Not showing same updates\extensions\add-ins as before

[tatminglee]

After Autodesk Access is installed and Autodesk Desktop App is replaced, the same updates\extensions\add-ins that were shown on Autodesk Desktop App are not shown on Autodesk Access anymore but advising the product is up to date on some computer making the updates routine a nightmare...This is not right.

[jbednarz]

Same here.  Since the app update, almost all of the available updates that were in Desktop App are now gone. Do I have to go to the website and download the updates now? This does not seem better to me. There is no "Check for Updates" option in the taskbar icon any more either. Gotta love Autodesk. I'm sure they have good intentions, but once again the end user is the beta tester. 

[tatminglee]

Frustrated. Frustrated. Frustrated.  Simply put no improvement but regression.

This statement is completely wrong...how can users install updates on their own if users don't have local admin rights to do so?

Autodesk: Please look at Adobe Creative Cloud desktop client, it allows users to install updates and even new software from within its desktop client without users having local admin rights!  Why can't you do it?

We DON'T want to lock down standard users from installing updates on their own, we DO want standard users to install updates themselves once the core software is installed, saving huge IT overhead in managing updates deployment!  Frustrated. Frustrated. Frustrated.

[pendean]

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@tatminglee wrote:

This statement is completely wrong...how can users install updates on their own if users don't have local admin rights to do so?

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https://blogs.autodesk.com/technology-manager-community/2023/03/14/introducing-autodesk-access/#:~:t.... 

[tatminglee]

The registry key used is to disable users from installing updates (works if and only if these users have local admin rights) which is pointless when most standard users (don't have local admin rights) already CAN'T install updates anyway!  The registry key is of no use in the case when most standard users have no local admin rights.

We need registry key (if ever exists or some sort) to ENABLE standard users (don't have local admin rights) to install updates themselves. 

[danny.polkinhorn]

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We DON'T want to lock down standard users from installing updates on their own, we DO want standard users to install updates themselves once the core software is installed, saving huge IT overhead in managing updates deployment!  Frustrated. Frustrated. Frustrated.

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In the FAQ:

Is there a way to allow users to install updates even if they don't have admin rights on their devices?

We don't currently allow users to install updates without admin permissions, bypassing any Windows user restrictions.  We may allow that in the future as it is something we hear a lot of feedback about.

[tatminglee]

In the FAQ:

Is there a way to allow users to install updates even if they don't have admin rights on their devices?

We don't currently allow users to install updates without admin permissions, bypassing any Windows user restrictions.  We may allow that in the future as it is something we hear a lot of feedback about.

Hence, Frustration. 

If there is a lot of feedback on this, why not implement it now?...were there more feedback to implement a registry key to disable users from installing updates than that of enabling users to install updates then the former is implemented now?  I doubt it though.

[danny.polkinhorn]

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@jbednarz wrote:

Same here.  Since the app update, almost all of the available updates that were in Desktop App are now gone. Do I have to go to the website and download the updates now? This does not seem better to me. There is no "Check for Updates" option in the taskbar icon any more either. Gotta love Autodesk. I'm sure they have good intentions, but once again the end user is the beta tester. 

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We heard A LOT of feedback that people hated all the Extensions, Plugins, Content, etc were too much to show in ADA and that they only wanted to see updates.  If you didn't have them installed, you would have to ignore them, just to focus on updates.  We'll add these back in a future update in another area, similar to how the Products and Services page in Account separates them.  This is already in the plan.

Autodesk Access checks for updates every day, so no need to "check for updates" on your own.  You're basically asking us to check for something we already should be checking for, so we do.

If you have products, extensions, plugins etc installed on your device, where updates are available, you should see those listed.  If not, please start a new thread with what you expect to see, and collect and attach your logs so we can see why you aren't.   I'm betting you're already up to date, or it hadn't finished its initial check.

[danny.polkinhorn]

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If there is a lot of feedback on this, why not implement it now?

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There are some older product updates which write to user folders or the user's registry.  If we install without the current user's credentials, we would have to use the system user, and it might not install correctly.  We have been working with product teams to avoid doing this for some time, and when it's reliable to do so, we will.

[tatminglee]

There are some older product updates which write to user folders or the user's registry.

ACS now supports up to 2019 version and all customers on subscription can use up to 2020 version only...Older product as in which year version and earlier still writing to user's folder/registry?  

[jbednarz]

There were several updates including Revit 2023.1.1 that were in the list prior to the switch over. Plus updates to several plugins that were installed did not appear. I will follow up in another thread. I do like the idea of separating plugins from updates.

[mdowney]

If people are complaining that they didn't want to see all the Extensions, Plugins, Content, etc., wouldn't it be easier to just allow customers to hide those things that they don't want to see? It couldn't be that hard for a company with Autodesk's resources to allow hiding of categories or even individual updates.

It is very frustrating wading through 30 items that I don't want to install to find the ones that I do, but how are you deciding which ones that you don't want to show me? This is _so_ Autodesk -- deciding to force a one-size-fits-all solution onto customers to force them to work a certain way.

[mdowney]

Since Windows XP was released in 2002, it has never been appropriate to have the installation of a program dependent upon installing as a specific user. If Autodesk is still doing that, that needs to be fixed soon.

[DBreisch]

Just downloaded this to find out all of our updates are not available in the new app. This is brilliant, thanks AutoDESK for the added convenience of what appears to be a completely pointless app.

[danny.polkinhorn]

Thanks for all the feedback, this is really helpful.

@mdowney , I can appreciate that you would like to control the visibility of extensions, plugins, content, and other categories, and it's very likely something we'll add.  The experience we have today in the Product Details page in Account will be similar to what we will do in Access (See AutoCAD or Inventor for example) where there will be separate areas or filters for each category.  Right now, we're focused only on product updates and making that experience better.  These other categories will come later.

Also, agree that we shouldn't be installing in the current user's folders/registry.  Some product teams have some historical reasons that we're trying to eliminate.

@DBreisch  Are you not seeing product updates that you should be?  It takes a couple minutes to get the initial list of updates, so hopefully you're seeing some now.  If not, please let us know what you have installed, and what's missing.

Thanks again!

[mdowney]

Thank you for your reply -- I appreciate that you're following up with concerns.

To be honest, whether or not all the updates show or are grouped, etc., is a much smaller concern than the fact that this update is being forced out to users when it clearly should be just entering beta testing at this point. What is the great benefit to Autodesk to not only releasing this product right now, but also not giving users/admins any control over when it gets installed? It's being pushed out to my users now, each time I install the latest version of Revit or ReCap for a user. And after that point, I can no longer see updates that need to be installed on that computer because Autodesk Desktop App is being automatically removed. Not to mention that Autodesk Access doesn't even show up in installed programs on the computer, so I can't even monitor the computers that have had it installed already.

The easy step (for now) for controlling user access is to just remove Autodesk Access from the Run key in the registry. That allows me to at least stop the additional support calls/emails that this unfinished program would create. Please, please don't let Autodesk take that option away from us!!

Mike

[danny.polkinhorn]

@mdowney , thanks again for your comments, we're listening.  For this release, we were focusing primarily on the replacement of ADA and its ability to install updates, which is what a vast majority of our users use ADA for.  I'll point you to the FAQs for more information, but we hear and understand the feedback on "being forced out to users" and are working on some improvements there to give you more control.

[mdowney]

I guess that's the point, that the minimal functionality would be to display and install updates and that's not happening. When I install new products, it's not showing  available updates. I also know that there are recent licensing updates that are not being shown on those computers that have had ADA switched out for Autodesk Access.

And to be clear, by "forced out to users" I mean that Autodesk is forcing Autodesk Access out to me (the admin) and removing ADA, when AA should clearly just be entering beta testing now and should not be pushed out until the basic functionality has been added. I'm sure there are some out there who would volunteer to be part of that testing. I would prefer to continue to do my job efficiently and leave the testing to others.

Again, I appreciate that you are responding -- just want to make sure I'm clear on what I'm saying.

[DBreisch]

"Are you not seeing product updates that you should be? " How would I know if I am relying on your app to notify me? Before installing I had several updates I was not able to get around to installing. I think these fall into the extension updates referred to earlier in this post. But as an end user this makes little sense why they are no longer easily accessible. Now I have no idea where I am supposed to even look for these updates. I've said it before, the users feel like we are being forced to beta test AutoDESK products, and from what I gather, we are all tired of it.

[lyaneff]

"Are you not seeing product updates that you should be? " .... YES
I have a list of several updates that I too had not had a chance to install yet that show on ADA, but only a single update shows on Access.