don said:
Situation; computer crashes and you need to reinstall XP Home OEM.
Your restore disk does up SP1. You want SP2 because SP3 won't let
your computer function fully( you had to roll back SP3 because it
stopped your openGL from working).
If you don't have SP2 installed and try to go back from SP3, what
happens?
What?
Your scenario makes no sense.
You restored/cleanly installed Windows XP SP1.
How are you going to 'roll back' from SP3 if you haven't even installed
SP3?
You know you can install whatever Service Pack you desire - right?
As for the problem you had with SP3 - sounds like you had other issues you
needed to address with your machine. Perhaps a later chipset driver,
later
video card driver, later audio driver, etc... I could be wrong - but you
could install SP2.. then install SP3 and then install the latest hardware
drivers from the manufacturer's of each of your computer's hardware
components web page (support/drivers section.) Then you have a fully
updated machine and you could test your needs with it and if it fails -
uninstall SP3 and go back to SP2 ... *for now*...
You asked? "You know you can install whatever Service Pack you
desire - right?" No, I don't know that. How would one do say SP2
through the MS Update site. I was hoping someone could give me an
idea how one would do that. I have been advised to get SP2 from a
third party site but don't want to take the chance of being given
a defective patch or worse, a malware infested patch. I just want
to know how to get SP2 safely. How do I get it from MS? Based on
this statement from MS update site "Windows XP Service Pack 3
(KB936929) Windows XP Service Pack 3 (SP3) is an update to Windows
XP that addresses key feedback from our customers and is a
cumulative update that includes all previously released updates
for Windows XP, including security updates. " the only SP that
will be available will be SP3. Does this mean you can install SP3
and then rollback to SP2?
(Teach whomever advised you to get SP2 from a third party site the following
and then ignore any further advice they give you about windows computing...
*grin*)
This could all be resolved with a little search... No better time to learn
than now - as you won't learn any younger how to...
Search using Google!
http://www.google.com/
(How-to:
http://www.google.com/intl/en/help/basics.html )
Example:
how do I download Windows XP SP2
http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=how+do+I+download+Windows+XP+SP2
First hit:
Windows XP Service Pack 2 Network Installation Package for IT Professionals
and Developers
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/...BE-3B8E-4F30-8245-9E368D3CDB5A&displaylang=en
(Ignore the spiel about, "If you're updating just one computer, please visit
Windows Update", as that is just to make sure you know what you are doing.
You do in this case - you are getting SP2 so you can install it on your
computer.)
Each Windows XP Service Pack includes all updates released before it -
including the prior service packs. What this means is that you could
install your WIndows XP SP1 from CD and then install SP3 on top of it and
you would have - in essence - All updates released since Windows XP was
released up until/including SP3.
However, you could not 'roll-back' to SP2 from SP3 unless you had previously
installed SP2. SP3 does include SP2 and all the patches released between it
and SP3's release date - but if you uninstall SP3 - you go back to the state
you were in *right before* installing SP3.
However - if you install Windows XP SP1 (and ensure the firewall is turned
on before ever allowing it to connect to the Internet, heck, before even
allowing it to SENSE the Internet is near...) and then you download the SP2
from the link above and save it to your desktop and then run it and allow it
to install - you will have a Windows XP SP2 machine and use
http://windowsupdate.microsoft.com/ (for a time anyway) to get patches for
Windows XP SP2.
If you installed SP3 on top of it - you could (as long as you keep the
uninstall files) roll back to SP2 at any point in time and use
http://windowsupdate.microsoft.com/ (for a time anyway) to get patches for
Windows XP SP2. Sooner or later - Microsoft will stop releasing patches
that work unless your machine is SP3 or above.
You can download SP3 in the same manner you did SP2...
Example:
how do I download Windows XP SP3
http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=how+do+I+download+Windows+XP+SP3
Where the first hit is...
Windows XP Service Pack 3 Network Installation Package for IT Professionals
and Developers
http://www.microsoft.com/downloadS/...A8-5E76-401F-BE08-1E1555D4F3D4&displaylang=en
(Ignore the spiel about, "If you're updating just one computer, please visit
Windows Update", as that is just to make sure you know what you are doing.
You do in this case - you are getting SP3 so you can install it on your
computer.)
Then you have the full install file for SP3 on your desktop as well -
waiting for you to run it and install SP3. Sure - you will still likely
have 20+ updates to install after that - but in two rather large downloads -
you have all the updates since your CD was stamped (other than those 20-25
or so...)
How many updates do each Service Pack contain (not including the fact they
contain the previous service packs and all the updates they contained?)
Example:
What updates are included in SP2 for Windows XP
http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=What+updates+are+included+in+SP2+for+Windows+XP
First hit:
List of fixes included in Windows XP Service Pack 2
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/811113
(the 820+ updates released between SP1a and SP2...)
Example:
What updates are included in SP3 for Windows XP
http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=What+updates+are+included+in+SP3+for+Windows+XP
First hit:
List of fixes that are included in Windows XP Service Pack 3
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/946480
(the 1170+ updates released between SP2 and SP3...)
Hopefully you are getting the hang of Google by now. Use your own wording
and be precise about what you are looking for. Change your wording as you
start learning the official terms for things during your 'missed' searches.
Anyway - I really think you should fix your issue with SP3 while you can.
The free installation support for it ends in April 2009. While that is a
pretty good chunk of time away - it'll pass by quickly and you'll be sitting
there in May 2009 realizing that in order to get any further updates from MS
for your computer - you need SP3 and the free installation support for SP3
is gone. Do it early and get it over with.
A place to get FREE support for SP3 installation issues *from Microsoft*...
http://support.microsoft.com/oas/default.aspx?ln=en-us&prid=11273&gprid=522131
Windows XP Service Pack 3 - ISO-9660 CD Image File
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/...ce-b5fb-4488-8c50-fe22559d164e&DisplayLang=en
Windows XP Service Pack 3 Network Installation Package for IT Professionals
and Developers
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/...A8-5E76-401F-BE08-1E1555D4F3D4&displaylang=en
WinXP SP3 - Read all prerequisites for a successful installation
http://msmvps.com/blogs/harrywaldro...requisites-for-a-successful-installation.aspx
Steps to take before you install Windows XP Service Pack 3
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/950717
Release Notes for Windows XP Service Pack 3
http://download.microsoft.com/download/c/d/8/cd8cc719-7d5a-40d3-a802-e4057aa8c631/relnotes.htm
Key things to note:
Internet Explorer:
"If you have installed Windows Internet Explorer® 7 or a beta version of
Internet Explorer 8, and then install Windows XP SP3, you cannot uninstall
Internet Explorer. To avoid this, ensure Internet Explorer 7 or a beta
version of Internet Explorer 8 is not installed before installing Windows XP
SP3. If you have already encountered this issue, uninstall Windows XP SP3,
uninstall Internet Explorer, and then reinstall Windows XP SP3."
Windows XP Media Center Edition 2002:
"If you install Windows XP SP3 on a computer running Windows XP Media Center
Edition 2002 with SP1, Windows XP Media Center Edition may malfunction. To
avoid this, install Windows XP SP2 before you install Windows XP SP3. If
this issue has already occurred, uninstall Windows XP SP3, install Windows
XP SP2, and then reinstall Windows XP SP3."
It seems some people are unable to get further updates after installing
SP3... Seems some have experienced a symptom similar to doing a repair
installation on Windows XP - and the same fix seems to work for them for
that...
Updates are not installed successfully from Windows Update, from Microsoft
Update, or by using Automatic Updates after you repair a Windows XP
installation
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/943144
Some people experience an "endless reboot" issue...
From PA Bear [MS MVP]:
Workarounds:
http://msinfluentials.com/blogs/jes...ed-computer-boot-after-installing-xp-sp3.aspx
[NB: The above has been updated many times and now includes "a small tool
that will detect the IntelPPM problem and mitigate it before installing
[WinXP SP3]."
1. Boot into Safe Mode and rename INTELPMM.SYS to INTELPMM.OLD.
2. After booting into Safe Mode:
Start --> Run --> (copy/paste)
sc config intelppm start= disabled
--> OK --> Reboot into normal (Windows) mode.
Other references include:
..
http://aumha.net/viewtopic.php?p=187790#p187790
..
http://msinfluentials.com/blogs/jes...ed-computer-boot-after-installing-xp-sp3.aspx
..
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2008/05/09/windows_xp_sp3_reboots_crashes/
..
http://www.computerworld.com/action/article.do?command=viewArticleBasic&articleId=9084418
.. You receive a "Stop 0x0000007E" error message after you upgrade to Windows
XP Service Pack 2 or Service Pack 3 on a non-Intel-processor-based computer
(Revised 06 May-08)
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/888372
Some people have gotten an "Access Denied" message when trying to install
SP3... Method 3 of this article:
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/949377
Beyond that - some simple maintenance might be needed - like installing the
latest hardware drivers from your hardware vendors...
--
Shenan Stanley
MS-MVP
--
How To Ask Questions The Smart Way
Thanks for the great answer. As to the computer issues, I'm already working with a MS support representative. I believe we now have one desktop working with SP3. Just one laptop left to fix with a legacy wireless network adapter an openGL problem after SP3 install.
