Completely disable auto updates & automatic checks for updates

I've tried disabling the auto update checks and the updates, themselves, through the settings options; however, I still get auto update checks.

After searching, I found a solution and verified that the settings in /etc/apt/apt.conf.d/20auto-upgrades was set to "0". Still, getting auto update checks.

I do not want any unauthorized communication from my system and with Zorin OS 16, it seems as if I cannot disable the checks and/or updates happening without my consent.

Has anyone found a way to completely disable this?

@guinness1 Try This and see if it works?

https://linuxconfig.org/disable-automatic-updates-on-ubuntu-20-04-focal-fossa-linux#:~:text=All%20done.-,How%20to%20disable%20Automatic%20Updates%20from%20GUI%20Desktop,Automatically%20check%20for%20updates%20field.

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Thank you for the reply; that was the solution I linked in my first post. I have the file set up like that, but still get unwanted update checks.

According to my experience Zorin OS asks users before installing any updates and I have never found any system resources being overused by any autoupdate service without my consent. There is a pop up window that asks to install updates and I think it contains a option to not install the updates. Also, the commands in the article if working with your Ubuntu version are more than enough to stop any auto update services.

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@anon6471198

Unfortunately, still getting a popup asking to update. That's communication outside my network without my permission.

I do not want it to check for updates, suggest updates, look for updates, or communicate with Zorin's server, or anywhere else, without me explicitly telling it to do so. If I cannot stop this behavior, it's just as bad as Windows. I've been searching and the above links seems to work for Ubuntu 20.04 but not for Zorin OS.

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This is exactly what I was talking about; while typing a reply to another forum post, this popped up:

2022-08-15_08-35-UPDATES1

Here are the settings:

2022-08-15_08-35-UPDATES2

This is unacceptable. In Linux, I should be able to prevent my computer from doing anything I do not want it to do; however, in Ubuntu/Zorin OS, it seems like they're pulling a Microsoft move and forcing update downloads and checks.

I think its some sort of bug, But if you do not like updates at all you can uncheck from all repositories of updates this will stop it from searching and updating ever.

Also, you are subscribed to all updates which by default downloads them, switch it to custom.

Okay, I did this, but now it will not update anything. I had to resubscribe to get apt-get to work correctly.

What I'm finding out is that Ubuntu, and thus Zorin OS, are exactly like Windows in that they make network connections without my consent and, also like Windows, there is no way to stop it.

I had planned on installing Zorin OS Pro on hundreds of machines for my business and thought I would try it out first. I'm glad that I did, because this is a game changer. I will have to find a better OS that allows me to stop automatically updating or even checking for updates.

I contacted the Artyom Zorin about this and soon we will get a solution for this bug :smiley:

Did you ever hear back from Artyom Zorin? I've moved over to Zorin OS 16 Pro Lite, but found out that I hate XFCE much more than GNOME; the only thing that's keeping me from going back to Zorin OS 16 Pro (normal) is this problem right here.

It shouldn't be this difficult to stop your computer from making connections, at least, with Linux installed.

And, thank you for your help... I do not want to install Windows, again. But, if I'm going to have unauthorized connetions that I can't stop from my computer, I might as well have some good games to go with it, too

I agree with your take.

This is not a Zorin OS issue, sadly.
There are multiple entities involved in this behavior:
Red Hat
Canonical
Gnome Foundation.

And I have been voicing my distaste for their Microsoft-style tactics for a long time.

Gnome is the developer responsible for the "Update Manager" Software. And that is what is running in the background and performing actions. You are not the first or only person to note that it gobbles up RAM and performs actions, regardless of the Settings.
I can certainly understand how you may react to XFCE... But XFCE developed apps do not do that.
On Zorin OS Lite, however, the Update-Manager integrated into the system is the Gnome Version.

Being vocal and unafraid to have your voice heard as you are doing is Crucial to protecting FOSS and Linux.
These companies, RHL, Gnome and Canonical, need these constant reminders as they repeatedly act on code to take what they want.

I have not recently checked in on MXLinux or Linux Lite to see what Update Manager they are using.
You may also be well served on a KDE desktop OS, if you can stomach KDE better than I can.
For Distro Developers... You know... We can get stuck with what we have available. And a lot of availability comes down to not what is "popular" among users but what Users Tolerate Quietly and what Gnome et al are willing to get away with.
Pressuring Distro Developers to step up and resist these tactics is a strong way toward protecting FOSS.
And very few people do.

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Nope :joy:

Please Don't Say that, I like Xfce, Can you please specify your problem, So that we can start customising your PC together :wink:

Switching OS is totally upon you, They won't mind because they are still not programmed to have feelings :joy:. Neither do we, Most of us even don't use Zorin. But, I am still having trouble understanding the problem you are having :thinking:

Yeah, I was extremely vocal when the changes came out. Started out polite and professional, but as I got attacked by the fanbois and the moderators, I got more frustrated.

GNOME 1.x-2.x was phenomenal. It was my DE/WM of choice, when I wasn't running blackbox. GNOME 3.x+ has gotten worse as they've taken choices away from us.

For example, I should not have to run pi-hole to shut up a Linux distribution. The fact that I even considered that is sad. I've been looking for a solution to this, but sadly, none exists.

Thank you for letting me know that there is nothing Zorin OS can do. I have no idea what I'm going to do now, sadly, for my business. Hopefully, our startup will be funded within a couple weeks and we were going to buy dozens of systems and install Zorin OS Pro on them.

I can't have holes in my network where the OS decides it wants to communicate without my permission. I bought my Executive Assistant and my Chief of Marketing Zorin OS Pro, and they love the workflow; however, neither of them are tech people; they just see my frustration with trying to keep the systems from randomly checking for updates. :cry:

I actually had my IT Manager try Zorin OS Pro (he bought a copy, as well) and he loved it, outside of the issues I've noticed with GNOME/Ubuntu.

Until Pop_OS! moves to their Rust-based DE, I may move on to Mac OS. Not sure... wish there were a fix for this. I was hoping Zorin developers would have one, they've done wonders for the other parts of problematic pieces

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I can certainly see how that sounds, but I am not so sure on this. I certainly did not say that there is nothing Zorin OS can do.
I think a bigger question is- What can we do?

Not using GNOME-based DE/WM's isn't an option, because Redhat has a solid network with large companies and governments.

I haven't tried this one:

$ sudo vim /etc/apt/apt.conf.d/20auto-upgrades

Change the the file to look like the following example.

APT::Periodic::Update-Package-Lists "0";
APT::Periodic::Download-Upgradeable-Packages "0";
APT::Periodic::AutocleanInterval "0";
APT::Periodic::Unattended-Upgrade "0";

Would that work for Zorin OS running GNOME?

I know that one and you may check if the file already has those values since the Settings Application sets those values.
Or... at least it is supposed to.

It's worth testing.

I would love to believe that you are wrong.
But one thing I have noticed since I was very young...
The bad guys win.
It's not like the movies.
The bad guys almost always win... and even when they get caught they usually get away with it.

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The fact that Microsoft is still in business is a testament to your statement :hushed:

I may re-install regular Zorin and try that change; I hadn't looked at it before, so the changes may have been made with the GUI settings

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I apologize that I missed your post originally.

I've had several problems with XFCE, specifically in Zorin OS 16 Pro Lite, as outlined in this post.

Sadly, I'm thinking of re-installing Zorin OS 16 Pro (full). I think I found a solution, which is completely uninstalling gnome-software and just using the command line or Synaptic.

Another technical problem with GNOME software is their use of GVFS. GNOME Virtual Filesystems (GVFS) represent a massive security/privacy problem through their retention of metadata, and sometimes, data.

The files in

/home/<username>/.local/share/gvfs-metadata/

are in binary format; however, with vim you can still get an idea of what information they are storing. I have not found any other way that is publicly released to see exactly what data is stored in the binary formatted portion! If you download a file or app from your email via web browser, GVFS stores that data. I verified that myself; what is more, there is a section of the browser string that may or may not be my password. I was never able to get a clear answer to this on the forums when I asked.

You can bypass these issues by clearing out that directory from time-to-time.

RE: Original Topic, the only fix seems to be deleting gnome-software. After I re-install Zorin OS Pro 16, I'll update this thread with whether that is an adequate fix or not.

EDIT: I might try this fix, which is to disable autostarting during login

Basically, the person suggests to edit (or create if it doesn't exist):

/home/<username>/.config/autostart/gnome-software-service.desktop

and add:

X-GNOME-Autostart-enabled=false

Why is this so difficult to accomplish? I wish GNOME developers actually listened to user feedback.

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