How to stop jucheck from running? Java won't remember “Check for Updates Automatically” setting

Question

I've installed Java on Windows Vista, and every day I get a Vista security warning asking me if I want to run "jucheck". Apparently this is the Java automatic updater.

Well, I don't want it to run on its own, ever. I cancel it, and quit it. I right-click on the taskbar and unclick "Check for Updates Automatically", and then click "Never Check", and "Apply". And yet, it never remembers this setting. If I come back to the "Java Control Panel" right after clicking "OK", the very same box is checked again, all on its own.

Is there some way to kill jucheck once and for all? If I simply delete jucheck.exe, will Java (other than the automatic check) still work, and will manual updates still work, and will it stop even trying to update every morning?

Answer 1

Open the "Run" Command on the Start Menu, type "msconfig" (w/o the quotes), and go to the "Startup" tab. Check for any Java related programs starting when the computer boots. Then uncheck it, click OK, and reboot the computer...

If that doesn't work, open the "Run" command again, type services.msc, and look for any Java related services, especially a Java Service with the word 'update' or 'automatic' in it...Then right-click it, select properties, and disable the service...click OK, and you're done...Hope this helps!

worst case scenario, but this is not recommended: Disable UAC...

Answer 2

Refer to the following answer at Server Fault - Can’t seem to disable Java Automatic Update:

Actually this problem is due to the control panel requiring Admin Privileges to allow the java control panel to save your settings (hasn't been fixed for ages, thanks to sun micro).

Basically find the java control panel javacpl.exe here:

C:\Program Files\Java\jre6\bin\javacpl.exe

...right click > run with admin privileges.

Uncheck java update, save and then reopen it to check that the setting is sticking.

My added tip: Windows Vista x64 or Windows 7 x64 users should instead look for:

C:\Program Files (x86)\Java\jre6\bin\javacpl.exe

Answer 3

Just delete "jucheck.exe" and "jusched.exe". Have you thought of this?

On Java Runtime Environment 1.6 versions newer than or equal to 1.6.0.21, go to "%PROGRAMFILES%\Common Files\Java\Java Update\" or "%PROGRAMFILES(X86)%\Common Files\Java\Java Update\", then delete/rename "jucheck.exe" and "jusched.exe". The current 1.6.0.21 version changed the update executable locations, according to http://forums.cnet.com/5208-6122_102-0.html?threadID=401634.

On Java Runtime Environment 1.6 versions older than 1.6.0.21, go to "%PROGRAMFILES%\Java\jre6\bin\" and "%PROGRAMFILES(X86)%\Java\jre6\bin\", then delete/rename "jucheck.exe" and "jusched.exe".

If you have any Adobe products installed, you might want to check for more JRE locations. For example, when Adobe Creative Suite 5 is installed, it automatically installs old versions of JRE into these locations:

• C:\Program Files (x86)\Adobe\Adobe Dreamweaver CS5\JVM\bin\
• C:\ProgramData\Adobe\CS5\jre\bin\
• C:\Program Files (x86)\Adobe\Adobe Flash Builder 4\jre\bin\
• C:\Program Files (x86)\Adobe\Adobe Flash Catalyst CS5\jre\bin\
• C:\Program Files (x86)\Adobe\Acrobat 9.0\Designer 8.2\jre\bin\

For each location above, delete/rename "jucheck.exe" and "jusched.exe".

Additionally, do a search for "jucheck.exe" and "jusched.exe" to find even more JRE locations!

Next, in both "%PROGRAMFILES%\Java\jre6\bin\" and "%PROGRAMFILES(X86)%\Java\jre6\bin\", right click on "javacpl.exe" and select "Run as administrator". Select the Update tab, and disable "Check for Updates Automatically", and select "Never Check" for the update interval. Then, go to the Advanced tab, under JRE Auto-Download, select "Never Auto-Download". Click apply and OK.

"Start > Run > msconfig" or use a different startup manager tool, then find and delete all instances of "jucheck.exe" and "jusched.exe" for each startup entry type.

Next, create a registry file, "Disable Java Automatic Updates.reg", with this inside:

Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00

[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\JavaSoft\Java Update\Policy]
"EnableJavaUpdate"=dword:00000000
"EnableAutoUpdateCheck"=dword:00000000
"NotifyDownload"=dword:00000001
"NotifyInstall"=dword:00000001
"PromptAutoUpdateCheck"=-

[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Wow6432Node\JavaSoft\Java Update\Policy]
"EnableJavaUpdate"=dword:00000000
"EnableAutoUpdateCheck"=dword:00000000
"NotifyDownload"=dword:00000001
"NotifyInstall"=dword:00000001
"PromptAutoUpdateCheck"=-

[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\JavaSoft\Java Update\Policy]
"EnableJavaUpdate"=dword:00000000
"EnableAutoUpdateCheck"=dword:00000000
"NotifyDownload"=dword:00000001
"NotifyInstall"=dword:00000001
"PromptAutoUpdateCheck"=-

[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Wow6432Node\JavaSoft\Java Update\Policy]
"EnableJavaUpdate"=dword:00000000
"EnableAutoUpdateCheck"=dword:00000000
"NotifyDownload"=dword:00000001
"NotifyInstall"=dword:00000001
"PromptAutoUpdateCheck"=-

Apply the registry file for all users, and constantly re-apply it every user logon for good measure.

Finally, create a deployment settings file, and place it in "%WINDIR%\Sun\Java\Deployment\", "%PROGRAMFILES%\Java\jre6\lib\", and "%PROGRAMFILES(X86)%\Java\jre6\lib\". Check out hxxp://www.appdeploy.com/messageboards/tm.asp?m=33488 and hxxp://download.oracle.com/javase/1.5.0/docs/guide/deployment/deployment-guide/properties.html or hxxp://download.oracle.com/javase/6/docs/technotes/guides/deployment/deployment-guide/properties.html. (Sorry, I can't post more than 1 hyperlink with less than 10 reputation points.)

Answer 4

Save this as Java32_Fix.reg and run and it will fix those javacpl.exe as Administrator/Control Panel issues once and for all:

Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00

[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\AppCompatFlags\Layers] "C:\Program Files\Java\jre6\bin\javacpl.exe"="RUNASADMIN"

Alternately, this is for 64bit OS's running 32bit Java:

Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00

[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\AppCompatFlags\Layers] "C:\Program Files (x86)\Java\jre6\bin\javacpl.exe"="RUNASADMIN"

Now whenever you click Java in the Control Panel, it will be launched as Administrator automatically.

Answer 5

That seems much more complex than earlier versions which just remembered!

To answer an earlier question - the reason that I want to disable it is because earlier versions weren't very good at uninstalling the previous version before installing the new one. That caused problems with some of the Java software we use at work - also, because work machines have a set version on, I want to ensure that my home pc has the same version - so if I develop stuff for students, it will work. (Some of the elearning software we use doesn't work with newer versions of Java).

I'd rather manually check when I want to, then I can uninstall, download & reinstall.

Were Java to say (as other software does) 'you've already got Java - shall I uninstall it, or do you want two versions' - then I'd let the autoupdate run. (I'd also quite like it if it remembered to ask me before downloading, rather than after. It used to remember these things.)

Answer 6

Old versions of Java can be easily removed with the little freeware program JavaRa.

I've used this in Windows XP, Windows Vista and Windows 7 64-bit; it works cleanly and reliably (though you do have to remove a text file log it puts in C:\ detailing the files it has deleted.