Is it Safe To Install Service Pack 2

[Guest]

Ive read in many places, people who have had very bad experience's installing
service pack 2. Ive heard, programs stop working, some people's computers
wont even start, saying that files are missing. IM WORRIED that i will be one
of the lucky people who has that bad experience, ill bet anything ill be the
one who's harddrive crashes after installing service pack 2.

I cant even install Microsoft PLUS! for Windows XP. it tells me that
pluswiz.dll cannot register correctly. im afraid installing windows xp
service pack 2 will give me that kind of problom and cause my computer to
fail. im NOT BUY A NEW COMPUTER

 

[SeaWolf]

I haven't been able to get it to work! My computer shuts down and restarts
over and over again.

 

[J. McClary]

Yes it is safe. I installed in on 20 of my clients computers without a
hitch. Caution, this really depend on the applications though. For
example, if you have a client using extensive web applications that have
file download or popup features, SP2 WILL effect those applications. So you
need to test. If you are a typical user that doesn't "do anything special"
then I'd go for it. You'll have to sooner or later.

 

[Steven Litvintchouk]

Ive read in many places, people who have had very bad experience's installing
service pack 2. Ive heard, programs stop working, some people's computers
wont even start, saying that files are missing. IM WORRIED that i will be one
of the lucky people who has that bad experience, ill bet anything ill be the
one who's harddrive crashes after installing service pack 2.

Only a small minority of users have had problems (like myself).

Go into System Restore and set a checkpoint before you try installing
SP2. Then, if it doesn't go well, you can restore your system back to
what it was before you installed SP2.

At least that ploy worked for me.

 

[Guest]

I've been working every day for over a week, trying to recover from my
attempt to install SP2 from a CD. I end up getting the dreaded "Blue Screen
of Death", with an error saying Stop: 0x00000019, BAD_POOL_HEADER., every
time I try to boot up. I tried to uninstall from Safe Mode, but it froze ,
and now I don't even have the "Start" icon, and can't run anything.
When I tried to do a restore from my original Toshiba Restore CD, an error
msg came up saying that a TBIOSDRV.SYS file could not be found, and that my
machine was the wrong machine for the restore disk!!!!!

I don't know where to go from here. I thought I could trust the SP2, since
it was issued by Microsoft, BUT..........

My advice, don't touch SP2 until MS has debugged it.

 

[Jupiter Jones [MVP]]

Brandon;
These newsgroups are a place where people come with computer problems
so it is not surprising there are problems here.
SP-2 is a Service Pack for a very popular operating system so a large
number of posts also are not surprising.

Do not install SP-2 while you have problems.
A Service pack should not be installed with the expectation of solving
preexisting issues unless the Service Pack is supposed to resolve that
specific issue.
You must resolve them first.

Do NOT count on being "one of the lucky people".
There is no such thing as luck and those that count on luck rather
than preparation are setting their computers up for failure.
Instead make sure the computer is ready for SP-2:
http://www3.telus.net/dandemar/spackins.htm

 

[PA20Pilot]

Hi,

........There is no such thing as luck........

And there's no such thing as safe, if you're meaning is as in "free of
risk".


---==X={}=X==---


Jim Self
AVIATION ANIMATION, the internet's largest depository.
http://avanimation.avsupport.com

Your only internet source for spiral staircase plans.
http://jself.com/stair/Stair.htm

Experimental Aircraft Association (EAA)
Technical Counselor

 

[Edward W. Thompson]

Ive read in many places, people who have had very bad experience's
installing
service pack 2. Ive heard, programs stop working, some people's computers
wont even start, saying that files are missing. IM WORRIED that i will be
one
of the lucky people who has that bad experience, ill bet anything ill be
the
one who's harddrive crashes after installing service pack 2.

snip

If you feel the need to ask the question there is a possibility it may not
be 'safe' for you.

There is a minimal risk of problems in installing SP2 provided the machine
and system is in 'good condition', that is free from 'malware', viruses and
the like, hardware is compatible and drivers and bios up-to-date. If you
are satisfied your system and hardware meet this criteria it is prudent to
create an image (Ghost, True Image, Drive Image) before you begin.

There is ample detailed advice on the 'web' (Google) of precautions you
should take before proceeding based upon others experience.

Good luck.

 

[Jupiter Jones [MVP]]

I never suggested there was no risk.
However there is much that can be done to greatly minimize the risk.

 

[PA20Pilot]

Hi JJ,

........I never suggested there was no risk.

Realized. I was just mentioning, in addition to what you wrote, what
"safe" means. I don't think you used even the word. I probably should
have posted a tad further up.

........However there is much that can be done to greatly minimize the risk.

And you've done a great job explaining that to the original poster!

Just for thought, if safe is free of risk, what does safer mean?


---==X={}=X==---


Jim Self
AVIATION ANIMATION, the internet's largest depository.
http://avanimation.avsupport.com

Your only internet source for spiral staircase plans.
http://jself.com/stair/Stair.htm

Experimental Aircraft Association (EAA)
Technical Counselor

 

[XS11E]

Ive read in many places, people who have had very bad experience's
installing service pack 2. Ive heard, programs stop working, some
people's computers wont even start, saying that files are missing.
IM WORRIED that i will be one of the lucky people who has that bad
experience, ill bet anything ill be the one who's harddrive
crashes after installing service pack 2.

I cant even install Microsoft PLUS! for Windows XP. it tells me
that pluswiz.dll cannot register correctly. im afraid installing
windows xp service pack 2 will give me that kind of problom and
cause my computer to fail. im NOT BUY A NEW COMPUTER

If you can't install Plus you have a problem. You'll have to fix it
before you install SP2.

Once that problem is fixed you MUST read the instructions and follow
them to the letter before installing SP2 or you might have problems.

Good instructions are here: http://www3.telus.net/dandemar/spackins.htm

Basically the instructions tell you to update your AV and run it to
eliminate any viruses or worms, etc. You must update SpyBot S&D or
similar malware remover and run it to remove any malware, you must run
ckdisk to be sure your disk is OK.

If, like one poor soul who posted elsewhere, you're having instability,
frequent crashes, etc. you must fix your hardware before installing
SP2, SP2 will NOT fix a malfunctioning machine as he expected it to do.

 

[Peter Hutchison]

I haven't been able to get it to work! My computer shuts down and restarts
over and over again.

To fix the DLL problem try typing Regsvr32
c:\windows\system32\pluswiz.dll to re-register it (assuming that file
is in c:\windows\system32).

A rebooting PC could be due to any number of things: Virus, PSU,
Overheating, drivers, SP2 etc.

Before installing SP2 make sure:
a) PC is virus and spyware free.
b) Drivers are up to date esp. Graphics Card drivers
c) You have enough disk space
d) Disk is not too fragmented.
e) Existing problems are fixed (see Event Viewer)

Peter Hutchison