cfagent not copying files from update.conf

[internetdetritus]

I'm just getting off the ground here with cfengine, so if I've missed a
FAQ please point me in the right direction.  I've been reading docs all
afternoon and I'm not understanding this aspect of cfengine.

I am testing my configuration, particularly update.conf.  When I run
cfagent from the command line, it does not update my inputs directory
unless I specify "-f update.conf" on the command line.   The rest of my
input files seem to be executed just fine.  I am using the basic
update.conf from the documentation page, with only hostnames and paths
changed.

Is this normal, or am I missing something here?  I thought that a
normal run of cfagent was supposed to read and execute update.conf
every time, so why aren't my input files being updated?