Why is there a multi-day delay before SupportAssist can find updates?

Question

Why does it take multiple days between when a driver update appears on the support website and when my SupportAssist application will detect it?

For example, I just checked the website to see that there are two "Critical" updates that were released on Nov 10. A BIOS update and an Intel Graphics driver update.

So, I go and run SupportAssist on my PC to get them installed. Instead of getting the updates it reports back that there is nothing to update

It is not just my locally installed copy of SupportAssist. If I select the web site option

I get the same outcome

Nothing is found.

From my experience, it seems that Critical updates on the web site will only show up as available in SupportAssist between one and two weeks later.

If the update is Critical - surely it should be made available to all distribution channels in a more timely manner.

DB16250user · Answer

So, I tried again this morning, and today it finds the missing updates ...  Only 4 days later this time.  I do not understand why this is taking so long for Critical updates.

lmacri · Answer

Why does it take multiple days between when a driver update appears on the support website and when my SupportAssist application will detect it?  Hi DB16250user: From my 14-Jan-2025 post in JohnHarding1's Dell Command Updates not showing latest BIOS updates: 'Just an FYI that I use Dell Update for Windows Universal v5.4.0 on my Inspiron 5584 and I typically have to wait about 6 to 8 days before this utility detects updates posted on my online Inspiron 5584 support page.  I have no idea what causes this lag, but I suspect Dell monitors telemetry from early adopters who update using .exe installers downloaded from their online support page and then waits to see if the new update displays any buggy behaviour before it is pushed out via SupportAssist v4.x or one of their Dell Update v5.x utilities.' However, that's just speculation on my part.  I'm assuming that the risk of your computer experiencing  a BSOD or other serious problem after installing a buggy BIOS *** or graphics driver update is actually much higher than the risk of a home computer being infected by a targeted malware attack just because there was a short delay applying a 'critical' update to patch a security vulnerability.________________________ *** WARNING: I normally advise that users should NOT allow Windows Update or a Dell utility like SupportAssist v4.x or Dell Update v5.x to update their BIOS, since any glitch during the update process could result in an unbootable system. If SupportAssist v4.x is installed there are instructions <here> in the SupportAssist v4 User Guide for disabling automatic updates to prevent an unexpected BIOS update - if you run update checks manually from the Home tab of SupportAssist this will allow you to review the list of available updates and decline any BIOS update before it starts to download. When Dell releases a critical BIOS update that as been certified for my Inspiron 5584 I normally save the full offline .exe installer recommended on the Drivers & Downloads tab of my Inspiron 5584 support page to my desktop, close all my open programs, and then right-click the .exe file and choose 'Run as Administrator'.  However, the safer method is to flash your BIOS from a removable USB stick. -----------Dell Inspiron 15 5584 * 64-bit Win 10 Pro v22H2 build 19045.6575 * Firefox v145.0.0 * Microsoft Defender v4.18.25090.3009-1.1.25100.9002 * Malwarebytes Premium v5.4.4.225-145.0.5428 * Macrium Reflect Free v8.0.7783 * My Dell v2.2.6.0 * Fusion Service 2.2.14.0

SupportAssist for PCs

Why is there a multi-day delay before SupportAssist can find updates?

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