Saved me tons of time again this year: Garmin Map Update HOWTO
Or so I thought… it’s never this easy, is it? “There was an error installing the Update”. Well, that’s bloody useful, isn’t it, Garmin? Have I mentioned before that your software SUCKS???
Luckily I’m an experienced hand with their shite, and creating a hard link on C: drive (where they INSIST on creating a temporary area to download their 5GB onto) to my D: drive (where I actually have room for it, and where I TOLD it to install the maps to) fixed this.
Specifically, it abuses C:\ProgramData\Garmin\CoreService\Downloads as a temporary download location.
To create a hard-link, also called a “Junction”, in Windows:
mklink /J Downloads D:\Garmin\Downloads
This still requires you to have at least 6GiB free space on C: drive, as the Garmin software still checks free space requirements even after you have already downloaded the maps prior to installing on your GPS device.
I repeat, Garmin SUCKS when it comes to software.
Hi
Lisa Green is here. I saw your article. Garmin cause issue sometimes when updating it. Different Garmin devices has its way to update it. If you have any issue while updating contact us.
Our customer support helpline is 1866-218-1141 (tollfree). We are 24*7 hours available.
Hi Lisa,
Thank you so much for replying. Unfortunately it’s just the way it is, very poorly written (IMHO) software. And when I first wrote that blog post I was a little.. irate.
I’m sure the updates are user-friendly enough for casual users with modern devices and modern PCs, but for power users, those of us that want to do things slightly differently, or those of us still using older products and PCs, it’s very very inflexible.
For example, I have a way of getting most of the European maps that I need onto my Garmin Zumo 660, but it’s impossible via the supplied software since the maps are split into multiple regions. I usually travel between the UK and western Europe, but those areas are in separate regions and hence can’t be installed simultaneously on my device (not enough memory) using the standard Garmin software.
That also looks like a US number to me… not all of your customers live in the US 😉 but I’m sure that will be useful for some.
Cheers,
– Micha.