The answer = 0! A few seconds, well Ok. But let's say that you cancel because it's taking so damn long (even with a broadband connection). Is it reasonable to wait 10 minutes? Obviously not. As a software developer, I know that the number 1 criteria is user response. I also know that more advanced developers usually allow a thread to be signaled so that it can be timed out, usually with an event. So MS is using IE components to download - that's fine. But spin off a thread that calls the IE components and that can handle the cancellation request. And for those of you who will tell me to use automatic background updates, I don't want to! MS provides the capability to update manually, and it should work properly. My 2 cents. RickB