Filed under: Security, Windows, Microsoft, Freeware, Windows x64
Update Microsoft Security Essentials definitions manually - no Windows Update required
by Lee Mathews Oct 20th 2009
While Microsoft Security Essentials has gotten mostly glowing reviews so far, some users are still hesitant to install it. One thing holding up some users is Windows Update.
You can't update your Security Essentials definitions automatically if the Windows Update service is disabled. And while keeping your system fully patched is a necessity, not everyone wants to allow Windows to do it for them - they prefer the going manual route.
You can't update your Security Essentials definitions automatically if the Windows Update service is disabled. And while keeping your system fully patched is a necessity, not everyone wants to allow Windows to do it for them - they prefer the going manual route.
Fortunately, Microsoft knows this. After all, Security Essentials is based on Forefront - their enterprise antivirus product. And in the enterprise it's common practice to install updates manually.
To that end, Security Essentials definitions can be downloaded as a standalone executable from Microsoft. They're available from the Malware Protection Center where you'll also find the current defs for Forefront and Defender.
Download the .exe yourself, run it, and your Security Essentials is up-to-date! Better yet, set up an app like Ketarin to handle scheduled downloads for you and save yourself a step.
With Halloween fast approaching, it's a great time to get in some practice defending your territory against zombies. In Graveyard Shift, you take aim at zombies and other creepy-crawlies, blasting them into splatters of cartoony green guts. It's a casual first-person shooter, and it's very easy to get the hang of - use the mouse to aim, click to fire. Graveyard Shift has at least 15 levels, and it might even have some secret stages I haven't unlocked yet.
They key to getting good at Graveyard Shift is learning to use ...
