Why do I have a folder named “Apple Software Update” on a PC running Windows
XP? Do I need it? Can I safely get rid of it?
In this excerpt from
Answercast #14, I discuss why Windows computers often have Apple software,
how to delete it, and why you might not want to.
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Deleting Apple update folders
I’m actually not sure if you can safely get rid of it or if you need it for
that matter.
I have an article about that generally answering; “Can I get rid of this
file or folder?
It boils down to:
- You can just rename it, run with it for awhile, and see if that causes any
trouble - Or back it up and delete it and see if it causes any trouble (you can
then restore it if you need to.)
Why do I have Apple folders on a PC?
Why have that folder?
Well, actually that’s pretty simple. If you’re running iTunes or QuickTime
(or any number of Windows software that comes from Apple), this is the Apple
‘software updater’ that manages and keeps those software packages up to
date.
I would suggest in general that you want to leave it there. It’s probably
there because you’ve installed some software under Windows that actually
originated from Apple and it’s going to be a good idea to keep that software up
to date.
Apple Software Update can be removed via the control panel Add.Remove programes. I use Secunia’s PSI to keep up with updates for several programs, so I have removed the Apple Software Update from my computer with no ill effects. It was installed with iTunes, despite unchecking the box for it in the installer program.