WUD Version 2 Feature Requests

[Molecule]

wonderful program ... it works well on a w98se machine (after installing .net 2 and double clicking the .ulz file to unpack it to a .ul), to prepare a w2k build.

during the overnight download on my dialup, my line got dropped (a std 5 AM Verizon trick). WUD was in the midst of getting a 31M file, and this revealed a potential problem of which I am sure you are aware, since I have no way of knowing whether or not file KBxxxxxx is 11meg (as per my HDD) or 31meg (as discovered):

Case: connection is dropped in midst of a downloading a requested file

Problem: WUD writes to disk whatever was in dl cache (or whatever) at the point the connection was lost. Since an incomplete file is in the directory, when reconnecting, the WUD icon then shows that half-finished file as fully green. Someone might understand that to mean that download was completed, and therefore not needed again.

solution -- I'm not a programmer ... maybe we need to share our own db of md5's if MS won't provide them, or maybe even just request file size during dl from MS, and if the closing file size doesn't match an xml field for filesize or the MS response, write the cache buffer to disk as a xxxxx.exe.wud or something.

again, thanks. This was a wonderful help!!

Molecule.

[jcarle]

wonderful program ... it works well on a w98se machine (after installing .net 2 and double clicking the .ulz file to unpack it to a .ul), to prepare a w2k build.

during the overnight download on my dialup, my line got dropped (a std 5 AM Verizon trick). WUD was in the midst of getting a 31M file, and this revealed a potential problem of which I am sure you are aware, since I have no way of knowing whether or not file KBxxxxxx is 11meg (as per my HDD) or 31meg (as discovered):

Case: connection is dropped in midst of a downloading a requested file

Problem: WUD writes to disk whatever was in dl cache (or whatever) at the point the connection was lost. Since an incomplete file is in the directory, when reconnecting, the WUD icon then shows that half-finished file as fully green. Someone might understand that to mean that download was completed, and therefore not needed again.

solution -- I'm not a programmer ... maybe we need to share our own db of md5's if MS won't provide them, or maybe even just request file size during dl from MS, and if the closing file size doesn't match an xml field for filesize or the MS response, write the cache buffer to disk as a xxxxx.exe.wud or something.

again, thanks. This was a wonderful help!!

Molecule.

There's a bit of a problem with the way that the download thread is implemented in .net 2.0, I'm waiting for the next version of Visual Studio to be released shortly to see if they fixed it. The download when stopped remotely leaves me no indication (which i could see so far) that it has in fact done so. So the thread ends thinking the download was complete.

I've had a few dial-up users request feature changes to help them with the limitations of dial-up connections. There's a few things that need to be changed, such as auto-resume and things like that.

[jimmsta]

First off, great app. It's really a great help when also using HFSLIP.

Secondly, I'd love to use the app as a way to distribute my next version of BHT (See link in Sig). So far, my only gripes with the app are the following: No sub-categories.

Is there any way to implement an item that is a member of more than one category? Or, is there a way to

Nevermind, I figured it out. If it's ok, I'd like to distribute the latest version as the downloader for my compilation. Take a look at BHT - I make no money on it at all - it is, and will always be free.

[jcarle]

First off, great app. It's really a great help when also using HFSLIP.

Secondly, I'd love to use the app as a way to distribute my next version of BHT (See link in Sig). So far, my only gripes with the app are the following: No sub-categories.

Is there any way to implement an item that is a member of more than one category? Or, is there a way to

Nevermind, I figured it out. If it's ok, I'd like to distribute the latest version as the downloader for my compilation. Take a look at BHT - I make no money on it at all - it is, and will always be free.

No problem at all, and if you'd like I can post the update list on wud's home page.

[boeur]

hi!

Can you add this option:

For each patches list I've selected, you can remember the folder where i've download the patch.

thank's for your answer.

[jcarle]

hi!

Can you add this option:

For each patches list I've selected, you can remember the folder where i've download the patch.

thank's for your answer.

So each UL would have it's own settings... that's not a bad idea at all... I like it.

[kickarse]

Is there a way to determine what updates are needed for the system? Then do an automatic install of all of them?

[jcarle]

Is there a way to determine what updates are needed for the system? Then do an automatic install of all of them?

That's the missing information I don't have.

[Guest RCollewijn]

What is the best source to create a UL list??????????

I have seen that you are using some kind of xml files

Generated file by Rj's ulTranslate v1.6, translated from w2k3-v3.xml (2006-12-13)

Generated file by Rj's ulTranslate v1.6, translated from xp-v3.xml (2006-12-12)

I use the following links;

Security Bulletin Search

Microsoft Windows Update Catalog

And i know that the HfNetChk from the past also works with a xml file, but i can't find the link anymore.

All this sources give a deference result!!

Can you also tell me where you get your xml files?

[darcmatter]

First of all Happy New Year To Everybody!

This question is directed to Jcarle.

Whats the progress with adding download and resume function to WUD?

Edited January 12, 2007 by darcmatter

[jcarle]

First of all Happy New Year To Everybody!

This question is directed to Jcarle.

Whats the progress with adding download and resume function to WUD?

Visual Studio Orca is supposed to be released soon. I'm undecided as to wether I rewrite the download implementation I have now or wait to see if the .NET 3.0 implementation would offer better support for resuming.

[superaktieboy]

this has been said earlier but i would really like it if it was possible to

• detect the already installed updates
  
• select the updates that are not installed (but list all the updates)
  
• such things as the kb's (i mean those who have a silent install) to install automatically if such option is selected!!
  

thx for the great software

[jimmsta]

To be honest, this request is a feature that I'd like to see because it'll make my life easier in the long run. (see previous posts).

I'd love to see an option that dumps a link to the file downloaded, and the description in the UL file for that particular file, to be dumped into an html file, which would point to the file downloaded.

i.e.

FILENAME(<a href="">LINK</a>) - DESCRIPTION FROM UL FILE

Edit: I don't need this as much as I had thought. It would be nice to have, but not necessary.

Also,

this has been said earlier but i would really like it if it was possible to

• detect the already installed updates
  
• select the updates that are not installed (but list all the updates)

I'd love to see these two features as well. They'd be a great help to me as well.

Edited January 31, 2007 by jimmsta

[dvokt]

Questions about the impetus and philosphy behind WUD:

1. Was WUD conceived of as simple way to create local "libraries" of updates, or was there some other concept involved?
   
2. Were the ULs always meant to be "provided" (albeit with the help of others)?
   
3. How are the ULs on the http://wud.jcarle.com/ site created. Are there tools used, or is it painful hand coding?
   
4. Possibly out of scope, but how does one figure out how to "slipstream" a given update?
   

Thoughts on UL generation:

Are you familiar with the "Windows Update Agent" (WUA) and wsusscn2.cab?

These could be used to automatically generate ULs based on criteria. In fact, though I do not grok the schema (yet), the wsussc2.cab contains (I think) all the information needed to create ULs using XSLT to transform the data into UL schema form.

From either of these techniques you could create and adjunct program or a featuure to do auto list generation with an interface similar to this:

http://www.microsoft.com/technet/security/current.aspx

Also, as I understand it so far, the WUA API has the ability to scan the systems (like hfnetchk) for updates, AND install them.

Now this may beyond the scope of this project, it is worth thinking about. Here are some links:

• WUA API Reference - http://msdn2.microsoft.com/en-us/library/aa387099.aspx
  
• WUA API Downloads - http://www.microsoft.com/windowsserversyst...ds/default.mspx
  
• WUA API Samples - http://download.microsoft.com/download/8/d...s+and+Tools.EXE
  
• WUA API Samples Doc - http://download.microsoft.com/download/a/6...86d8/readme.htm
  

Some suggestions:

1. Schema Change: Add an optional attribute for "integrationmethod" that would be a referance to a integration element, to be determined. In fact it could be a ref to another schema. This would allow people like myself to figure out how to slipstream the update and document (or even provide code or script) for it, such that after downloading they could be integrated.
   
2. Schema Change: Add an optional element for the commented "downloadpage" seen in the lists:
   

   <!-- http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?familyid=7C48DC3A-E3A2-4681-A0D1-3886AFDC6E73&displaylang=en -->

   
   

Thanks for a very elegant tool!

Edited February 7, 2007 by dvokt

[jimmsta]

Questions about the impetus and philosphy behind WUD:

1. How are the ULs on the http://wud.jcarle.com/ site created. Are there tools used, or is it painful hand coding?

At the moment, I'm pretty sure this is what we've stuck doing. I made a UI mockup that I may try programming into a UL creator tool. At the moment, however, I have no idea how to manipulate XML files with C#, or any other language...