SP3 DESTROYED MY COMPUTER!

[brotherdave]

I have a WINDOWS XP PRO computer I built in the spring 2003. It had a
motherboard failure once about 30 days after switching it on, I ditched the
original AOPEN motherboard for a used OEM Gateway Intel D850 early version
with a 1.8 Pentium 4 which I liked a lot so I then upgraded to a brand new
D850EMV2 which at that time was a really good board with just over 1 GIG of
1033 Rambus and a Pentium 4 2.4 chip. This computer setup ran error free
from late 2003 until about three weeks ago when SP3 got installed through
Windows Update. No problems before SP3 ever. Great machine.

Since then, nothing and I mean but trouble. First my TrendMicro would not
do a virus scan all the way through. I thought hmmm. But that was only the
beginning.

Then I started getting BSOD errors. Never had them before. Tried a system
restore. Still got BSOD errors. The computer seemed slower than usual like
it was bogged down. Checking Task Manager I could not find anything running
using processor or memory to account for the sluggishness, but it was
behaving just like it was out of resources including freezing and sometimes
no cursor.

I next tried a REPAIR which it won't complete as it gives errors in repair
and won't finish. It gets about 92% of the way through the repair and then
gives an error.

I next tried deleting the file that was causing the TrendMicro scan issue
and now it won't boot. It apparently was the IDE driver and now the drive
won't start.

Now it won't boot at all, the splash screen loads and then it goes right to
BSOD. The error says it can't find the drive. This sucks.

I have a friend whose machine does pretty much the same thing except theirs
just boots over and over all by itself.

Some of this is my fault. But not all.

I give up!

Funny that a machine that ran flawlessly for over 4 years got trashed by
SP3. Unlike many of the reports mine is a Pentium 4, which was a pretty good
machine at the time I built it...and ran great until SP3. It was a very
usable and stable machine.

I have backups on most of my documents. But when I think of all the time
and money it is going to take to get this thing working again I want to
scream.

Worst part of all this is that even if I could get XP to reinstall (which I
can't because I already tried that) I don't have ANY MORE XP PRO installs
left on my license anyway. You only get three installs and since I've
changed boards twice already I don't have any more installs left.

So I'm torn between spending a couple of hundred for a new hard drive and a
new XP license or just giving up on MS completely and buying a Mac.

Now the machine won't boot at all yielding a BSOD all the time. It won't
run the Repair all the way through saying there is a DLL error.

It won't boot at all. It can't even find the drive apparently.

Thanks Microsoft. I'm really upset about this. Really, REALLY.

 

[AJR]

Regarding "...You only get three installs ...." - not so! Install XP and use
"voice" phone reactivation.

 

[Shenan Stanley]

I have a WINDOWS XP PRO computer I built in the spring 2003. It
had a motherboard failure once about 30 days after switching it on,
I ditched the original AOPEN motherboard for a used OEM Gateway
Intel D850 early version with a 1.8 Pentium 4 which I liked a lot
so I then upgraded to a brand new D850EMV2 which at that time was a
really good board with just over 1 GIG of 1033 Rambus and a Pentium
4 2.4 chip. This computer setup ran error free from late 2003
until about three weeks ago when SP3 got installed through Windows
Update. No problems before SP3 ever. Great machine.

Since then, nothing and I mean but trouble. First my TrendMicro
would not do a virus scan all the way through. I thought hmmm.
But that was only the beginning.

Then I started getting BSOD errors. Never had them before. Tried
a system restore. Still got BSOD errors. The computer seemed
slower than usual like it was bogged down. Checking Task Manager I
could not find anything running using processor or memory to
account for the sluggishness, but it was behaving just like it was
out of resources including freezing and sometimes no cursor.

I next tried a REPAIR which it won't complete as it gives errors in
repair and won't finish. It gets about 92% of the way through the
repair and then gives an error.

I next tried deleting the file that was causing the TrendMicro scan
issue and now it won't boot. It apparently was the IDE driver and
now the drive won't start.

Now it won't boot at all, the splash screen loads and then it goes
right to BSOD. The error says it can't find the drive. This sucks.

I have a friend whose machine does pretty much the same thing
except theirs just boots over and over all by itself.

Some of this is my fault. But not all.

I give up!

Funny that a machine that ran flawlessly for over 4 years got
trashed by SP3. Unlike many of the reports mine is a Pentium 4,
which was a pretty good machine at the time I built it...and ran
great until SP3. It was a very usable and stable machine.

I have backups on most of my documents. But when I think of all
the time and money it is going to take to get this thing working
again I want to scream.

Worst part of all this is that even if I could get XP to reinstall
(which I can't because I already tried that) I don't have ANY MORE
XP PRO installs left on my license anyway. You only get three
installs and since I've changed boards twice already I don't have
any more installs left.

So I'm torn between spending a couple of hundred for a new hard
drive and a new XP license or just giving up on MS completely and
buying a Mac.

Now the machine won't boot at all yielding a BSOD all the time. It
won't run the Repair all the way through saying there is a DLL
error.

It won't boot at all. It can't even find the drive apparently.

Thanks Microsoft. I'm really upset about this. Really, REALLY.

Did you prepare for the 1174+ updates that were all going to be installed at
once - or just go for it and hope for the best?

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


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

Good luck!

 

[Shenan Stanley]

brotherdave wrote:

Worst part of all this is that even if I could get XP to reinstall
(which I can't because I already tried that) I don't have ANY MORE
XP PRO installs left on my license anyway. You only get three
installs and since I've changed boards twice already I don't have
any more installs left.

So I'm torn between spending a couple of hundred for a new hard
drive and a new XP license or just giving up on MS completely and
buying a Mac.

<snipped>

BTW - that is a common fantasy. You do not only have 3 installs - you have
unlimited installs. If you get a message about not being able to activate
because it was used too much or whatever - ignore and choose to activate by
telephone. Call the toll-free number, give the information requested and
activate your copy.

However - from what I can tell - you might need a repair installation.

How to Perform a Windows XP Repair Install
http://www.michaelstevenstech.com/XPrepairinstall.htm

How to perform an in-place upgrade (reinstallation) of Windows XP
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/315341

(You also may want to download and utilize the hard disk drive
manufacturer's disk diagnostics utility to test your hard disk drive for
errors.)

 

[brotherdave]

Did you prepare for the 1174+ updates that were all going to be installed at
once - or just go for it and hope for the best?

I backed all my documents up to an old windows 98 machine...and then I hoped
for the best.

I never had any problems with SP1 or SP2. So I had no reason to expect any
with SP3. I also was unaware of lots of the things I've since read as they
were not publicized. I thought my machine was the only one trashed but I'm
finding out it wasn't.

I did have IE7 installed. I normally would not run Beta of any software.
Otherwise I know of no reason why this happened.

Thanks for all the "useful" links. I appreciate your time.

Dave

 

[brotherdave]

I already tried a repair install last week. It failed about 91% through.
Failed to remove SP1, Failed to remove SP2, Failed to remove SP3.

Regards,
Dave

 

[Ken Blake, MVP]

Worst part of all this is that even if I could get XP to reinstall (which I
can't because I already tried that) I don't have ANY MORE XP PRO installs
left on my license anyway. You only get three installs and since I've
changed boards twice already I don't have any more installs left.

Completely false. I don't where you got that misinformation, but you
can reinstall Windows XP as often as you need or want to.

Worst case, you may have to activate by a voice phone call to an 800
number, but that's quick and easy--normally under five minutes.

 

[Gerry]

What are the Stop Error messages? Please post copies. All you clean
installs could be pointless until you have a better idea of what is
actually the problem!

Disable automatic restart on system failure. This should help by
allowing time to write down the STOP code properly. Right click on
the My Computer icon on the Desktop and select Properties, Advanced,
Start-Up and Recovery, System Failure and uncheck box before
Automatically Restart.

Do not re-enable automatic restart on system failure until you have
resolved the problem. Check for variants of the Stop Error message.

An alternative is to keep pressing the F8 key during Start-Up and select
option - Disable automatic restart on system failure.

If you are using a wireless keyboard and the F8 key does not work
substitute a wired keyboard and mouse for this exercise only.


--



Hope this helps.

Gerry
~~~~
FCA
Stourport, England
Enquire, plan and execute
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

[Daave]

SP3 is an OPTION, it's not mandatory and should be avoided except for
testing.

You make it sound like it's still in beta!

With some prep (Shenan's posts cover all the bases), insalling SP3
shouldn't be any problem at all.

 

[brotherdave]

Hi,
I tried repair console. Automated System Recovery too. Would get to like
91% and then BSOD.

What I wound up doing was making a slipstream disc with my original 5.0 XP
and SP3, installing a brand new drive and installing the slipstream disc onto
the brand new drive. No issues so far other than my finding out that
TrendMicro won't activate. They want me to buy a new license of course.
I'll contact them and see if we can work something out.

So I'm pretty convinced something went wrong. Most likely the fact I didn't
turn off my anti-virus was the hitch. Once I get all my old data off the old
C drive I'll reformat it and give it a scan to see if it has bad sectors or
anything.

Thanks,
Dave

 

[Gerry]

Dave

At no point do you appear to have any detailed information concerning
any BSOD that appeared. Ignoring useful information does make
troubleshooting more difficult. It could be Trend that was causing the
problem. How do you know whether it is sensible to restore Trend if you
have not done approriate investigation?


--



Hope this helps.

Gerry
~~~~
FCA
Stourport, England
Enquire, plan and execute
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~