Can any type of cleanup be done after installing Windows XP SP3?

[Richard A. Landkamer]

I installed Windows XP Service Pack 3 (SP3) back on May 10, 2008. I was hoping that this installation process would automatically remove all of the "C:\WINDOWS\$NtUninstallKB------$" and a few other Uninstall Folders that were applied during the life of the previous Windows XP Service Pack 2 (SP2), and which have now become obsolete with Windows XP Service Pack 3 (SP3). Unfortunately, this did not happen. I vaguely recall that when I installed Windows XP Service Pack 2 (SP2) back in August, 2004, all of the then previous Uninstall Folders were automatically deleted.

As an extreme example, I did a search for urlmon.dll, which has been frequently updated with Microsoft security fixes during the last four years. I came up with a total of 36 copies of urlmon.dll on my computer, most of which are in the above type of "C:\WINDOWS\$NtUninstallKB------$" and a few other Uninstall Folders. In addition, I found both urlmon(3).dll and urlmon(4).dll (with the same size and version number) in C:\WINDOWS\System32.

In fact, it appears that a very large number of DLLs in C:\WINDOWS\System32 now have two duplicate copies of the previous version of each DLL that was replaced with a new DLL by Windows XP Service Pack 3 (SP3). Most of these previous version DLLs have the numbers (3) and (4) after them. However, some of these previous version DLLS have the numbers (2) and (3) after them like usbmon(2).dll and usbmon(3).dll.

I believe that some substantial cleanup is needed after installing Windows XP Service Pack 3 (SP3). Is there any automatic cleanup utility that I can run? If not, then can anyone inform me what I can safely delete from all of this mess that has resulted in multiple copies of most DLLs? Can I safely delete all DLLs with numbers after them like the above examples in C:\WINDOWS\System32? I will greatly appreciate any assistance or other information in this matter.

Richard A. Landkamer

 

[Terry R.]

The date and time was 6/30/2008 8:11 PM, and on a whim, Richard A.
Landkamer pounded out on the keyboard:

I installed Windows XP Service Pack 3 (SP3) back on May 10, 2008. I was
hoping that this installation process would automatically remove all of
the "C:\WINDOWS\$NtUninstallKB------$" and a few other Uninstall Folders
that were applied during the life of the previous Windows XP Service
Pack 2 (SP2), and which have now become obsolete with Windows XP Service
Pack 3 (SP3). Unfortunately, this did not happen. I vaguely recall
that when I installed Windows XP Service Pack 2 (SP2) back in August,
2004, all of the then previous Uninstall Folders were automatically deleted.

As an extreme example, I did a search for urlmon.dll, which has been
frequently updated with Microsoft security fixes during the last four
years. I came up with a total of 36 copies of urlmon.dll on my
computer, most of which are in the above type of
"C:\WINDOWS\$NtUninstallKB------$" and a few other Uninstall Folders.
In addition, I found both urlmon(3).dll and urlmon(4).dll (with the
same size and version number) in C:\WINDOWS\System32.

In fact, it appears that a very large number of DLLs in
C:\WINDOWS\System32 now have two duplicate copies of the previous
version of each DLL that was replaced with a new DLL by Windows XP
Service Pack 3 (SP3). Most of these previous version DLLs have the
numbers (3) and (4) after them. However, some of these previous version
DLLS have the numbers (2) and (3) after them like usbmon(2).dll and
usbmon(3).dll.

I believe that some substantial cleanup is needed after installing
Windows XP Service Pack 3 (SP3). Is there any automatic cleanup utility
that I can run? If not, then can anyone inform me what I can safely
delete from all of this mess that has resulted in multiple copies
of most DLLs? Can I safely delete all DLLs with numbers after them like
the above examples in C:\WINDOWS\System32? I will greatly appreciate
any assistance or other information in this matter.

Richard A. Landkamer

Hi Richard,

Most of the time the SP3 update does NOT create the duplicate copies you
have experienced. I have communicated with a few in this group that had
the same thing happen, but it is not normal.

If the dates of the new files are newer than the (2) (3) etc copies,
then I would remove the duplicate copies. I don't know of any
"automatic cleanup utility" since this isn't common with the update.
You could use the command "del *(?).*" (without the quotes) to remove
them from a command prompt.

If you need anything further, report back.

--
Terry R.

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[Richard A. Landkamer]

Terry:

I've manually moved all these previous version DLLs with numbers after
them to another temporary folder in case they are needed. Incidentally,
not all of these were DLLs. There were a few TSP Files and one IME
File. Eventually, I intend to delete all of these files.

While going through the C:\WINDOWS\System32 Folder, I discovered
a huge number of unique TMP Files, which I think are supposed to be
temporary files. I call these files unique because they all begin with SET...,
followed by 3 or 4 alphanumeric characters, and then end with .tmp. With
only two exceptions, these SET... TMP Files all have a Modified Date of
4/14/2008. Except for these two TMP Files with a Modified Date of
10/18/2006, I believe that all of these other SET... TMP Files are left over
residue from the installation of Windows XP Service Pack 3 (SP3). Can
these SET... TMP Files be deleted? If not, then what are all these SET...
TMP Files used for? I would like to do the same thing with all of these
TMP... Files that I did with the above referred to previous version DLLs
with numbers after them, and then eventually delete them. Is it OK to do
this?

Richard A. Landkamer

 

[Terry R.]

The date and time was 7/1/2008 1:31 AM, and on a whim, Richard A.
Landkamer pounded out on the keyboard:

Terry:

I've manually moved all these previous version DLLs with numbers after
them to another temporary folder in case they are needed. Incidentally,
not all of these were DLLs. There were a few TSP Files and one IME
File. Eventually, I intend to delete all of these files.

While going through the C:\WINDOWS\System32 Folder, I discovered
a huge number of unique TMP Files, which I think are supposed to be
temporary files. I call these files unique because they all begin with SET...,
followed by 3 or 4 alphanumeric characters, and then end with .tmp. With
only two exceptions, these SET... TMP Files all have a Modified Date of
4/14/2008. Except for these two TMP Files with a Modified Date of
10/18/2006, I believe that all of these other SET... TMP Files are left over
residue from the installation of Windows XP Service Pack 3 (SP3). Can
these SET... TMP Files be deleted? If not, then what are all these SET...
TMP Files used for? I would like to do the same thing with all of these
TMP... Files that I did with the above referred to previous version DLLs
with numbers after them, and then eventually delete them. Is it OK to do
this?

Richard A. Landkamer

Hi Richard,

For some reason, some SP3 updates appear to not be doing the cleanup
completely. Yours is one of those. Like you have done with the other
files, I would move the SET & TMP files to a temp folder for a few days
to see if there are any negative reactions, but I doubt it. Then remove
them when you find everything is working properly.

--
Terry R.

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[Richard A. Landkamer]

Terry:

Do you know if any or all of those people, who ended up with the same
kind of cleanup problems that I encountered, had to make more than one
attempt to install Windows XP Service Pack 3 (SP3)? In my case, I got
an "Access is denied" error on my first installation attempt. I ultimately
resolved this problem by running the script in "Method 3: Reset the registry
and the file permissions", as documented in Microsoft Article ID 949377.
I am wondering if my having to go through extra steps to install Windows
XP SP3 may have caused some of these cleanup problems.

Also, one of the questions in my original e-mail that you have not responded
to is the following:

"I installed Windows XP Service Pack 3 (SP3) back on May 10, 2008.
I was hoping that this installation process would automatically remove all
of the "C:\WINDOWS\$NtUninstallKB------$" and a few other Uninstall
Folders that were applied during the life of the previous Windows XP
Service Pack 2 (SP2), and which have now become obsolete with
Windows XP Service Pack 3 (SP3). Unfortunately, this did not happen.
I vaguely recall that when I installed Windows XP Service Pack 2 (SP2)
back in August, 2004, all of the then previous Uninstall Folders were
automatically deleted.

"As an extreme example, I did a search for urlmon.dll, which has been
frequently updated with Microsoft security fixes during the last four years.
I came up with a total of 36 copies of urlmon.dll on my computer, most of
which are in the above type of "C:\WINDOWS\$NtUninstallKB------$"
and a few other Uninstall Folders..."

What has happened to all of the "C:\WINDOWS\$NtUninstallKB------$"
Uninstall type Folders, which were applied during the life of the previous
Windows XP Service Pack 2 (SP2), to others who have experienced a
normal installation of Windows XP Service Pack 3 (SP3)? Were these
types of Uninstall Folders automatically deleted, or not?

I still think that having 36 copies of the urlmon.dll are about 30 copies too
many.

Richard A. Landkamer

 

[Terry R.]

The date and time was 7/1/2008 11:37 AM, and on a whim, Richard A.
Landkamer pounded out on the keyboard:

Terry:

Do you know if any or all of those people, who ended up with the same
kind of cleanup problems that I encountered, had to make more than one
attempt to install Windows XP Service Pack 3 (SP3)? In my case, I got
an "Access is denied" error on my first installation attempt. I ultimately
resolved this problem by running the script in "Method 3: Reset the registry
and the file permissions", as documented in Microsoft Article ID 949377.
I am wondering if my having to go through extra steps to install Windows
XP SP3 may have caused some of these cleanup problems.

Also, one of the questions in my original e-mail that you have not responded
to is the following:

"I installed Windows XP Service Pack 3 (SP3) back on May 10, 2008.
I was hoping that this installation process would automatically remove all
of the "C:\WINDOWS\$NtUninstallKB------$" and a few other Uninstall
Folders that were applied during the life of the previous Windows XP
Service Pack 2 (SP2), and which have now become obsolete with
Windows XP Service Pack 3 (SP3). Unfortunately, this did not happen.
I vaguely recall that when I installed Windows XP Service Pack 2 (SP2)
back in August, 2004, all of the then previous Uninstall Folders were
automatically deleted.

"As an extreme example, I did a search for urlmon.dll, which has been
frequently updated with Microsoft security fixes during the last four years.
I came up with a total of 36 copies of urlmon.dll on my computer, most of
which are in the above type of "C:\WINDOWS\$NtUninstallKB------$"
and a few other Uninstall Folders..."

What has happened to all of the "C:\WINDOWS\$NtUninstallKB------$"
Uninstall type Folders, which were applied during the life of the previous
Windows XP Service Pack 2 (SP2), to others who have experienced a
normal installation of Windows XP Service Pack 3 (SP3)? Were these
types of Uninstall Folders automatically deleted, or not?

I still think that having 36 copies of the urlmon.dll are about 30 copies too
many.

Richard A. Landkamer

From what I remember, they mentioned having to run it a couple times
because of errors. That's why the additional files are there.

Others have reported here that the old updates were not removed. I
remove mine after a few months so I don't have any old ones any more
(remove the folder first (one at a time) then use Add/Remove Programs to
remove the reference to it. When you click on Remove, you'll be prompted
it doesn't exist any more and ask if you want to remove it from A/R).
There are many sites and forums regarding removing them if you don't
want them.

--
Terry R.

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[Richard A. Landkamer]

Terry:

This gets ever more curious... When I looked in "Add or Remove
Programs", it appears that the installation of Windows XP Service Pack 3
(SP3) did remove all Security Updates for Windows XP from the "Add
or Remove Programs" Control Panel that were installed prior to Windows
XP (SP3). But the installation of Windows XP (SP3) did not remove the
corresponding Uninstall Folders for these Security Updates for Windows
XP from my hard drive. All four of the Security Updates for Windows
XP that are now in my "Add or Remove Programs" Control Panel have
installation dates that are after I installed Windows XP (SP3).

Also, I found additional SET... TMP Files that were left over from the
installation of Windows XP (SP3) in the following Folders:

C:\Program Files\Common Files\System\ado
C:\Program Files\Common Files\System\ole db
C:\Windows -- Only 1 file named SET560.tmp here.
C:\Windows\AppPatch
C:\Windows\FONTS - Most of these TMP files may not be from
Windows XP (SP3), since they have 2007 dates.
C:\WINDOWS\PCHEALTH\HELPCTR\Binaries - Only 1 TMP file here.
C:\Windows\System32\Setup
C:\Windows\System32\wbem

Most of the SET... TMP Files that were left over from the installation
of Windows XP (SP3) are in the C:\WINDOWS\System32 Folder.
I found the remaining SET... TMP Files in the above named Folders
by doing a global search for "SET*.tmp".

What a mess.

Richard A. Landkamer

 

[Terry R.]

The date and time was 7/2/2008 12:01 AM, and on a whim, Richard A.
Landkamer pounded out on the keyboard:

Terry:

This gets ever more curious... When I looked in "Add or Remove
Programs", it appears that the installation of Windows XP Service Pack 3
(SP3) did remove all Security Updates for Windows XP from the "Add
or Remove Programs" Control Panel that were installed prior to Windows
XP (SP3). But the installation of Windows XP (SP3) did not remove the
corresponding Uninstall Folders for these Security Updates for Windows
XP from my hard drive. All four of the Security Updates for Windows
XP that are now in my "Add or Remove Programs" Control Panel have
installation dates that are after I installed Windows XP (SP3).

Also, I found additional SET... TMP Files that were left over from the
installation of Windows XP (SP3) in the following Folders:

C:\Program Files\Common Files\System\ado
C:\Program Files\Common Files\System\ole db
C:\Windows -- Only 1 file named SET560.tmp here.
C:\Windows\AppPatch
C:\Windows\FONTS - Most of these TMP files may not be from
Windows XP (SP3), since they have 2007 dates.
C:\WINDOWS\PCHEALTH\HELPCTR\Binaries - Only 1 TMP file here.
C:\Windows\System32\Setup
C:\Windows\System32\wbem

Most of the SET... TMP Files that were left over from the installation
of Windows XP (SP3) are in the C:\WINDOWS\System32 Folder.
I found the remaining SET... TMP Files in the above named Folders
by doing a global search for "SET*.tmp".

What a mess.

Richard A. Landkamer

Hi Richard,

It's unfortunate a successful install of SP3 doesn't remove everything
that you've had to do manually. But it sounds like you've now got it
under control. Just think how many people this happened to and they
never check their file system or even understand what happened.

If the entries in A/R have been removed, and you don't see yourself
uninstalling any of the old updates, I would zip all the pre-sp3 folders
together and remove the originals. If after a time you feel the zip
file isn't needed, delete that too. Note, I believe besides the folders
listed in \windows, there are also copies in the folder $hf_mig$. I
went through and zipped the old ones and removed the copies from there also.


--
Terry R.

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[Richard A. Landkamer]

Terry:

Your reference to these fixes also being in the $hf_mig$ Folder has
started me down another research path. I have discovered that in
general, one should not delete individual fixes from the $hf_mig$
Folder. However, I have also discovered that many of the fixes in
my $hf_mig$ Folder have indeed been superseded by the cumulative
Windows XP Service Pack 3 (SP3), which I installed back in May.
A list of all fixes that are included in Windows XP Service Pack 3
(SP3) is available at http://support.microsoft.com/kb/946480.
Hence, it is possible to determine if each Fix remaining in the $hf_mig$
Folder has been superseded by Windows XP Service Pack 3 (SP3).

What I cannot find a specific answer to in my research is whether fixes
in the $hf_mig$ Folder are ever used for anything after they have been
superseded by any cumulative Windows XP Service Pack.

Therefore, can I delete every fix in the $hf_mig$ Folder that is also
included in Windows XP Service Pack 3 (SP3)? I have not been
able to find an answer to this specific issue. Instead, I find only vague
general responses in my research like "Do NOT delete '$hf_mig$'".

Richard A. Landkamer

 

[Terry R.]

The date and time was 7/3/2008 10:43 PM, and on a whim, Richard A.
Landkamer pounded out on the keyboard:

Terry:

Your reference to these fixes also being in the $hf_mig$ Folder has
started me down another research path. I have discovered that in
general, one should not delete individual fixes from the $hf_mig$
Folder. However, I have also discovered that many of the fixes in
my $hf_mig$ Folder have indeed been superseded by the cumulative
Windows XP Service Pack 3 (SP3), which I installed back in May.
A list of all fixes that are included in Windows XP Service Pack 3
(SP3) is available at http://support.microsoft.com/kb/946480.
Hence, it is possible to determine if each Fix remaining in the $hf_mig$
Folder has been superseded by Windows XP Service Pack 3 (SP3).

What I cannot find a specific answer to in my research is whether fixes
in the $hf_mig$ Folder are ever used for anything after they have been
superseded by any cumulative Windows XP Service Pack.

Therefore, can I delete every fix in the $hf_mig$ Folder that is also
included in Windows XP Service Pack 3 (SP3)? I have not been
able to find an answer to this specific issue. Instead, I find only vague
general responses in my research like "Do NOT delete '$hf_mig$'".

Richard A. Landkamer

Hi Richard,

I too have found both, "don't delete" and "okay to delete". I removed
mine and am not worried. But I also keep rotating backups of partitions
on this particular workstation.

It all comes down to hard drive space I think. If you have enough, be
on the safe side and don't worry about them. Thing is, a reinstall now
would have you apply SP3 anyway, so all the old patches are pretty
useless I believe.

--
Terry R.

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