Q: When I try to update RTG Bills or RTG Timer, I get a message that says, Cannot start RTG Update.

A: RTG Update is the program that installs updates for RTG Bills, RTG Timer, and RTG Conflicts. Here are some reasons it might not start.

Reason 1:

To install an update, you must right-click the program you want to update and choose Run as administrator. Enter your Windows administrator credentials (e.g., username and password). Then you can choose:

File > Update > Yes

from within the program to start RTG Update.

RTG Update changes program files and that requires administrator privileges. When you start RTG Bills (or RTG Timer, or RTG Conflicts) normally, it does not run with administrator privileges, even if your user account says you are an administrator. That is a "feature" of Windows.

The program, then, is running without administrator privileges. When it tries to start RTG Update, which requires administrator privileges, Windows refuses to start it.  It doesn't ask for permission; it just refuses.

The solution is to start the program with Run as administrator, which gives it administrator privileges, and those privileges get passed on to RTG Update.

Reason 2:

If you used Run as administrator and you still get the same message (Cannot start RTG Update), most likely your computer blocked the installation of RTG Update. You may need to temporarily turn off your anti-virus or anti-malware software while you install RTG Update. An installer for the latest version of RTG Update is available here:

https://www.rtgsoftware.com/update.htm

When RTG Update is installed correctly, you will find the file upgrade.exe in the Program Location, which is usually here for RTG Bills and RTG Timer:

C:\Program Files (x86)\Rtgbills

For RTG Conflicts, the filename is the same (upgrade.exe), but the Program Location is usually here:

C:\Program Files (x86)\Rtgconf

Note that the program is named RTG Update but the file is named upgrade.exe.

Reason 3:

If you have used Run as administrator to start RTG Bills (or Timer, or Conflicts), and you have checked that upgrade.exe does exist (and is not zero length), yet it still won't start, probably your anti-virus or anti-malware software is preventing it from executing. Such software normally has a way for you to tell it that certain files are safe to execute. You need to tell it that upgrade.exe is safe.