Here Comes Windows XP SP3 RC1 to the Public - Again

[Unknown Soldier]

Last week Microsoft posted Windows XP SP3 RC1 ... and then pulled it back. While it was still available on sites like FileForum, who knows if that's going to be what gets released by Microsoft --- FileForum has a tendency to jump the gun on posting things.

Perhaps that's why it "sneaked out," as I said in my prior post. It wasn't real. Tuesday Microsoft indicated that it would be posting SP3 RC1 to its Download Center later that evening, and this appears to be the real thing.

Since their issues with automatic updating earlier in the year, Microsoft has been pretty gunshy, so right now there's no word on when it would be available via Windows Update.

According to Forrester Research has noted that XP remains Vista's biggest rival, so despite the fact that Microsoft would love XP to go away, they have been forced to offer this new update, as well as extending XP sales through June 2008.

Just remember, this is mostly a roll-up of bug fixes, with a few features:

* A new activation scheme (no mandatory product key during install ... similar to Vista)
* Network Access Protection Module (first in Vista)
* Microsoft Kernel Mode Cryptographic Module
* A Black Hole Router detection algorithm

News Source: http://technologyexpert.blogspot.com/2007/12/here-comes-windows-sp3-rc1-to-public.html
Download: http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/...4c-8423-4386-ad98-36b124a720aa&DisplayLang=en - Tested and Working

 

[Unknown Soldier]

Finished Dowloading it.

Slightly bigger than the previous version.

Old: 352,395,816 bytes
News: 352,430,632 bytes

US

 

[digitalwanderer]

I must have got the old one before they pulled it, I've been using that just fine.

 

[Unknown Soldier]

New one is ok .. IE7 starts up very fast. Wow.

I had d/l'd the old one but for some reason it wouldn't allow me to install, complaining about update.inf. The new one installed fine.

It must be my imagination, but the laptop we use here at work is ALOT faster than it used to be.

*Update* Nope .. it's not my imagination .. it's ALOT faster.

US

 

[digitalwanderer]

I wonder if I can install the new one on top of the old one... :|

brb

 

[Unknown Soldier]

I can't see why not.

US

 

[digitalwanderer]

It seemed to work just fine.

 

[Unknown Soldier]

.. is it faster than the older version?

US

 

[Albuquerque]

We're toying with both the Vista SP1 RC and the XP SP3 RC at place of employment, and they both do quite well for "user" speed improvements. Apps pop open faster, IE opens faster, et al. At least, when they both work.

One XP box that was upgraded now randomly locks up, another hung on install and never recovered. A Vista box that was upgraded starting moving very slowly in everything, even the UAC prompt would darken the screen but take ~15 seconds to appear.

Oh well, those were both the "minority" of cases. I still want to see the few remaining DX10-on-XP-will-eventually-come losers choke on Sp3 and die though

 

[orphenshadow]

Interesting, I just upgraded to vista 64 ultimate, and i probably wont be going back to xp, are the improvements that major? or is it just some cosmetic, and security fixes?, Also, Is it worth it to go ahead and download vista SP1 RC1?

 

[Richard]

I've been testing this public release on a VM and I've no problems to report.

EDIT: I should say that I slipstreamed SP3 into XP and installed from scratch. I'm sure that, just like SP2, people that upgrade live systems will encounter far more problems.