[Retired Tech]

Today we received an e-mail from Microsoft, requesting the immediate take-down of the download page, which of course means that AutoPatcher is probably history. As much as we disagree, we can do very little, and although the download page is merely a collection of mirrors, we took the download page down.

http://autopatcher.com/

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thanks, is there any links to information as to why this has happened and why this must be then?

[fleamailman]

thanks, is there any links to information as to why this has happened and why this must be then?

[Major Payne]

I would think it was because of copyright infringements and, if so, it took M$ 4 years to get around to it. Still sad to see them go.

Here's some more links covering Autopatcher news. This will snowball to other sites that support Autopatcher.

From slashdot.org:

...an official from Microsoft legal says that it has nothing to do with Windows Genuine Advantage.

Ron

Edited by Major Payne, 30 August 2007 - 02:40 AM.

[Retired Tech]

Spot On Ron

AutoPatcher could handle updates from Microsoft as well as third-party software such as Sun's Java.

Microsoft said it "discourages" others from distributing supplemental software such as hot fixes, security patches and service packs and that doing so infringes the company's copyright. "This policy is in place due to concern for the safety and security of our customers, as we can only guarantee the download's contents when it comes from a Microsoft website," the company said in a statement. "We contacted AutoPatcher earlier today to request that they stop redistributing our Microsoft intellectual property."

http://uk.news.yahoo...-20a87fa_1.html

[Neil Jones]

This is a sad day.
I loved Autopatcher, it saved a [bleep] of a lot of downloading and was actually a [bleep] sight quicker than Microsoft.
I will miss this project a lot, I really liked it

[dsenette]

http://www.computerw...;intsrc=hm_list

September 03, 2007 (Computerworld) -- A day after Microsoft Corp. shut down a free alternative to Windows Update, the program's 20-year-old developer said he is talking with the company about what it would take to resurrect his project.

Claiming copyright infringement, Microsoft on Wednesday forced the maker of AutoPatcher, a utility that updates Windows and Microsoft Office using prepackaged collections of hot fixes and patches, to yank it from its download sites. Microsoft also said security concerns prompted the move, since it could not guarantee the contents of a patch or fix when users retrieved them from unsanctioned sources.

Antonis Kaladis, the Greek college student who wrote AutoPatcher, quickly complied with the cease-and-desist order he had received from Microsoft. "As much as we disagree, we can do very little."

On Friday, however, he said he was talking with Microsoft about changes to AutoPatcher that would make the program acceptable to the company. "We have actually come up with several ideas on how to work around this by downloading everything Microsoft related on the spot, from their own servers, instead of including it and prebundling it," said Kaladis in an e-mail. Although he and the rest of those responsible for AutoPatcher contacted Microsoft for its blessing, "unfortunately, we have not received any official response of any kind yet."

Kaladis declined to go into more detail on the changes the AutoPatcher team has proposed to Microsoft, but in comments attached to his announcement Thursday, Kaladis has hinted at the way he and others are leaning.

looks like they might be working out a way to get autopatcher back online...but...isn't downloading all the updates directly from MS about the same as just running windows update?