Origin Spotlight - Silent Background Updater [ Edited ]

[Straatford87]

---

UPDATE: We've answered your remaining questions.

---

Hello everyone,

As recently announced, today we are ready to share our first sneak peek into the future of Origin with you! In this post, we will be taking a look at at our upcoming feature: The Silent Background Updater.

What is the Silent Background Updater?

We have received feedback from you that the Origin client updates too often, and that this process can be disruptive of your playtime. We realize that your time is valuable, and that frequent Origin updates can keep you from playing when you want to. We also understand that it is important that you can jump directly into your favorite games whenever you launch Origin.

To help you dive straight into the action, we've added a function that enables Origin to download and apply its updates when your system is idle. This means that Origin can now perform these tasks when you are not actively using your system.

Ready to play your favorite games? Origin is now ready when you are.

How does the Silent Background Updater work?

Previously, Origin had the option to download and update while you were playing. This however wasn't helpful to those of you who didn't play often or long enough to have this process completed during playtime.

To smooth the update process for everyone, we have set the preference for Origin to perform this task when your system is idle. 

How do I enable the Silent Background Updater?

To make use of the Silent Background Updater, you need to enable the following two options in the Origin client, both of which can be enabled via Application Settings in the Origin menu:

• Automatically update Origin
  • Used to give permission to Origin to perform automatic updates.
• Origin Helper Service
  • Used by Origin for low priority tasks, including checking if your system is idle.
    

The Silent Background Updater is currently scheduled for release in late April. Once released, you will be able to utilize it during the next available Origin update. If you would like to try out the Silent Background Updater during early April, then be sure to turn on the Participate in Origin client betas option. 

This update is just one step in the process of making sure that Origin can provide you with a continuously great gaming experience. We would like to once again thank all of you for your continued feedback, as that drives us to create an amazing gaming environment for you, our players.

We are happy to answer any remaining questions that you might have. And lastly, we would love to hear your thoughts on this update!

Thank you,

[kmetek]

when origin works at all.

[Straatford87]

@kmetek

If Origin doesn't work for you, then we would love to help out!

My first recommendation would be to check out the Origin Support forum that houses several stickies with useful information:

http://answers.ea.com/t5/Origin/bd-p/O-2

If you didn't find what you were looking for, then feel free to create a new thread where we can help you out.

[The_Argentinean]

I don't need another process running in the background from a program I'm not using at the moment, thank you very much.

I like the Firefox/Steam way of donwloading and update in the background and install it the next time you launch the program.

[s3bsta]

That's all good but Origin has more pressing issues, namely the overlay. It has major issues with other overlays on PC where it often then doesn't work at all. And if it's not that it oftens sends one back to the Desktop midgame. It often happened in BF4 and still is in the last game I played Titanfall 2. The achievement notification sent me back to the desktop in the middle of gameplay. It's probably only once per session but that is far more aggravating than Origin updates.

No other clients have this problem. Fix the overlay so it plays nice with other overlay clients especially Steam (you provide the ability to add non Origin games so ensuring it works both ways is only fair if you won't sell ya games on Steam).

[Game_Dev_Carto]

Not for nothing but the thread on us asking for the ability to throttle downloads has been around and active for THREE years.

http://answers.ea.com/t5/Technical-Issues/How-do-I-set-maximum-download-speed-in-origin/td-p/1444230

I know your engineers may want to work on some other *, rather than be dictated about what they should do, but give us the * we want, not some other process that runs in the background. All we wanted was the ability to throttle a download, and for some reason, 3 years later, we still don't have it. WTF are you guys doing?

[EA_Alex]

Thanks for your feedback, @The_Argentinean.

> I don't need another process running in the background from a program I'm not using at the moment, thank you very much.

Sure, we knew some users would feel this way, which is why the feature was made optional.  You can disable the background update feature off by unchecking "Origin Helper Service" in your application settings.

> I like the Firefox/Steam way of donwloading and update in the background and install it the next time you launch the program.

Origin already does that.  If you have the "Automatically update Origin" application setting checked and a new updated is released while Origin is running, Origin will background download the update and apply it the next time you restart Origin.

[Straatford87]

Hello everyone,

Below you can find the answers to the additional questions that you've asked us on Facebook, Twitter and these forums during our announcement of this feature.

How does this feature positively impact me?
This update is aimed at improving the user experience with Origin. We don’t want Origin to be an obstacle for you when you are ready to play your games. By adding the Silent Background Updater function, Origin will be ready to go when you are.

Can I turn this function off, or choose how to update Origin?
Yes—if you turn off the Origin Helper Service via Origin -> Application Settings, then Origin will no longer update in the background. Instead, Origin will update when you next launch the client.

By also turning off the Automatically update Origin option, the client will no longer automatically update when you launch Origin. However, Origin updates that are mandatory will still prompt you to download them before you can continue—the only difference with also turning off the auto-update option is that Origin won’t automatically accept these updates for you.

My bandwidth is limited; will this update affect my connection?

The Origin Helper Service merely pings the Origin server to see if an update is available for download. The bandwidth needed for this process is extremely minimal.

If your bandwidth is limited and you think that downloading an Origin update could negatively impact your connection, then we advise to turn off the Origin Helper Service. Instead of updating in the background, Origin will then update when you next start the client.

Will this background process affect my system performance?
No—if an Origin update isn't available, then this process won’t do anything. It also doesn’t monitor what is available or running on your system. Instead, it monitors what’s available on our Origin servers.

If there are any further questions regarding this update, then don't hesitate to reach out to us.

Thank you,

[SimsGirl1008]

Is this available yet? 

[Straatford87]

@SimsGirl1008

Yes, this has since been released. Let me know if you've got any further questions about the Silent Background Updater. 

In the meantime, you can beta test our new Origin - Party Invites update, which is scheduled for a full release in May.