Windows XP Update

[Angie]

The familiar update icon recently appeared in my system
tray, but nothing happened whether I right-clicked or
left-clicked on it. Hovering the mouse over it produced
a balloon that indicated "o% downloaded". I rely too
heavily on my PC to risk downloading SP2. I don't have
the expertise to deal with the kinds of problems I've
been hearing about, and I'm not confident that I'll get
the support from Microsoft I'd need. So, I disabled the
automatic update feature in msconfig and the icon went
away. However, I need to check for other critical
updates on the update site. When I tried to do this, I
got an error message that I had to enable the automatic
update feature. I tried enabling the manual feature in
services.msc, but the update site still wouldn't scan my
PC. I'm reluctant to activate the automatic setting for
fear that SP2 will begin downloading against my wishes.
What are my choices?

 

[Jupiter Jones [MVP]]

Angie;
Yes, you need it enabled there.
But you can still disable Automatic Update:
Right click My Computer
Click Properties
Click Automatic Update tab
Make selections as appropriate.

If you still want to get other Critical Updates, this tool can prevent
SP-2 but still allow other Critical Updates for a limited time:
http://www.microsoft.com/technet/prodtechnol/winxppro/maintain/sp2aumng.mspx

See this for an SP-2 installation option:
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/using/helpandsupport/ballew_04sept20.mspx

If you decide to install SP-2 yourself, follow the Service Pack
Installation Checklist to prepare the computer and reduce the chance
of problems relating to SP-2:
http://www3.telus.net/dandemar/spackins.htm

 

[Angie]

Thanks for the help. I reenabled Automatic update in
services.msc, and as soon as I did that, the update icon
reappeared in my system tray. It's not doing anything,
but it makes me nervous that it's there. I went to the
site you recommended for running the script to block the
download, but that's pretty deep stuff for me. I copied
the script into notepad and gave it the name that was
recommended (blockxpsp2.vbs). I had no idea where to save
it to, so I saved it to my desktop. I then did a
start/run, and ran "cscript blockxpsp2.vbs /b client1",
and a dos screen briefly popped up. So I'm dancing in
the dark here and don't know if I just made matters worse
or if I even changed anything at all. My PC has been
working great for a long time, and I just want to keep it
that way.

 

[Jupiter Jones [MVP]]

Angie;
Check the registry key referenced on this link:
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/...89C1-C1CB1CCD463C&displaylang=en&Hash=DN4NFF7
If it is "1" you succeeded.

If you are unsure how to locate that key, have a friend who knows
something about computers help.

Remember it only stops installation of SP-2 for 240 days starting 16
August 2004.