Microsoft offers more time to test XP Service Pack 2
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Microsoft Corp. is giving users more time to prepare for Windows XP Service Pack 2 (SP2) by doubling the time a special registry key will prevent PCs from automatically downloading and installing the mammoth update.
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Microsoft will delay the release of its SP2 update for another week to fix software glitches. But not everyone is quite so eager to install the SP2 update for Windows XP. In fact, many companies have demanded the ability to prevent their ...
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Microsoft today is releasing Windows XP Service Pack 2 (SP2) to XP Professional Edition users as expected, but the company made the unexpected announcement that it was also shipping the massive update to all XP users via Windows Update on Wednesday as well
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The clock is ticking for organizations that chose to delay the deployment of Windows XP Service Pack 2. Come April 12, 2004, a tool that temporarily blocks delivery through automatic updating will cease to operate, allowing the upgrade to download.
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Just one day after Microsoft delayed the delivery of its Windows XP Service Pack 2 (XP SP2) update for the Professional Edition, a German research firm announced the discovery of two security flaws in the application.
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(InfoWorld) - Microsoft has finally broken its silence on the timing of the release of theÂ highly anticipated Windows Vista Service Pack 1, saying the software updates should be in final release in the first quarter of next year with the company shipping off a beta next month to 10,000 to 15,000 testers. The company stressed that SP1, "is not a delivery vehicle for new features," said David Zipkin, senior product manager for Microsoft. SP1 will include OS updates strictly to fix bugs and enhance the performance, reliability, and application compatibility of Vista, he said. Zipkin acknowledged that Microsoft has "a reputation of sneaking fixes into service packs in the past." For example, Windows XP SP 2 included a host of new security features after XP was exploited by the Blaster worm and other serious attacks. However, the service pack also was incompatible with many applications running on XP, which caused massive headaches for a lot of users. Vista SP1 will not break any applications already running on the OS. "Anything that works on Vista is going to keep on working on SP1," he said. Vista SP1 will include the 20 updates for the OS already released over Microsoft's automatic update services as well as ones that are new to the update. In all, thousands of Vista files will be changed as part of the release, Zipkin said. However, Vista SP1 will be a significantly smaller download than Windows XP SP2 was, he said. XP SP2 was more than 100MB in size, while Vista SP1 will be about 50MB, he said. Microsoft will deliver SP1 over its automatic update services to consumers running Windows Vista. Business customers can use this service as well or roll out a stand-alone version of SP1, which has a bigger footprint, through whatever software a company uses for pushing updates to desktops, Zipkin said. The stand-alone version of SP1 will be bigger than the one automatically pushed out through Windows update services for several reasons, one of which is it contains all of the 36 language updates, Zipkin said. The SP1 pushed out over the Web can detect what language a PC is running and only install that update. Specifically, SP1 will fix performance features, such as allowing for the computer to resume functionality after being in the Hibernate or Standby state, and also reduce the time it takes between a user hitting CTRL/ALT/DELETE to get the log-in prompt so they can log on to Windows, Zipkin said. Microsoft also in SP1 will improve the performance of Internet Explorer 7 to speed Javascript processing and reduce CPU utilization so sites running AJAX (Asynchronous Javascript and XML) can run faster, he said. On the reliability side, the update will reduce the likelihood of Vista crashing from a vague "search protocol handler" error message that users have reported happens frequently, Zipkin said. The company also fixed other common crashes users have reported through Microsoft's automatic reporting service. Many businesses have held off on updating to Vista until the arrival of SP1. Zipkin said that while Microsoft supports their decision, the company is recommending they test applications with Vista now so that they are ready to deploy immediately when SP1 is available. For consumers that may be waiting, Microsoft recommends they go ahead and install Vista or purchase a Vista machine now, and they will receive SP1 via automatic updates. To date, Microsoft reports that about 60 million consumer licenses for Vista have been sold, and 42 million licenses have been sold to businesses through its volume licensing program.
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According to multiple sources, a special edition CD containing Windows XP Service Pack 2 has begun to reach mailboxes of testers.  The CD is nested in a folder marked with the slogan, "I came through for SP2." The major update for Windows XP was completed in early August after numerous delays and mounting pressure on Microsoft to improve the security of its flagship operating system.
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Although Monday was to be the day when Microsoft began pushing Windows XP Service Pack 2 (SP2) to enterprises, it changed its mind at the last minute and delayed the automatic updating for more than a week.
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Consumers will be offered a major upgrade of Windows XP after Microsoft releases Service Pack 2 through Windows Update later this week.
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Two months after the heavily hyped release of Microsoft&#39;s Windows XP Service Pack 2 (SP2), the company has exceeded its delivery projections for individual users and small businesses.
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You&#39;ve been patient. You&#39;ve done what Microsoft asked you to do. You&#39;re ready to download Service Pack 2 for Windows XP.
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Enterprise developers looking for a guide to test applications against the new Windows XP Service Pack 2 (SP2) are getting some help from Microsoft (Quote, Chart).
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AUGUST 30, 2004  - Windows XP Service Pack 2 is now making its way onto computers. This major update is a step forward for a company that has had an abysmal record on security, and we should be happy for that much.
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Microsoft will accelerate the rollout of Windows XP Service Pack 2 over the next month and has released the first official update for SP2 to fix a problem some users had with virtual private networks.
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Continuing the roll-out of Windows XP Service Pack 2 (SP2), Microsoft Corp. on Wednesday began pushing the security-focused update to PCs running Windows XP Professional Edition
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A week after releasing Windows XP Service Pack 2 to enterprises, Microsoft is trying to quell confusion over an apparent security flaw and applications that won&#39;t work without adjustments.
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Microsoft this week updated an administrative tool for delaying Automatic Update and Windows Update rollouts of Windows XP Service Pack 2 from four months to eight months.