Hotfix

  • Thread starter Thread starter Bill
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B

Bill

i have all these hotfix's listed in programs, each is
about 20.6 mg, can these be removed, what are they for.
Thay are using alot of space
 
Bill said:
i have all these hotfix's listed in programs, each is
about 20.6 mg, can these be removed, what are they for.
Thay are using alot of space
Click to expand...

Do you mean in the "Add and Remove Programs" box in Control Panel?
 
If you remove the items via Add/Remove Programs, you will automatically
remove the installed Hotfix. If your system is stable, and you don't need
to remove any hotfixes, these entries and their associated backup files can
be removed. See www.dougknox.com, Win XP Utilities, Remove Hotfix Backup
Files.
 
OK, Doug i am somewhat computer stupid, My system seems to
be running fine, how do i know if i should use you remove
program. what do these hotfixes do exactly ? You kind of
contridicted yourself. I thought of removing the hotfix's
to free up space. should i not worry abot it ?
 
If you use the Add/Remove Programs applet to "remove" them, you uninstall
the hotfix itself. Many hotfixes are security patches, or other "fixes" to
Windows XP. When these hotfixes are installed, some create backup copies
of the files that they replace. These are kept in folders under the Windows
directory with names like $NtUninstallQ828026$ or $NtUninstallKB822603$.
These are used to restore the original files, if you decide to remove a
particular hotfix. These folders are also "hidden", by default.

If your system is stable, which you indicate, then you probably need to
leave the actual hotfixes installed. However, if you wish to free up the
space used by the "backup" files, and remove these entries from Add/Remove
Programs, then my utility will take care of the task automatically.
Otherwise, you must delete the backup folders and their associated
Add/Remove entries manually.
 
I don't know where you are getting the information that "each is about 20.6 mg" (is that the same as MB - Megabytes?). Updates average closer to 1 MB, and you are not going to see any huge amount of hard drive space reclaimed by removing them. But, yes, you can remove them, as long as you are positive you will not need to uninstall any of the updates. Occasionally a patch will cause problems on a few computers, which is why Microsoft gives the option to uninstall them.

The method to remove the backups is by opening Windows Explorer, expanding C: drive, then the Windows folder, and look at the folders with names like $NtUninstallKBxxxxxx$ (x is any number). Write down the KB number, delete the folder, then go to the Add/Remove window and click on uninstall for that same update. Since the uninstall files are no longer available, Windows will present an error message, with an offer to remove the listing for that update.

I strongly recommend you do not remove updates that are less than 2 weeks old, in case they have caused a problem, that you have perhaps not seen yet, and might need to be uninstalled. You can easily find out how old the update is by right clicking the uninstall folder and selecting Properties, which also gives you the chance to see how much (or how little) space is being used by all the files in that folder.

--

Bill James
Microsoft MVP - Shell/User

Win9x VBScript Utilities » www.billsway.com/vbspage/
Windows Tweaks & Tips » www.billsway.com/notes_public/
 
yes, my typing error, it is 20.6 mb. they appear to be
security updates for media player and windows. some start
with a Qxxxxxx and (sp1 or 2) I am positive it says 20.6mb
-----Original Message-----
I don't know where you are getting the information
Click to expand...
that "each is about 20.6 mg" (is that the same as MB -
Megabytes?). Updates average closer to 1 MB, and you are
not going to see any huge amount of hard drive space
reclaimed by removing them. But, yes, you can remove
them, as long as you are positive you will not need to
uninstall any of the updates. Occasionally a patch will
cause problems on a few computers, which is why Microsoft
gives the option to uninstall them.
The method to remove the backups is by opening Windows
Click to expand...
Explorer, expanding C: drive, then the Windows folder, and
look at the folders with names like $NtUninstallKBxxxxxx$
(x is any number). Write down the KB number, delete the
folder, then go to the Add/Remove window and click on
uninstall for that same update. Since the uninstall files
are no longer available, Windows will present an error
message, with an offer to remove the listing for that
update.
I strongly recommend you do not remove updates that are
Click to expand...
less than 2 weeks old, in case they have caused a problem,
that you have perhaps not seen yet, and might need to be
uninstalled. You can easily find out how old the update
is by right clicking the uninstall folder and selecting
Properties, which also gives you the chance to see how
much (or how little) space is being used by all the files
in that folder.
--

Bill James
Microsoft MVP - Shell/User

Win9x VBScript Utilities » www.billsway.com/vbspage/
Windows Tweaks & Tips » www.billsway.com/notes_public/

"Bill" <[email protected]> wrote in
Click to expand...
message news:[email protected]...
 
I just found the files, and yes it sasy they range from 12
to 19 KBs, but in add/remove programs to the right of the
hotfix, it says 20.89MB, could this be the size of the
program it is updating ? Should I leave well enough
alone ?
 
There are a few big ones, but the majority are very small.

--

Bill James
Microsoft MVP - Shell/User

Win9x VBScript Utilities » www.billsway.com/vbspage/
Windows Tweaks & Tips » www.billsway.com/notes_public/

yes, my typing error, it is 20.6 mb. they appear to be
security updates for media player and windows. some start
with a Qxxxxxx and (sp1 or 2) I am positive it says 20.6mb
-----Original Message-----
I don't know where you are getting the information
Click to expand...
that "each is about 20.6 mg" (is that the same as MB -
Megabytes?). Updates average closer to 1 MB, and you are
not going to see any huge amount of hard drive space
reclaimed by removing them. But, yes, you can remove
them, as long as you are positive you will not need to
uninstall any of the updates. Occasionally a patch will
cause problems on a few computers, which is why Microsoft
gives the option to uninstall them.
The method to remove the backups is by opening Windows
Click to expand...
Explorer, expanding C: drive, then the Windows folder, and
look at the folders with names like $NtUninstallKBxxxxxx$
(x is any number). Write down the KB number, delete the
folder, then go to the Add/Remove window and click on
uninstall for that same update. Since the uninstall files
are no longer available, Windows will present an error
message, with an offer to remove the listing for that
update.
I strongly recommend you do not remove updates that are
Click to expand...
less than 2 weeks old, in case they have caused a problem,
that you have perhaps not seen yet, and might need to be
uninstalled. You can easily find out how old the update
is by right clicking the uninstall folder and selecting
Properties, which also gives you the chance to see how
much (or how little) space is being used by all the files
in that folder.
--

Bill James
Microsoft MVP - Shell/User

Win9x VBScript Utilities » www.billsway.com/vbspage/
Windows Tweaks & Tips » www.billsway.com/notes_public/

"Bill" <[email protected]> wrote in
Click to expand...
message news:[email protected]...
 
i have all these hotfix's listed in programs, each is
about 20.6 mg, can these be removed, what are they for.
Thay are using alot of space
Click to expand...

They are patches for security holes. Unless you want to expose these
holes to the world, leave the hotfixes alone.

After all, 21 megabtyes of HD space is pitifully low. If it's not
that small to you, you probably need a larger hard drive.
 
Bill said:
i have all these hotfix's listed in programs, each is
about 20.6 mg, can these be removed, what are they for.
Click to expand...

OK you delibertly downloaded the updates for whatever reason, and now
you're complaining that they take up space???

So remove them.
 
Bill said:
I don't know where you are getting the information that "each is about 20.6 mg" (is that the same as MB - Megabytes?). Updates average closer to 1 MB, and you are not going to see any huge amount of hard drive spacereclaimed by removing them. But, yes, you can remove them, as long as you are positive you will not need to uninstall any of the updates. Occasionally a patch will cause problems on a few computers, which is whyMicrosoft gives the option to uninstall them.
Click to expand...


The report on size of Hotfixes as given in Add/Remove is always
misleading (there ought not actually to be one). Just to reiterate the
point though - using the Remove there *uninstalls the fix* - it does not
remove the stashed up files. So you approach it from the other end by
removing the related folders from C:\Windows. Once that is done for a
given fix, trying the remove in Add/Remove will fail, and offer the
chance to remove the entry there
 
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