New QFE available

[Jon Fincher]

Hi all:

There's a new QFE available, and this one is a good one (at least we
think so). It's called the "Desktop QFE Support Component", KB 824706,
and it enables you to run Windows XP Pro hotfix packages published after
July 6, 2003, directly on XPE runtimes. It can be downloaded from
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyId=4711F4FE-C946-4C
F8-9AAA-738C27E7ED28&displaylang=en. Credit for getting this out goes
to Andy Allred and Lynda Allen, who tested the XP Pro hotfix installer
and this QFE - I don't what we'd do without their expertise and talent.

There's also a KB article on it's way, but it's not published yet (seems
I can get QFE's out the door quicker than KB articles).

The component itself is just a macro component, adding a number of other
components to your runtime. The footprint hit is 10-20 Mb with it alone
- more feature-rich runtimes will see a much smaller footprint increase.
This is the minimal footprint hit we could get, so before you ask, no,
we can't get it any smaller.

There are a number of caveats to using this component - don't expect it
to be a panacea for hotfix issues. We don't recommend you use it on
MinLogon systems, R/O media systems, or systems with EWF enabled and
running. We also don't recommended you use it for NTOSKRNL.EXE updates,
nor for third-party updates. Also, know that while the XP Pro hotfixes
are tested on Pro, we haven't tested them on XPE runtimes, so there's no
guarantee they'll work. You may also see footprint increases when
applying XP Pro hotfixes, as they may update files that don't exist on
the runtime. As with everything, your mileage may vary.

As with all QFE's, it's only for eval and testing purposes - you can't
redist XP Pro QFE's using this. That's a licensing restriction I have
no control over - sorry.

 

[Mark K Vallevand]

I have a question about this statement.

As with all QFE's, it's only for eval and testing purposes - you can't
redist XP Pro QFE's using this. That's a licensing restriction I have
no control over - sorry.

So, when an XP Pro QFE is released, and my boss says, "We
need that QFE in our XPe image in the field right now," I
have to say, "Sorry, we need to wait for the XPe QFE."
Correct?

I can play with XP Pro QFEs in the lab, but nowhere else?
How is this useful?

Maybe the answer is in the KB article. I'm looking
forward to it.

Regards.
Mark K Vallevand

 

[Jon Fincher]

I have a question about this statement.

So, when an XP Pro QFE is released, and my boss says, "We
need that QFE in our XPe image in the field right now," I
have to say, "Sorry, we need to wait for the XPe QFE."
Correct?

I can play with XP Pro QFEs in the lab, but nowhere else?
How is this useful?

Maybe the answer is in the KB article. I'm looking
forward to it.

The answer isn't there. The answer is in the licensing of XPE. I don't
understand all of it myself (I'm a tech guy, not a lawyer), but there it
is, and I've got no power to do anything but complain and gripe that it
actually harms our customers.

One thing I can tell you is that the bits we make available for XPE are
no different than the ones available for XP Pro. We just package them a
little differently and put the OEM license on them.

 

[Andy Bridge]

Hi all:
....
As with all QFE's, it's only for eval and testing purposes - you can't
redist XP Pro QFE's using this. That's a licensing restriction I have
no control over - sorry.

Sorry John I know your not a lawyer and neither am I but does this really
mean that as an OEM with devices in the field running XPE I am not allowed
(legally) to update them with dlls etc. made available by Microsoft on their
website?

I noted that every QFE download page has the text "YOU MAY NOT PROVIDE THIS
UPDATE OR THE LOCATION (URL) OF THIS UPDATE TO ANY THIRD PARTIES." and had
wondered why this was there.

Andy

 

[Mark K Vallevand]

Can you explain this statement?

As with all QFE's, it's only for eval and testing purposes - you can't
redist XP Pro QFE's using this. That's a licensing restriction I have
no control over - sorry.

As I read it, I cannot use XP Pro QFEs in any XPe image
released to customers, but I can evaluate and test the XP
Pro QFEs in my laboratory. Correct?

So, what good is this component?

Maybe the KB article explains more. I'm looking forward
to reading it.

Regards.
Mark K Vallevand

 

[Jon Fincher]

Sorry John I know your not a lawyer and neither am I but does this
really mean that as an OEM with devices in the field running XPE I am
not allowed (legally) to update them with dlls etc. made available by
Microsoft on their website?

Unfortunately true. And to make matters even better, I had to take down
the download page today because we were sidestepping the licensing
agreements. Maybe instead of trying to get my Masters degree in CS and
math, I should try pre-law - I hate having a solution I can't give to my
customers.

The good news is that we've got some of our legal people working on a
new license for QFE's so you can continue to use this QFE. Until then,
though, the situation is what it is.

I'm not happy with it at all, and I apologize for jumping the gun and
getting everyone's hopes up, but there is a sunrise on the horizon.

I noted that every QFE download page has the text "YOU MAY NOT PROVIDE
THIS UPDATE OR THE LOCATION (URL) OF THIS UPDATE TO ANY THIRD
PARTIES." and had wondered why this was there.

That exists because the QFE's are for servicing our eval tools and DB.
If you have the official tools and DB, then there's a secured site you
need to DL your QFE's from.

 

[Andy Bridge]

That exists because the QFE's are for servicing our eval tools and DB.
If you have the official tools and DB, then there's a secured site you
need to DL your QFE's from.

OK, now I'm really confused. We've had the Official XPE Dev. Tools since
their relese in the UK (RTM originally and then upgraded to SP1), I have
never been aware of a "secured site" to download QFE's from. Can you tell me
more about this? (If you'd rather do this offline then just remove the
nopsam from my address).

Thanks for your comments so far. All this legal stuff goes straight over my
head and just seems to get in the way of getting any real work done!

Andy

 

[Andy Pont]

That exists because the QFE's are for servicing our eval tools and DB.
If you have the official tools and DB, then there's a secured site you
need to DL your QFE's from.

What is the correct URL for this page? I have a feeling that I may
have been downloading the QFEs from the wrong place.

Andy.

 

[Slobodan Brcin]

OK, now I'm really confused. We've had the Official XPE Dev. Tools since

their relese in the UK (RTM originally and then upgraded to SP1), I have
never been aware of a "secured site" to download QFE's from. Can you tell me
more about this? (If you'd rather do this offline then just remove the
nopsam from my address).

During the process of signing licences you got link to MS embedded site.
Then using your registered info, you add yourself as user, or something like
that.

And then you have access so resticted areas, that as I can remember have
nothing exceptional in it.

Thanks for your comments so far. All this legal stuff goes straight over my
head and just seems to get in the way of getting any real work done!

Yes this is extremely complex for us developers, to track and understand
this lawyer talk.
This is frustrating, when you don't have many people behind you to read and
think on all this stuff.

Regards,
Slobodan