How to remove Google Software Update from Mac OSX?
The new command is now the following:
sudo /Library/Google/GoogleSoftwareUpdate/GoogleSoftwareUpdate.bundle/Contents/Resources/GoogleSoftwareUpdateAgent.app/Contents/Resources/install.py --nuke
This was an older command:
sudo ~/Library/Google/GoogleSoftwareUpdate/GoogleSoftwareUpdate.bundle/Contents/Resources/GoogleSoftwareUpdateAgent.app/Contents/Resources/ksinstall --uninstall
In the older command above, you may prefer to replace the --uninstall with the --nuke option. The former supposedly leaves some files, while the latter removes them.
Alternatively, Google Software Update might be installed within /Library/, in which case it can be removed with:
sudo /Library/Google/GoogleSoftwareUpdate/GoogleSoftwareUpdate.bundle/Contents/Resources/GoogleSoftwareUpdateAgent.app/Contents/Resources/ksinstall --uninstall
Also try:
sudo /Library/Google/GoogleSoftwareUpdate/GoogleSoftwareUpdate.bundle/Contents/Helpers/ksinstall --uninstall
On their official help page, they only mention disabling the checks:
To disable Google Software Update from checking for updates, execute the following in the Terminal application:
$ defaults write com.google.Keystone.Agent checkInterval 0
Success on a Mac Sept 29, 2017:
The "official" Google-given method given to stop the Google Software Update is this, but it doesn't always work. The updater sometimes, on some systems, finds a way to reset itself and update anyway.
In Terminal: defaults write com.google.Keystone.Agent checkInterval 0
The most foolproof method is to deny Chrome the permissions it needs to install the update software and run it. Empty these directories:
/Library/Google/GoogleSoftwareUpdate/
~/Library/Google/GoogleSoftwareUpdate/
Then change the permissions on both folders named GoogleSoftwareUpdate so that there's no owner and no read/write/execute permissions.
In terminal:
cd /Library/Google/
sudo chown nobody:nogroup GoogleSoftwareUpdate
sudo chmod 000 GoogleSoftwareUpdate
cd ~/Library/Google/
sudo chown nobody:nogroup GoogleSoftwareUpdate
sudo chmod 000 GoogleSoftwareUpdate
If you want to be double-certain, then do the same for the folder Google one level up.
cd /Library/
sudo chown nobody:nogroup Google
sudo chmod 000 Google
cd ~/Library/
sudo chown nobody:nogroup Google
sudo chmod 000 Google
I did this immediately after installing the Chrome version I need for my machine, and it worked perfectly. Now when I check About Google Chrome it gives me the error "Update failed (error: 10)" It's still trying to update, but it can't do it any more.