Windows XP Hotfix

C

Cheryl

When I go to Control Panel - Add/Remove Programs, I find
20 programs called "Windows XP Hotfix + a number". I
don't know what a hotfix is and I want to know if I can
delete any or all of them. Thx.
 
T

Tumbleweed

Cheryl said:
When I go to Control Panel - Add/Remove Programs, I find
20 programs called "Windows XP Hotfix + a number". I
don't know what a hotfix is and I want to know if I can
delete any or all of them. Thx.#

No these are the windows updates leave them alone!
...but good point why aren't they called "Windows Updates'?
 
K

Ken Blake, MVP

In
Cheryl said:
When I go to Control Panel - Add/Remove Programs, I find
20 programs called "Windows XP Hotfix + a number". I
don't know what a hotfix is
and I want to know if I can
delete any or all of them. Thx.


These are the critical updates (mostly security-oriented) that
you've been downloading all along. Do not remove these, or you
will put back the security exposures they were designed to fix.
You can however delete their backup
files. See http://www.dougknox.com/xp/utils/xp_hotfix_backup.htm
 
P

Plato

Cheryl said:
When I go to Control Panel - Add/Remove Programs, I find
20 programs called "Windows XP Hotfix + a number". I
don't know what a hotfix is and I want to know if I can
delete any or all of them. Thx.

Leave them be.
 
K

Kelly

Hi Cheryl,

A bit more info:

Some of the Hotfixes (Mostly security updates) do not have an uninstall
feature, these will not appear in the Add and Remove list. If a Hotfix does
appear in the Add and Remove list then it can be uninstalled just like any
other program.

If you uninstall the Hotfix, you will lose the benefits of that patch. This
should only be done if you can determine that you are experiencing negative
effects from the particular Hotfix.

If you simply do not want them to appear in the Add and Remove list and you
are sure that you will not need the uninstall option, you can remove items
from that list by using a registry tweak.

Automated Edit:

Remove Hotfixes from Add or Remove (Line 193)
http://www.kellys-korner-xp.com/xp_tweaks.htm

Manual Edit: Go to Start/Run/Regedit and navigate to this key:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\
Uninstall

Expand this branch and look at the list. The Hotfixes are all listed by a
"Q" number that corresponds to the entry in the Add and Remove list. Make
sure that you back up each Key before deleting it.

Select the key and then select File/Export and include the Q number in the
name of the file. Right click the entries you want to remove and select
Delete.
 

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