HARRISBURG -- An advisory group has recommended delaying next week's upgrade of the Pennsylvania Instant Check System so the four-day computer system shutdown won't interfere with sportsmen's ability to buy guns at the start of dove hunting season.

The upgrade, which was scheduled to begin Sunday, can be done later in September, in late December or in early January, recommended the committee comprising hunters, gun dealers and lawmakers, said Col. Jeffrey B. Miller, the state police commissioner.

The delay would better accommodate buying patterns of gun purchasers, whose names must be put through the Instant Check system's database of criminal and mental health records to determine eligibility to own firearms.

It isn't clear, though, whether the schedule change would cause problems for others that use the Instant Check system, including the Administrative Office of Pennsylvania Courts, Pennsylvania Justice Network, state Department of Corrections, and U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.

"If we pick a certain date that's great for sportsmen, [we have to consider] the effect on other players who use the system," Col. Miller told reporters in Harrisburg yesterday after the monthly luncheon of the Pennsylvania Press Club, where he was the guest speaker.

State Sen. Wayne Fontana, D-Brookline, who served on the ad hoc committee, also pointed out that gun dealers aren't the only ones who use the system for criminal history checks.

"It is also used to identify sexual predators, track felons, qualify foster parents, and help schools and numerous organizations screen employees and volunteers," said Mr. Fontana, chairman of the Senate Game and Fisheries Committee. "It serves none of us to allow this critical law-enforcement tool to crash and fail."

Col. Miller said his office will survey agencies that use the system and he will report back to the governor, who will decide when the computer work should be done.

"We will do whatever the governor would like us to do," he said.

He said the work would be done as fast as possible and might take less than the four days estimated. Originally, the shutdown was to begin at 6 p.m. Sunday and continue through noon Sept. 6.

"The main key here is not speed; it's accuracy," he said.

The upgrade involves moving 47 million records from one database to another. The change will expand the system's capacity and improve efficiency, Col. Miller said.

Instant Check is 26 years old and in need of an upgrade, even if the process temporarily inconveniences some who rely on the system, he said.

"I look at it like there's never a good time to install new counter tops in your kitchen, but you'll always need somewhere to make your breakfast," he said.