of this.
Locate this folder, and you will find a number of sub folders.
Delete each of these folders – such as Patch, Guide and so forth.
The next time you start QuickBooks it will look for these folders. If they don’t exist, you won’t be prompted to install the updates.
One additional note- before deleting, look in the Patch folder. You may find a file named AboutPatch.htm. This file lists all of the changes in the update. Sometimes this is useful information to have.
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Category: Technical QuickBooks
About the Author (Author Profile)
Charlie Russell is the founder of CCRSoftware. He’s been involved with the small business software industry since the mid 70′s, and remembers releasing his first commercial accounting software product when you had a one-floppy disk drive system, loading the program from one floppy and then replacing that with the other floppy to hold the data. He has a special interest in inventory and manufacturing software for small businesses. Charlie is a Certified Advanced QuickBooks ProAdvisor and participates extensively in the QuickBooks Community user forums under the ID of CCRussell. Visit his CCRSoftware web site for information about his QuickBooks add-on products. Charlie can be reached at charlie.russell@sleeter.com
He is also the author of the California Wildflower Hikes blog and a regular blog contributor to the Intuit Inner Circle.
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Hi Charlie:
I personally subscribe to your philosophy of being in full control of when I update my software, and not leaving it to the whim of the manufacturer — but I also recognize it’s not for everybody.
Here’s a couple of things I have found, applicable to all QB versions from 2006 onwards, all of which I run with QB Automatic Updates turned OFF:
1. Even with Automatic Updates OFF, Intuit downloads major new patches in background to your computer, and constantly prompts you to install them. Turning Automatic Updates OFF only stops the program from going out and automatically doing the small partial updates that don’t require a major patch download and a separate install routine.
2. This is driven by the operation of a Windows Service called QBCFMonitorService, for “QuickBooks Company File Monitoring Service,” which automatically starts whenever your computer is rebooted. (Windows Services are the BIG untold secret of programs that start automatically in your computer, that is not addressable through the MSCONFIG selective startup utility or most similar third party utilities.)
This can be completely shut off, say in Windows XP, by finding it in Administrative Tools \ Services, and setting its Startup Mode to “disabled.” After that, your computer remains completely quiet, and updates will never bother you again.
Nothing will happen unless you deliberately go to Automatic Updates for whatever version you are interested in, and click Update NOW — best done after you have checked Charlie’s blog, determined that it’s safe to update / you need to update, and letting it rip while you’re watching your favorite TV program — NOT when you are just opening QuickBooks on billable time on a client’s file.
Best,
– Ron
Thanks for this post Charlie. In some cases, we’ve set the auto update option to NO on all computers, but then occasionally still get a computer asking to update. I haven’t researched all the way through yet, but suspect that it is due to another windows user logging onto the same computer. I suspect that if the auto update option is set to NO under one Windows user, it is still by default set to yes if another windows user logs in. So if multiple users use the same computer using different windows logins, the updates will need to be turned off at the services level, or should be turned off within QuickBooks under each windows user account.
Selwyn.
Ron: I can turn off automatic updates in my test systems, and they never update, so I’ve not run into the situation you describe. Note that the 2011 Accountant’s Edition for ProAdvisors doesn’t let you turn off automatic updates because you are enrolled in the “Plus” program (http://www.sleeter.com/blog/2011/02/quickbooks-plus-subscriptions/)
Selwyn: I’ve not dug into where QuickBooks stores that preference – note that the QBWUser.INI file is in a folder specific to your Windows user account, so each user will have a different one. I don’t know if the settings are stored there or elsewhere – on my system I have the ProAdvisor Accountant’s Edition, which doesn’t let you turn this feature off, so I can’t test it easily there.
I’ve tried this and even though the service is disabled, qbupdate.exe still runs and downloads updates.