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How to turn automatic updates on or off in WindowLayout

Updating a utility you rarely open is easy to forget, and an update that restarts a program in the middle of your work is annoying. WindowLayout can check for new versions on its own, and it has an optional setting that also installs them. It is off until you switch it on, and it waits for a quiet moment instead of interrupting you. This guide shows where the setting is, what it waits for, how to cancel an update that is about to start, how to skip a version and how to go back to updating by hand. Everything described here is a normal setting in the Windows app.

Updated 5 steps

  1. Open the update settings

    Open WindowLayout and choose Settings in the sidebar. In the card called Updates & error reports you will find two switches about updates. Check for updates automatically is on by default: at most once a day it downloads one small public file, latest.json, from dl.windowlayout.com and sends no identifier. Install updates automatically sits below it and is off by default. It needs the first switch, so it is greyed out while that one is off, and it is not available in the portable edition, which cannot install itself. Turn it on to opt in.

  2. Know when an update is installed

    With the switch on, a new version is downloaded in the background and checked before anything else happens: the checksum published on windowlayout.com, the digital signature of PROJECTTEAMFORYOU and the version inside the installer must all match, otherwise the file is thrown away. A verified installer then waits until you are away, meaning no keyboard or mouse use for 10 minutes. It also waits while a full-screen app, a game or a presentation is running, while Windows Focus assist is on, and while WindowLayout itself is restoring windows or waiting for you to confirm a display change. The Settings page shows the current state and the reason for any wait.

  3. Cancel or postpone the update

    Right before installing, a small notice appears in the lower right corner of your main screen. It says which version is coming and counts down 30 seconds. Choose Cancel if you do not want this version installed automatically; it will not be started again, but you can still install it yourself. Choose Later and WindowLayout asks again after a day. If you touch the keyboard or mouse, or a full-screen app starts, the notice disappears and the update waits for the next quiet moment. If nothing happens, your settings are backed up, the installer runs, WindowLayout restarts and tells you it was updated.

  4. Skip a version or look for problems

    To pass on one particular release, click Skip this version on the update notice. The version is listed under Skipped version in Settings, and Stop skipping brings it back. WindowLayout makes one download try per day and gives up on a version after three failed tries, so a broken release cannot loop. Failures are written to the log and shown on the Diagnostics page, in the Automatic update installation card, with the reason, for example a checksum that does not match. Your settings are backed up automatically before every install, so you can roll back from the Backup & restore page.

  5. Turn it off or update by hand

    Switch Install updates automatically off at any time, and an installer that was already downloaded is deleted. You can still update by hand: open Settings, scroll to the About card and click Check for updates, then choose Update now. WindowLayout runs the same checks and the same installer. Leaving only the first switch on is a good middle path: you hear about new versions, but you decide when to install them.

Frequently asked questions

Does automatic installation send any information about me?

No. It adds no new request. The only traffic is the same small latest.json check as before and the installer download from dl.windowlayout.com, both without an account, identifier or usage data. As with any web request, the server sees your IP address in order to deliver the file. The AI assistant has no access to the update feature.

What if my PC is never idle or an update keeps failing?

Then nothing is installed and nothing interrupts you. A ready update simply keeps waiting for a quiet moment, and after three failed tries for the same version WindowLayout stops trying on its own. You can always click Check for updates in Settings and install by hand, and the Diagnostics page tells you why the automatic attempt did not work.

Can an automatic update install an older or unsigned version?

No. The installer must come from the fixed download address, match the published checksum, carry the PROJECTTEAMFORYOU signature and be newer than the version you run. An older signed installer republished under a higher number is rejected too, because its own version has to match.

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