Tasks running in background

[Greg Kamer]

Hi All,
Every now and agin, I hit my CTRL/ALT/DEL key to open the Tasks
Manager widown and look to see what is running on my machine. I might not
know about everything thats listed, but I just feel better when I have some
idea of whats going on.....

Well anyway, I checked tonight and noticed a task running called
wuauclt.exe. I did a search on the web and found this information:

Background Process responsible for Update of WindowsME Whenever you connect
to the Internet,Wuauclt checks the Microsoft website for updates to Windows
Millennium Edition.

Well I'm running Win XP. Is there any reason why my system would be checking
for upgrades to WinME when I'm not even using that OS?

What caused me to start looking into whats running in the background is
this.....

I have a DSL connection, so I run Zone Alarm as my firewall. I notice that
when I turn on my computer and it boots up, the ZA icon in the system tray
seems to be sending information. Normally when it is doing nothing, all I
see is the ZA icon. But when it is either sending or receiving information
the icon turns into a little bar graph with red/green bars that move up and
down.

Now it might not be anyting at all, since my computer is networked to my
wifes, so I guess it could just be making a normal network connection. But
I'm always concerned about Spyware and stuff like that. It really boils my
blood that some programs instal lthis stuff without any warning.

Recently, I installed Kodak software that came with my new digital camera.
The next time I started my computer, my Spware Buster program detected
Backweb running in memory. I checked Kodaks web site FAQ and it says it's
program installed this to automatically check for upgrades of the software.
But I don't recall seeing any warning message when I installed the software
that this would happen. I have since been able to disable this "feature" in
the software.

Their web site assures me that it does not collect any identifiable
information, but frankly I feel it's a principle thing. I don't want it
collecting and sending any information from my system without my permission,
period.

Sorry, I seem to have gotten off track here.... But these things really make
me mad and I guess I got a little carried away venting, so you all can
disregard that portion of this post.

But I am wondering why Windows XP would be checking for upgrades for WinME
when I don't run that OS.

Thanks.

[Ken Schaefer]

I believe that this is the Windows Update Automatic Update Client.

This goes to the MS windows update website, gets a list of available
critical updates. It then compares your machine's installed updates with the
master list, and works out if anything's missing. If so, depending on your
AU settings, it either notifies you that there are updates to download, or
it automatically downloads them and informs you that they are ready to
install. You can check your settings by right-clicking on My Computer,
choosing "Properties", and then going to "Automatic Updates"

Cheers
Ken

"Greg Kamer" > wrote in message
...
: Hi All,
: Every now and agin, I hit my CTRL/ALT/DEL key to open the
Tasks
: Manager widown and look to see what is running on my machine. I might not
: know about everything thats listed, but I just feel better when I have
some
: idea of whats going on.....
:
: Well anyway, I checked tonight and noticed a task running called
: wuauclt.exe. I did a search on the web and found this information:
:
: Background Process responsible for Update of WindowsME Whenever you
connect
: to the Internet,Wuauclt checks the Microsoft website for updates to
Windows
: Millennium Edition.
:
: Well I'm running Win XP. Is there any reason why my system would be
checking
: for upgrades to WinME when I'm not even using that OS?
:
: What caused me to start looking into whats running in the background is
: this.....
:
: I have a DSL connection, so I run Zone Alarm as my firewall. I notice that
: when I turn on my computer and it boots up, the ZA icon in the system tray
: seems to be sending information. Normally when it is doing nothing, all I
: see is the ZA icon. But when it is either sending or receiving information
: the icon turns into a little bar graph with red/green bars that move up
and
: down.
:
: Now it might not be anyting at all, since my computer is networked to my
: wifes, so I guess it could just be making a normal network connection. But
: I'm always concerned about Spyware and stuff like that. It really boils my
: blood that some programs instal lthis stuff without any warning.
:
: Recently, I installed Kodak software that came with my new digital camera.
: The next time I started my computer, my Spware Buster program detected
: Backweb running in memory. I checked Kodaks web site FAQ and it says it's
: program installed this to automatically check for upgrades of the
software.
: But I don't recall seeing any warning message when I installed the
software
: that this would happen. I have since been able to disable this "feature"
in
: the software.
:
: Their web site assures me that it does not collect any identifiable
: information, but frankly I feel it's a principle thing. I don't want it
: collecting and sending any information from my system without my
permission,
: period.
:
: Sorry, I seem to have gotten off track here.... But these things really
make
: me mad and I guess I got a little carried away venting, so you all can
: disregard that portion of this post.
:
: But I am wondering why Windows XP would be checking for upgrades for WinME
: when I don't run that OS.
:
: Thanks.
:
: