Windows XP Service Pack 2
According to Microsoft, release of Windows XP Service Pack 2 is imminent.
This service pack is a major release and Microsoft has been working on it for about a year. This will be the most important update until Longhorn (next version of Windows) ships in 2006/2007.
"Windows XP Service Pack 2 (SP2) will bring users the latest security updates and innovations from Microsoft. It will establish stronger security settings that help defend against viruses, hackers, and worms and will provide unique new security features designed to make it easier for you to protect your PC."
Changes to Functionality
This is not a typical Service Pack. Microsoft has made a set of changes to the functionality of Windows as well. This is because Microsoft had plans to ship Longhorn in 2005/2006, but their marketing department postponsed it to 2006/2007. So they decided to enhance the functionality of Windows XP until Longhorn ships. Developers and IT Pros should be aware that some of the existing web sites that are not following safety practices may stop functioning on a machine with Windows XP Service Pack 2 installed.
Turn on Automatic Updates Today
"The best way to ensure you get SP2 when it is released is by turning on the Automatic Updates feature in Windows XP. Visit the Protect Your PC site to let us turn it on for you or follow these manual steps - either way you'll get SP2 automatically as Microsoft releases it."
Thanks for the post. How can you be sure that they won't ship any other major update before Longhorn (How can an OS live with no updates for 2 years?!)
(at August 11, 2004 01:16 AM)
i turned on automatic update and suddenly a few dozen updates showed up, some of which are marked as critical!!! what should i do? shall i install all of them? i know this is not the place to ask these kinda questions, i just wondered if there is an easy way to find out which updates to install first.
(at August 11, 2004 11:17 AM)
Hi WestEnder - They may release more security patches, but probably SP2 is the only one with a considerable amount of change to functionality.
Reza - Microsoft always recommends you to install the critical updates on your machine. They normally say you need to backup all of the files before doing so, however I haven't ever seen a problem with installing those updates on any machine either at home or work place.
The other thing that you could do right now is to wait until SP2 ships. Then try installing SP2 first. I assume that SP2 will include many if not most of those critical updates. If that is the case then they will disappear from the critical update list for your machine automatically.
(at August 11, 2004 04:38 PM)
Reza, solely based on my limited experience with computers, I personally never update my system except SECURITY UPDATES. Once I installed a critical pack and it really slowed down my computer. In my opinion, as long as it's working well, dont install any of those microsoft packs.
(at August 11, 2004 08:45 PM)
Hi Unity,
As far as I know all of the critical updates are in fact security updates. Microsoft publishes these updates in response to security issues with the operating system (e.g. viruses and trojans) so normally when an update is published, it means that there is a threat out there on the net for your machine. You are correct however in the sense that it may have slowed down your system in one instance. Although each updates is tested in the labs, but Microsoft cannot reproduce every combination of software on all of the computers around the world. So it may have detrimental effects on some machines. If this happens, Microsoft then normally publishes another update to fix that problem. Nothing is perfect!
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