Windows / OS update your DAW

Hello, guys.
Reading about funky issues happening after various Win10 updates lately, I have a question to those of you who are using a dedicated computer for Sonar or other DAW...curious to know if the majority keep their Windows (whatever OS version) updated on a regular basis.
 
Thanks.
 

I do.  When planning for Microsoft updates, plan to install them soon after the 2nd Tuesday of the month - known as Patch Tuesday.  Also, check for driver updates for your audio interface and your graphic card as some plugins use the GPU to handle it's GUI element.  I know Meldaproduction plugins do.

I am running Windows 7 64bit fully patched, and I have not had any of the issues that others have reported with MS updates.

Running fully updated W10 and fully updated SONAR with no issues on dedicated PC Audio Labs computer. TASCAM US-20x20 interface, ATI Radeon 5400 graphics card.

With Win10 Pro you can disable the Windows Update service.
Once every couple of months I enable it and let Win 10 update.
But I do not use the PC for browsing the web.
A few weeks ago, I did the Nov Win10 updates and up to the current ones.
I had to re-auth Melodyne, and AD2 but that is about it.
If the PC is used for web browsing though, you should either keep Defender up to date or use another anti-virus that does not rely on Windows Update to stay current.

My fellow computer nerd claims that Windows 10 includes some kind of antivirus so it is worth to stay current. One of the updates messed with my old Edirol UA25 driver but fortunately I figured out what was wrong. So I plan to update Win10 regularly.

I do update, but I leave my WLAN disabled by default on my dedicated WAN.  Every once in a while - I'll enable it to update Windows patches, but I'll ensure the patches have been out for a while without issue before updating.
I haven't had any issues with this approach.

microapp
 
With Win10 Pro you can disable the Windows Update service. . . .
 

you can also do that with windows 10 home (probably any version) i have a mixture of win 10 pro on a couple of computers and win 10 home on a couple and have had the updates service disabled on all since july

kennywtelejazz
 
I don't do the early updates  so I'm waiting for the patched early edition from December to go prime  time  ...
My antivirus software is kept up to date VIA manual updates at the time of my choosing ...
 
Kenny

hasn't that already happened? unless i am not understanding or missing something, 2016.12 is out and about, i downloaded and installed, at least i think i did, you have me doubting my sanity now .
 
i don't usually do the early bird releases either, every now and then i'll get brave

My DAW is still on Win 7 which has never been updated since it was built for me
 
OTOH, my laptop and another desktop both run fully updated Win 10 systems.
 
Currently, I don't have a single problem with any of them running 2016.12

Not to Mock any one on this forum about Win 10...But you can search for win 10 bugs on the net and find MS has postings of troubles of its flag ship rendering...on SSD drives...might even go to M.2...if be the installed drive for the latest version of MS win 10.
 
It, and the other version before it, have not worked well for me at all, with my M audio selected cards, or others after liken Motu, or Focusrite, and ...Allen and heath is now working with my Mac...Where it was a nightmare with the PC.
I as a PC enthused tinkering nerd, some might say...Find that since it was conceived or contorted from Dos...as having some legal or controversial standing as to who's codex was founded, and or used for MS to use without truly settling the base ...
I find it troubling ever since , to get a stable mind, or system truly working without errors of buggy performance of...with applications written for , to work on...
 
It is long in the tooth trying so much to get a digital work station here working with out blue screens, or just bad audio or video working 100% with out stuttering, or just not working in playing back a simple audio CD..or Dvd..or even audio..in DAWs without some glitchy noise to remove...not coming from cable or external sources..but inside the machine...be it RF radio short wave , or other pops and crinkling crackles or squellings...
 
Also noting bad file management...if so, only with saving files....some of that, is posted in oddity of few having.
But missing files not found when trying to open a project..or Plug in fails on projects that held them in use.
 
I am so , out of mind with this now...I seek no more help...I gave up on PC and MS...And am now seeking Mac Versions of my paid for plug ins and software.
 
I have paid enough, to pull out teeth from crushing them down to cracking , and loss of my hair...( not in truth but you get the meaning)...and although I come here to vent..as I know I read many of users misfortunes,, and I have no solutions....But I do try to solve for....and if you can count the DAWs I got, you would say why so many?....TESTING which one will do the Job...
 
I regret to have to say...Sorry....I can no longer being of cheer.
 
If I brought any to be mocking, or saying odd things to my posting methods to users of MS anything, towards me....It is only to show, I am trying to say...when someone posts a problem...HERE IS ANOTHER...and ANOTHER...As I also have same issues....Always sometimes getting something done, and then, it is not working, and while updates might help in some cases,...It leads to a string of updates there after, and the never ending updating, so short after a big move to new class of OS...is leaving people staying on older versions that are working...in their case...Well done to those whom have it working right...and get things done.
 
To those whom are having issues...MS, and others are aware..Yet stand doing it to many...Screwing up laptops, and Workstations...Saying to migrate to windows 10 in harassing into with pop ups constantly to do, ...As my tech said if you did migrate, you will eventually have issues.
 
So...Clean installs..might be a key point.
 
 
Not so, Did I mock Cakewalk...For I am on one.?
 
I hate MS for what they do to screw up all for so many....I try to say...sorry for my long winded words of mayhem...and misspelt or bad syntax in saying....But, That is what I do, to bring in Pondering ....What does he mean?....So meant was put.
 
Testing the minty...keeping things honestly pushed..if paid for bug fixing for life....They fix it...Not you people of wonder ...And some of the best  know...trying to solve problems freely so....Who is making it be so needed a community of users banding together to find and solve for their bent code?...and lost hopes because people believe they need a PC to make music?...surely not so, in truth!
 
 
Was this Sir Les ever against you users?...Not ever was it meant to come to mock...But seek words of wisdom as to why it does not work...Take out the Tweaks, and put things as is...And look another newly formed Machine or two in this case...Coming to blue screens and bad stutterings of streaming tears...of wasted efforts and time.
 
So, when being so mocking of me in saying it like I see it,...Whom was my mock pointed at?...MS OS...None other.
 
So to any and all if so mocking was done,,,I did do back some also....was...But I take back no words meant to show my Vexations and Frustrations constantly fixing systems ...because of bad codex or bugs in the Machine.
 
Not "Polite error" or Pilot error in some cases......if selecting install..or install update...when it was kind of working, but always finding odd errors, ...then it was not working at all when doing updates by selecting to try and see if that would take away the last of the oddity in these machines I own..or do I see batch files run in the corner...working to send out..or slow type on screen to show spooling is being done of my keystrokes...taking up cpu or memory..for no other reason than to slow down...what is supposed to work..Print, and even spell check...and it tells me I spell my name wrong, and does not print one page of text..because it was working , then it is not....Should I trust that?.
 
Has it been a bad venture for me...Oh no...A learning one ...Good people are every where!...But Bandits with smiles saying things that are not always as said,..to sell a pig in a poe, are at ever corner!..
 
Stay Safe....Keep Rockin on!...and Go outside some times and plant some plants...grow some food...do some good for life to be life...Get out of the traps of these machines...Learn to play music from the heart....And it is already in YOU!...You need to not toil too much...Let them fix it.
 
 
Cheers!
 
Sir Les

The Anniversary update (build 1607) caused havoc on my machine. Don't know why. Went back to build 1511 which works fine.
 
Bizarrely build 1607 works a treat on my general knockabout laptop.

Win7 here and never updated since the day it was installed as it is always offline. It works just fine, so I see no reason to mess with it. Software vendors that insist on having the DAW pc online can keep their software as far as I am concerned. I have MS email and if the "improvements" they insist on making to that all the time are anything to go by, I don't want them any near something that currently works.

One thing I discovered that may help others was a tip from a gaming forum. I was looking for a solution to why my Video card driver keep screwing up. 
The gamers recomended toggling off the Windows Hardwar update. You can find it in 
Advanced systems settings/ Hardware / device installation settings
 
What happens is windows update will overwrite your real driver from the vendor with a crappy generic driver and there you go. Just think of what this is doing to our stuff. Might be why I'm one of the few that doesn't have problems with W10. 
 
I think what we really need at this point is a new list of solid facts and tweeks that need to be done to W10 to make it DAW friendly. The last good list we had was for XP. 
ANd if anything what W10 really needs is the good old, easy to use, selection options for windows update.
My chioce was always " tell me hen updates are available but let me choose when to download and install" 

Yes Let us manually update if needs be...That is my problem..?...And forced updates with so many ilok and dongles and PT usb thingy...and all the key codes for and in or on...eh..When a system is being built and not stable...does one back it up?....why if so?...So first to get that stability and trust...When and if it works without err or glitch or click or pops..crash or hangs....I might say...Sure turn off the updates.
 
But no way is it possible....And if the worst comes, and a reinstall of os, not backed up, because it was never stable to do a Trusting setup to one.
 
It takes me two weeks to get all the latest stuff and install it...and if libraries were installed on other drives....It takes time sometimes to get the new installs to see the libraries put in other places.
 
And then sometimes that needs a update also...The circle goes endlessly over and over, until..opps, time for more money Pay to tech support or to get the latest os, to solve what was not solve in the last one ...at least for me...Not sure of...And as being here Being served some help by some of you good folks...trying That circle is still a constant pain to get it to work...Just letting it do what it wants...And still got blue screens, no recoil to restore , and or..no work being done...Because of driver problems, audio problems, printer issues/scanner, and monitor or video card...etc....On the system below I made a video of Just those kind of things...Just for Cake walk to see...and sent them a link....I hope they get my drift...Not so for me, as I found a solution right now on Mac OS of which I await this ported to....But for the USERS who have em..Bugs with MS so often...they are fed up fixing it, and when fixed the sabotage done there after by!
 
No no, mono play back not stereo, no right side output., bad streaming...no sound...only if I use Window Browser Edge does sound work on internet...chrome is buggy with streams....La la la la...And until yesterday, a constant loop of when shutting down or restarting...it always had a update that never did update...took a few reboots and restarts to get rid of that...so I could enter my bios to get the version of, for tech support for Cake walk to see into my rants....open old project, no audio found of tracks and or plug ins used....who trust this kind of behavior?.
 
So....They know, I am fighting not for me....But for all.
 
Best In the New Year!
 
 
Cheers!

Not only do I allow my OS to update automatically, I am also in the Windows Insider program and regularly test preview OS releases, which also get deployed automatically to my DAW computer, which is also my work computer and my browsing computer. I image backup nightly to a dedicated hard drive and weekly to an offline hard drive. I am also a prodigious user of restore points, which I highly recommend you do as well as a first line of defense against disaster.
 
I have the luxury to do all this because:
a) my work data and configurations run on virtual machines which also get backed up
b) my work is saved to a cloud source code control system
c) I am not a professional music producer and do not depend upon the integrity of my projects.
 
I have had issues with Sonar, mostly on Windows preview releases, but nothing that I couldn't work around with one exception. That said, in general, it's been remarkably stable on this most unstable of operating environments. So I'm of the opinion that updates and DAW's can co-exist, and at some point they probably should.