Is it possible to ignore the check for installed Windows updates in RetailVista POS?

If RetailVista POS detects a Windows update, an additional check is performed to verify if the Windows Updates are installed. This is necessary to ensure that the correct version of Microsoft.Net Framework is present, but other Windows updates may also be important for the functionality of future RetailVista POS updates. To determine if Windows Updates are installed, attention is paid to a Windows setting or whether Windows Updates are not automatically turned off and whether Windows Updates can be installed automatically. 

However, there are RetailVista users who have disabled automatic Windows updates on their Windows systems because it is handled by special software at fixed intervals. For these customers, a startup parameter can now be used to indicate that RetailVista POS does not need to check for the latest Windows update because it will still take place through a separate route.

Always ignore

By adding the text /IgnoreWinUpdatesCheck to the startup EXE of RetailVista POS, it will no longer be tested whether Windows updates are installed, and it will be assumed that they are always installed. This value can also be specified as an 'environment' variable, and the value does not matter in that case (for now). It is recommended to give this value a 1, as it is prepared for a possible future change where 1 indicates that the Windows update settings can be ignored and 0 indicates that they cannot be ignored.

Example: SET IgnoreWinUpdatesCheck=1

It is the responsibility of the customer to apply this parameter only in situations where it is certain that Windows updates are indeed installed.

If that is not the case, and the RetailVista POS update is still implemented, there is a risk that RetailVista POS (partially or completely) will no longer function after the update!

Temporarily ignore

An alternative option is not to always ignore the Windows Update notification, but to be able to ignore it once. By holding down the left shift key when starting POS until the login screen appears, the Windows Update check will be skipped.

Technical background information

When starting POS, the Windows settings are read to determine if Windows updates are allowed and if automatic installation of those updates is allowed. By putting RetailVista POS in debug mode and restarting, the UI.Touch log file (usually located in C:\ProgramData\NedFox\RetailVistaPosV2\Log) will show the values read for both of these settings. If either of these settings is not active, it will indicate that Windows Updates are not installed. The following is an example line from the UI.Touch startup file.

2/29/2024 9:31:07 AM DEBUG         CheckWindowsUpdatesTask.Execute --> Windows update status: enabled=True, auto install=True

The above line indicates that Windows updates are allowed and that Windows Updates can be installed automatically. By consulting this line, it becomes clear if both desired settings are active. If it turns out that one of these settings is not active, check the Windows Update settings.