Rob Cheng
Dave Methvin
Steve Hogan
Lyle Schuknecht
Bill ZahrenWindows XP SP3 Issues and Fixes Continued
By now everyone is aware of the problems associated with installing Windows XP SP3. The amount of time and money wasted with this demon is immeasurable. The public’s lack of acceptance of Windows Vista has only added to the feeling of being blindsided by an old friend.
Help and Support or call: 866-234-6020.
I am outlining the problems and providing information to fix the issues found to date. Above all I’m telling you to avoid the problems. Don’t be one the unfortunates that is rear-ended while slowing to view the carnage. Stay far away from this Update. I am not telling you to take preventative measures and then install. I'm telling you to wait, "Do not install SP3."
DO NOT INSTALL WINDOWS XP SP3.
Only for testing, I installed this viper three times. I also removed it three times. A seemingly simple and straightforward installation with no obvious problems does not mean there are no problems. All of my experiences are anecdotal, like Microsoft Word not working after SP3 installation. The problem ceasing with SP3 removal proves nothing, but when it happens twice, I must attribute it to the service pack. Rather than continuing to coupe the fallen victim, lets get on with it.
1. Registry Corruption After Installing Windows XP SP3. Starting one day after the May 6th release, users were reporting problems with their network connections. Reports of vanishing connections and missing network cards were pouring in. Bewildered users on the Microsoft support site noted the link between Symantec Corps, Norton Internet Security, and the huge number of broken registry entries all beginning with “$%&”.
Users were quick to point fingers but Symantec responded that there was no cause and effect found between their software and this problem. Even so, Symantec’s Senior Director, David Cole was quoted by Gregg Keizer of ComputerWorld as saying “Once we’ve figured out how may customers this affects, [an automated tool] is absolutely possible. If there is something we can do to address the problem, we’ll do it.”
True to his word, on May 23rd David Cole identified the problem as a particular Microsoft file named “fixccs.exe. This .exe file is a part of both SP2 and SP3, which explains why similar problems were seen with the XP SP2 release. "We finally got to the bottom of this last night," said Dave Cole, Symantec's senior director of product management for consumer software. "All of these problems are related to the same thing, a Microsoft file that created all the garbage entries [in the registry]."
The long and short of it is that Symantec has done the work for Microsoft, who has still not responded. The smart user will refrain from installing Windows XP SP3.
1. FIX
If you are one of the “rear-ended”, there is now a fix. Our own Doug Bender spent many hours reproducing this problem and trying various fixes. There are some needed conditions but he did come up with an acceptable fix.
Reboot your computer and enter SafeMode. You can reach SafeMode by tapping the F8 or F5 key during the boot process. After entering SafeMode you will need to run as Administrator and restore your system to a time before SP3 was installed: Start/Help and Support/System Restore/Restore to an earlier time. Without entering SafeMode and running as Administrator you will not be able to restore or remove the offending service pack. Upon rebooting SP3 will no longer show up in the Add/Remove programs list and you will no longer find the multitude of $%& registry entries.
2. XP SP3 removes previous restore points from System Restore. One of the first things I noticed after installing SP 3 was that my one and only restore point was missing. I keep my allotted System Restore space to a minimum and make sure I have at least one up to date restore. Normally, when you install an update, Windows will create a new restore point for the update. Because this is such a large update, the 1035 MB of space I had set aside was not enough. Instead of just not installing the new update, SP3 decided to also delete my previous restore point. This left me with no ability to use system restore. Windows Help and Support said I had the option of restoring; there was a “bold” date showing, but no option to restore. To confirm, I repeated this several times and finally was able to prevent the problem by raising my restore space to a whopping 5035 MB. There is no excuse for Microsoft removing my restore point. I consider it a serious intrusion and feel rear-ended.
2. NO FIX
Microsoft should absolutely give a WARNING and advise how much space is needed before allowing the install of SP3. There is no fix for this, meaning that once the restore point is gone there is no getting it back. The only thing that can be done is to raise your allotted restore space before installing SP3. If you have already installed SP3 be sure to check your System Restore settings. Raise your allowed space to 5035 MB and create a restore point. Be sure to do this before being rear-ended by Auto Updates.
3. XP SP3 and Windows Home Server. It’s reported by users of Windows Home Server that SP3 disables terminal Services Active X control in Internet Explorer, by default. This prevents users from accessing their systems remotely.
3. FIX
There is a fix for this problem. You will need to enable Terminal Services ActiveX control in IE 7. To do this, open Internet Explorer and click on Tools/Manage Add-Ons/Enable Add-Ons in IE.
If you do not see “enable the terminal Service ActiveX control in IE7 on XPSP3”, the only work around is to delete the following registry keys:
HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Ext\Settings\{7390f3d8-0439-4c05-91e3-cf5cb290c3d0} HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Ext\Settings\{4eb89ff4-7f78-4a0f-8b8d-2bf02e94e4b2)
WARNING, PC Pitstop does not suggest making registry deletions. We are only reporting what is suggested on other forums for dealing with this problem. If you do this, it is at your own risk.
4. Branded versions of IE7 crash during installation. For those who have already updated and installed XP SP3, you may have problems installing IE7 offered by your ISP. These “Branded Copies” from Comcast, Qwest and others, tend to crash during the installation. This is because they are older versions of IE 7. Updated IE7 Administration Kits are available to the ISPs from Microsoft’s TechNet site. These are needed to make the necessary changes before offering the IE7 upgrade. Before installing IE7 from your Internet Service Provider at least call to be sure they have made the necessary changes.
4. FIX
My suggestion and Fix is, if you must have IE7, download and install it from the Windows Website.
5. HP/AMD desktop and SP3. Because HP added a command to load a particular driver on their install disks, some of their AMD based desktops are subject to endless reboots or blue screens after installing Windows XP SP3.
We first reported on this problem in our May 15th news letter. At that time we provided information from Jesper's Blog on various preventative measures and fixes. Today I suggest the patch offered by HP to prevent the problem. This is not a fix and the patch must be applied before installing SP3.
5. FIX
If you’ve already been rear-ended and need a fix, the best I can offer is to remove the offending SP3 from your computer. Because “not booting” is the problem, you will need to use the Microsoft Recovery Console. The following Microsoft Help and Support article also outlines using the Add/Remove Programs options and System Restore Options. Steps for restoring your registry can be found on the Microsoft Help and Support site here.
6. SP3 and AMD motherboards (A8N 32SLI Deluxe). After installing SP 3, users receive an error code stating "Windows has been shut down to prevent damage to your computer. Your system BIOS is not ACPI compliant." There just hasn’t been much reported on this issue but I can attest to past BIOS issues with the A8N board listed above. In fact I have three of these boards stacked in my closet. There is still no fix, that I found, other than to be sure you have a usb device plugged in so the board will boot. That can be in the form of a USB storage device or even a USB mouse. Checking the Asus site I see the latest bios for this board is dated March 20th 2007 so that tells me that ASUS has done nothing to prevent the problem.
6. FIX
This rather unprofessional fix reminds me of putting electric tape on a leaky radiator hose, but so far that’s all we have. If you have installed SP3 to your AMD/Asus based computer, cannot boot, and feel rear-ended, the fix is to stick a USB device in your machine. How pitiful is that?
7. AutoUpdate. Automatic Updating is a problem unto itself. As outlined earlier in this article you may loose your restore points because of a lack of restore spcae. You an also experience any of the problems outlined above because Automatic Updates installed this mess without your knowledge. The fixes or lack of fixes can vary with each individual situation. Rather than a fix, I suggest avoiding the problem completely.
7. PREVENTION
There are a couple of ways to prevent this problem. The most obvious is to turn off Auto Updates. Start/Control Panel/Security/Turn Off Automatic Updates/. You can also turn it off in Services. Start/Run/type"services.msc" without the quotes/Automatic Updates/Stop/Disable/Apply/OK.
If you would like to continue with updates but avoid Service Pack 3, use this helpful link provided my Drew Mathers. The link and download are from Microsoft's Website. It stops Automatic Updates from downloading service pack 3 for one year. I'm including it here incase you want updates but not service packs. Thanks Drew.
New problems seem to be surfacing almost hourly. Many times in the last 72 hours I’ve stopped writing only to go back and add additional information as it surfaced. Articles and rewrites of articles abound on the Internet but mostly people are getting rear-ended after installing Windows XP SP3. Both the HP/AMD problem and the Norton/SP3 problem, have very similar reports dating back to the SP2 roll out years back. You gotta wonder why Microsoft doesn’t learn. Surely Microsoft has employees with more than 4 years tenure. Since it’s been almost four years since the first release of SP2, there has certainly been time to get it right.
Without getting back into to the “Whose To Blame” game, it appears that even in the case of the HP/AMD issue, there is more involved than HP’s added dll instructions. Clearly the responsibility for a clean and problem free Service Pack sits on Microsoft.
Oh, by the way, have you hard anything from Microsoft other than the sound of squeeeeeling tires as you get rear-ended?
May 25th, 2008 at 4:37 pm
I guess that I'm one of the lucky ones who hasn't had any problems with the SP3 update. My computer is an AMD64 chip. Or is it because I may not have some of the applications that would encourage a crash, installed in this machine?
May 25th, 2008 at 4:51 pm
This Microsoft utility will deley Automatic Update installing SP3 for 12 months following initial release:
http://technet.microsoft.com/en-ca/windowsvista/bb927794.aspx
May 25th, 2008 at 11:00 pm
I installed sp3 bata (with all backup and care taken) NO PROBLEMS!!!
I turned auto update on and forgot about it. Rebooted last night BANG Now I am dead in the water. It appears to be a regestry problem. It also appears to have killed my sys restore point because I also had my restore size small. Never again will I use auto update. Thank goodness for backups!!!!
May 25th, 2008 at 11:56 pm
I have an AMD64 chip on an ASUS board and have no problems with the SP3 update so far. I didn't know that it was being loaded until it was on the machine. Thanks for the email warning and suggested fixes.
May 26th, 2008 at 12:42 am
Alas … after SP3, my system went downhill fast. I tried to fix via MS support - after an hour, I gave up. Time to format and start over (this is the mantra of Microsoft). Re-load a piece at a time, first Windows XP and then upgrade a file at a time. After this (only after I was sure nothing else would sneak in), did I add my personal software. After a week - no problems (some icons play hide and seek). Don't know if this is an option for all, but so far, so good. God, how I hate to sit at my computer and wait for the next slide into oblivion!
May 26th, 2008 at 12:58 am
Have sony vgnfj150 standard laptop 1.7 cpu.
defraged, full scanned with symantec 360 v2, then automatically downloaded sp3.
results; computer runs faster no problems, although, msba security 2.1 was not compatable,. (showed updates were not completed,microsoft noted that msba 2.0 was recommended) I downloaded msba 2.0 have had no other issues.
May 26th, 2008 at 2:15 am
Thank God, I'm one of the lucky ones then. I downloaded & installed SP3 on May6-7, when it was offered on Microsoft Update, & have been running it since.
I own an IBM Thinkcentre with CPU an Intel Pentium 4 531, 3000 MHz.
May 26th, 2008 at 3:23 am
WOW! I hvae all ready installed it on my laptop and now screwed!
May 27th, 2008 at 7:51 am
Thanks Drew Mathers.
That's an excellent find.
May 29th, 2008 at 2:44 pm
I want to know if you can delete the old service pack's now that you have installed sp3
they take up so much MB'S! Doe's any one know the answer? Thanks!
May 29th, 2008 at 8:18 pm
Hello Cheryl.
Have you installed Service pack 1, Servie pack 2 and Service Pack 3, all seperately from the original operating system?
May 29th, 2008 at 10:50 pm
I installed SP3 one to two weeks ago. At first, it didn't seem problematic. However, over the past three days my system performance degraded seriously. The degradation may be connected to installing BitDefender (previously used Panda) or X1 Pro desktop search, but I've uninstalled both, cleaned the registry, defragged both the registry and the hard drive, emptied the prefetch folder, deleted all temporary files, etc., etc. If anything, performance worse. Looks like a total reinstall. God I love the Microminds at Microsoft.
May 30th, 2008 at 7:28 am
Wow. My sympathies to all Windows users. Between Vista and Service Pack 3, not to mention all the securtiy issues with viruses, etc., no wonder so many are switching to the Mac OS. To all all those I can only say: Welcome to paradise!
June 4th, 2008 at 10:16 am
I made the mistake of installing Service Pack 3 on 5/6/2008! I've since removed it. Now, I can no longer update my XP Pro with any updates from MS, they refuse to inatall. I am now in the process of rebuilding on a new HD! I had a rocket PC prior to this Service Pack. Intel MB DG33FB, CPU Core 2 Quad 2.4 GHZ, 4GB DDR2 800MHZ Ram, & Maxtor SATA/150 200GB, & ATI Radeon 1650 w/512MB. This is another of MS saying lets let the Public test this for us and we'll fix it later. I am a systems developer and have a lot of software to reload. It will probably take me at least a month of installs (on weekends only)! I'm NOT a happy camper!!! Tkx. for listening.
Bob
June 4th, 2008 at 6:14 pm
Am I the only person who installed SP3 and had no problem at all? I run XP Home on an Alienware Area-51 that's four years old (a long time for me!), and all is well. I turned off System Restore from the very beginning, using GoBack when I need to "go back." This PC has a 120-gig HD, 3-gig Pentium 4 processor, 1024 megs of installed memory — and running all the time.
June 4th, 2008 at 6:19 pm
Well, I guess Im lucky as of now, my XP will not allow my computer to install sp3 no matter what I do. I have spent 7 hrs with MS on this matter and they cant get it install. Maybe I have a guardian angel trying to not allow this? The MS higher level guys are supposed to contact me tonight to see whats wrong. Im now just interested to see why it wont install but contemplating the install with all I have read here. I dont have an AMD so that should help.
June 4th, 2008 at 6:30 pm
How fortunate am I. I have a laptop and a desk top running VISTA ULT SP1 absolutely no hitches on orproblems.
I have an additional desk top and a laptop, both 5 years old running XP Pro SP3 with no problems as well.
Why am I missing all the fun with all the apparent problems??
June 4th, 2008 at 6:47 pm
I am running xp and installed sp3. The only problem I experienced was the format function in ms works did not work. There is a fix for that. I downloaded and it now works o.k.
June 4th, 2008 at 6:55 pm
Since downloading sp3 my only hitch has been that I have lost all Windows sounds and net audio. Anybody got any ideas?
June 4th, 2008 at 7:15 pm
I installed WinXP SP3 to two HP desktops in mid-May with no problems then or now. Both are Intel machines and neither is state of the art. In fact, they both came with Win98. I upgraded them to XP and then to SP2. MS Auto-update is turned on for both machines and works as it should.
June 4th, 2008 at 8:09 pm
I too installed SP3 and am having absolutely no problems. Considering the time that MS had SP3 in beta testing I am surprised that so-called reliable vendors (Symantec, AMD and others)have not fixed their drivers and software. Blaming MS is nonsense. My PC is HP, WinXP Home, Pentium 4, 3.2 GHZ, 3 GB Ram, 420 GB Hard Drive.
June 4th, 2008 at 11:07 pm
I installed XP SP-3 and I have not experienced the probalmse that others seem to have.
Howeer, I seem to have a problem with Adobe Reader. I get error messages that tell me that Adobe Add Ons have not been enabaled.
Yet in checking I find that my Adobe Add On has been enable.
In any case, regardless of the error message I click it off and Adobe Reader then works. So, I do not have a problem of any kind of major sort.
June 5th, 2008 at 6:20 am
i want to thank every one with all the feed back to this problem…all this time i thought my hard drive was crashing…ISP said it was DSL modem..then started loosing every thing from device manager….living a hell..well now i will start checking all the things that was submitted on this site
June 5th, 2008 at 7:36 am
I think you're being a too hard on SP3, I've installed it on about 15 computers so far including my 2 computers, my wife's, and numerous customer's computers (including an HP recovery) with not so much as a hiccup. If people are having problems, I suspect a large part of it is because they haven't taken the necessary precautions beforehand to ensure a trouble-free installation (just like with SP2).
Scan for viruses, spyware, clean up junk files, defragment, temporarily disable antivirus. People are allowing Automatic Updates to install SP3 on an already corrupted computer, then blaming SP3 for their shortcomings.
I have no doubt there are snafus with SP3 and I'm not trying to say there aren't, I'm just saying it's not right to tell people to stay away from it. I would think educating people to take necessary precautions would be a better message to convey.
I have Office 2003 Professional, Word works fine post SP3.
June 5th, 2008 at 7:45 am
No issues with XP SP3 after 107 PC upgrades, on both AMD and Intel based systems.
Instead I notice a bit of performance increase, shorter boot time and faster download.
I was waiting for a PC to crash, freeze, etc so I could rant a little bit.
June 5th, 2008 at 10:22 am
I ran Jesper's little program before attempting to install XP3 on my AMD-based HP Pavilion desktop. Installation went smoothly, and I haven't experienced any of the problems I've read about in posts above. System performance seems slightly improved and my restore points remain intact. Knock wood.
June 5th, 2008 at 10:26 am
I've upgraded 12 XP Pro and 4 XP Home workstations in the last month and have not seen a single problem. Mostly Dell machines of various vintages.
June 5th, 2008 at 10:46 am
Installed on 3 PCs running XP Professional and no problems. Hardware varies from Intel to AMD; none of my PCs are "branded." I would certainly rather have this update than move to Vista at this point.
June 5th, 2008 at 11:20 am
I agree with Larry. I've installed SP3 on 3 machines, one of which only has 1G of memory and is slow. Took all the precautions, backup, disc cleanup, defragment, no anti-virus during Windows Update. The only thing I will warn is that the process takes an hour, much time spent in black screen. Do NOT assume something is frozen and reboot or you WILL have problems! I've been running for 3 weeks without issue. In fact, the weak machine seems more stable now, perhaps that was from the defrag!
June 5th, 2008 at 11:20 am
I suggest I am also one of the lucky guys to install SP3 without problem on 2 computers
1st is a HP pavilion with XP Media center and 2nd one is a white label P4 station
The only thing I noticed was the activiation of the XP Firewall, which was disabled.
June 5th, 2008 at 11:25 am
This kind of melodramatic reporting tends to cause more problems then what really exist. I'm beginning to think that PC Pitstop is losing it or someone there is feeling neglected in their own life and is just dying to get attention from another source. Either way; the credibility of this site is beginning to fade. I know many people who installed the SP3, including myself and not one of us has had any of the problems described here, nor were any problems we did encounter anything to shout about.
All of this melodrama is a disservice to anyone who comes here for help.
June 5th, 2008 at 11:27 am
I have had no problems with this update. I installed it on multiple systems (at least 4) and none have had problems with the update. 1 was my laptop, and the other 3 were desktops either my Dad or I built. They all use AMD processors.
June 5th, 2008 at 11:50 am
I installed sp3 on may 6th and had a VERY BAD experince with this my computer crashed i was on the phone with Microsoft tech f0r 6 to 7 hrs and never got my computer going until i did a complete format. My advice is take your computer OFF of auto update and leave sp3 alone
June 5th, 2008 at 11:51 am
The upgrade from SP2 to SP3 installed perfectly with no problems.
Wonder how many machines out there currently have symptoms of untidy and cluttered registry and bad (.dll) files prior to the SP3 upgrade?
If you plan on installing SP3 (which I can recommend) then please insure your computer has a clean bill of health.
June 5th, 2008 at 11:51 am
I downloaded the SP3 and I could not update Windows. Fortunately, I found a "solution" to let me back in the Windows Updates. Found a "fix" on one of the Windows Forums. I downloaded a program called DialaFix and ran it. Down near the bottom there are a couple of checkboxes regarding updates. I checked them and ran the program….then I was able to get updates.
June 5th, 2008 at 12:28 pm
I had mine running with sp3 and it went to crap 3 days later and i repaired with xp disk then couldnt update and fix nothing so i turned auto up-date off and downloaded sp3 from cnet.com and autoinstalled it, it works great now but update is turned off cause it tries to update and cant over and over again, cnet's the way to go to get sp3
June 5th, 2008 at 12:36 pm
I have installed SP3 on four PC's (1 HP laptop, 3 of my own build's with AMD processors) with only a minor problem on 1 desktop. However, it makes sense to follow the advice to increase the size of your system restore space prior to the upgrade; this way you'll be able to restore to an earlier point if the upgrade fails or is corrupted.
Have five more PC's to go; I'm taking my time with it, of course…
June 5th, 2008 at 12:42 pm
HP Compaq Presario V2000 series, SP, AMD Turion and difficulty acquiring IP addresses on startup and wake.
Laptop would take forever to acquire an IP address from a wireless or a tethered cell phone connection.
I found instances of the problem, but no solutions on the net.
The solution I finally came up with was very simple. I upgraded the Realtek driver for the WIRED ethernet connection.
Simple and effective.
June 5th, 2008 at 1:01 pm
I'm like Keith. I've installed XP sp3 on 2 home machines with no adverse incidents. One of the machines is a Toshiba Sattelite laptop, the other is a Dell desktop. Both machines run office 2003 pro - again no problems. Frankly, performance on both machines seems slightly better under sp3 than sp2.
June 5th, 2008 at 1:15 pm
I'm glad I run Linux
June 5th, 2008 at 1:40 pm
Lol, i I downgraded this comp from the preinstalled vista (came on the hard drive i bought) to a minimal installation of Xp SP2, that i made (doesnt install all the microsoft stuff that isnt needed, as it no longer exists) SP3 installed with no problems, slight change to my FSB ratio on my ram, sorted a little lag problem i found in games after installing it, but apart from that it runs smoother than SP2, so i fail to see what the problem is, anyway if it did cause a problem id just dual boot to mac using para, and change the setting using mac terminal, or run my linux boot disc and/or spare hard drive and fix the problems, sorted really
June 5th, 2008 at 1:43 pm
I installed SP3 on my Dell desktop and my
Toshiba laptop with no problems. I don't notice any difference or improvements.
June 5th, 2008 at 1:45 pm
I installed SP3 and so far so good except for one thing. My Windows Messenger 5.1.0706 won't allow me to sign in any more. I get the error: "Signing in to Microsoft Exchange Instant Messaging failed because the service is temporarily unavailable. Please try again later."
I can't find a fix for it and uninstall SP3 didn't help either. Any suggestions? I need this for my job!!!
Thanks
June 5th, 2008 at 1:46 pm
It's not what a person runs on their styem as much as it is the person running the system. I know just as many Linux users as Windows users who are always having to fix or tweak something and none of them ever seem to actually be producing anything with their machines, but spend all of their time tweakling and fixing them.
Most of the problems seem to be the result of already corrupt systems and lots of folks have a hard time admitting that they are not as computer savy as they think they are and prefer to blame anything or anyone else but the source of their problems.
Themselves.
June 5th, 2008 at 1:46 pm
Installed SP3 and have had absolutely no problems what so ever, even with auto updates.
Evesham PC with Athlon 64.
June 5th, 2008 at 1:50 pm
Hi all!
I downloaded the update from microsoft 2 days ago. I think the update for sp3 was 69 megs in size. I have had no problems at all. The only difference I noticed was that when I use Belarc Advisor, it no longer shows most of my past updates. IT does show sp3.
I ran my registry program & it only found 2 registry enteries that were not valid & I simply deleted them. Before I updated, I turned off Norton and I turned off system restore. I have a dell (Notice dell without the capital) 8250 Pent4 3206 cpu 1500 megs ram.
I hope no surprises come my way later with the update.
June 5th, 2008 at 2:20 pm
Is it possible just to uninstall it from Add/Remove, or will it mess upevery thing else? The only thing I have noticed is that my computer is running slower. Not sure if SP3 is the culprit or not'
thanks
June 5th, 2008 at 2:24 pm
after installing sp3 when i start my pc it comes up with windows installer telling me an msi file for window messenger isnt on my system for windows live,but messenger is installed and working,anyway too get rid of this please thanks
June 5th, 2008 at 2:25 pm
I installed SP3 and when I rebooted, I got the Blue Screen of Death. I could not even boot in SAFE mode. Thank goodness I had a backup with Norton Save & Restore and I was able to boot up my system with the Norton disk. After I restored my system my PC is running fine with SP3. What a hassell! I have a Dell XPS 400 with Windows XP Media Edition, Intell VIIV processeor and 3 gigs of RAM.
June 5th, 2008 at 2:34 pm
Have installed SP3 two weeks ago. Having read a lot of the comments I was giving birth to kittens, but so far I have had no problems whatsoever. In fact MS word(2003) works faster than before, even with a document over 70Mb. Adobe (8) which I use a extensively transmitting documents from home to work and back again works without problem.
June 5th, 2008 at 3:05 pm
Iafter a total reinstall of WinXP followed by SP3 (and upgrade from Internet Explorer 6 to 7) I am no longer able to start an event, or open an existing event, in Google Calendar.
has anyone an idea whether this is related to SP3 (or Explorer 7?)
June 5th, 2008 at 3:44 pm
I first installed SP3 on my XP Pro PC. (AMD 2800 xp CPU with 1G RAM) Anti-Virus software was turned off as well as all other background programs. Well, I ended up with MS Update not working, my Anti-Virus software was no longer recognized and some more of the above problems. A re-install of XP solved most of the issues. The second time was on XP Home (I didn't learn). Same processor, 512 Mb of RAM different motherboard. No other programs including Anti-Virus were installed. I let Auto-Update install SP3… Needless to say, another fresh install of XP Home resolved the problems only this time I prevented SP3 from loading. Thanks Microsoft. How did you know I am retired with lots of free time?
June 5th, 2008 at 3:46 pm
I personally run Vista on 4 PC's without a twitch, but that didn't stop me from spending 3.5 hours in front of a friend's XP box after he allowed SP3 to wreak havoc… It had become stuck on the splash screen following initial reboot. I uninstalled via safe mode and downloaded the exe completely first…disabled the firewall and antivirus (after unplugging the CAT cable) and attempted the installation again. Repeat of the exact same nightmare! I ripped it out, tossed the exe and turned off auto updates. Runs fine with SPXP2 and recent updates…Is this Bill's way to drive the masses to Vista?
June 5th, 2008 at 3:52 pm
I ve installed SP3 n havent noticed any problems yet.
June 5th, 2008 at 3:54 pm
Widow PC with an ASUS motherboard, no problems whatsoever with SP3. IE7 does act up but was with SP2 also. when I close a 2nd window first goes to a blank page, if I dont remember to open links in new tab. Good news is I use Mozzilla for the most part.
June 5th, 2008 at 4:28 pm
No problems here! SP3 went in just fine…using IE7 too.
June 5th, 2008 at 4:49 pm
Just to add to the list of problems. After installing SP3 & uninstalling SP3, I now have problems with Photoshop Elements 6.0. Now some of the editing tools will not work!
June 5th, 2008 at 4:52 pm
I had a clean system because I bought a refurbished Dell Precision 370 running at 3.2 GH, with XP on it. I made sure it was clean and have had nothing but dependable, fast performance since installing SP3.
Please report both sides of the story, I have yet to meet anyone who has had a problem with SP3 and I have been asking everyone I know and meet.
June 5th, 2008 at 4:53 pm
Can you say Linux?
June 5th, 2008 at 5:13 pm
The first or second day or so when it was out, I immediately let auto-update install SP3.
And I have found NO problems whatsoever.
What's wrong with you people, keep your computers clean.
And don't use Symantec or Norton, it sucks!
As you can see once again…
I also didn't find that much new to SP3.
Except the many fixes, which I hope are doing their jobs.
And the 5% or so better performance, it does really start a bit quicker.
June 5th, 2008 at 5:25 pm
Guess I am also among the numerous lucky ones. I have all 4 of my computers running SP3 and have not had a single problem. The unit I'm writing this with ran the SP3 Beta also with no problems - actually I am running the SP3, IE8 and Silverlight2 Betas currently - if you can read thisit must be working.
Gosh, how I wish I could blame all my problems on Microsoft.
June 5th, 2008 at 5:26 pm
the only problem i'm having is random reboots usually when my pc is idle for long periods… that and if i lock it it doesnt like to give me my login prompt or show my taskbar when i can log back on….
June 5th, 2008 at 5:32 pm
Fortunately no problems. Google desktop search (late version, 5.7) is affected by SP3- commonly users report it can't be installed, doesn't run. One user has found a way to make it search, admitting the normal controls don't work. I run an older version (5.1) and that works with SP3.
Not surprisingly, Vista Transformation Pack 8 is also now not usable as it uses SP2 components, and attempts to run it to transform system files crash.
June 5th, 2008 at 5:41 pm
My computer as A8N-SLI motherboard and AMD 4600+ CPU. My own view was that problems could arise if I installed over SP2 setup because of all of the 60+ security updates that had already been installed. This led me to back-up 23 GB of data to a secondary drive
and then to wipe (KillDisk) primary drive completely and to re-install XPpro/SP2 and to install SP3 and 60 odd programs. No problems then ensued. Vista Ultimate - that's another major headache!
June 5th, 2008 at 5:47 pm
I, too, was dumb enough to install it on my laptop (an HP with AMD X2). Practically ruined my computer (I am a user of 25 years, and consider myself somewhat proficient using computers.) Doing research, it appears that for SP3 to work properly, you have to delete many previous updates, some programs, etc. In my opinion, whatever benefits come from SP3 are not worth it unless your computer has not been properly updated or too old to matter.
June 5th, 2008 at 5:50 pm
I have installed the SP3 (virus) and subsequently lost all of my cherished family photo's and cannot seem to find a way out of this mess. I may try to reformat my machine because all of the files that I really wanted are gone now anyhow. Thanx Microsoft…
June 5th, 2008 at 6:05 pm
After being rear ended with this bs "service" pack, i can't help but wonder if ms created this to punish xp users on purpose because of all the problems with vista that keep us from switching or cause us to switch back - can't reasonably call it an "upgrade" after seeing what it has done to everyone i know who migrated.
Shoulda invested in more ky cause i sure need it now. Yes, Lynn, there is a MAC in your future. Real Soon.
Note to Self: turn off that damned auto update bs NOW!!!
June 5th, 2008 at 6:07 pm
After downloading and installing SP3, my tablet's memory filled way up. Now I can't load anything else. IE7 does freeze quite often now.
June 5th, 2008 at 6:41 pm
I installed SP3 on 2 intel laptops with no problems. I also own PC Tools Registry repair and optimisation software which cleans up any dud entries, if any.
The only issue I had with SP3 was on my AMD based PC. The windows live messenger installer repeatedly failed at startup and I couldn't stop it fom running. Also slowed down computer a lot but I did find that web browsing was a lot faster with IE7 opening in record time.
I would recommend this upgrade for Intel-based PCS but not AMD-based yet.
Might also be a good idea to download a copy of CCleaner to tie up loose ends.
June 5th, 2008 at 7:32 pm
THis is awfully cynical, but is it a Microsoft attempt to push us all to Vista. I installed SP3 - everything seemed fine and then if I am running multiple programs - bang. Everything hangs. The three figured salute does not work and I have to reset the machine.
June 5th, 2008 at 7:37 pm
So far I have had no problems after installing SP3 seems like my Pc runs as good or better after the update.
June 5th, 2008 at 7:42 pm
Couldn't be Microsoft purposely sabotaging their own XP, hmmm? Look at the Windows Feature Comparison they put out to character-assassinate their best OS.
June 5th, 2008 at 7:46 pm
Thought that there might be conflict beteen the 60+ security updates and SP3, so decided to save my data to a secondary drive and completely wipe (KillDisk) primary and re-install everything anew. I have had no problems with my A8N-SLI motherboard, AMD 4600+ cpu
June 5th, 2008 at 7:48 pm
i have updated to sp3 about 2 months ago and i have had absolutely no problems..
maybe the problems that some of you seem to have is because of all the other crap that can be downloaded via internet
June 5th, 2008 at 7:59 pm
My stupid update to XP (SP3) has cost me many hours of repair time. My Dell XPS 410 still causes my cursor to freeze, and sometimes locks up the entire OS.
The update removed most of my programs from the "ALL PROGRAMS" menu, caused my Band-In-A-Box software to stutter, forced me to re-install Office 2000(!), re-install one of my printers,made me spend hours looking for obscure drivers on the internet, and made me resolve to NEVER buy another Microsoft product.
June 5th, 2008 at 8:18 pm
No problems here..
Disabled anti-virus and installed on a healthy system i.e.,
no viruses, malwares & spywares..I'm just sorry it does not
work well with everybody…
June 5th, 2008 at 8:39 pm
I have installed SP3 on my Compaq laptop (Turion 64) with no problems whatsover for nearly two months now.
SP3 simply refuses to install on my Emachines (Athlon 64)desktop but goes into some sort of loop, which will run for hours if I let it. It also locks me out. I can't even start Task Manager. However, if I interrupt the power, it will automatically uninstall and restore the computer to SP2, at which time everything seems to work OK like before. Strange or what?
June 5th, 2008 at 8:41 pm
I have been running SP3 on one of my systems since it's release and to date I have had not one of the problems on this machine. Still I really appreciate all of your articles.
June 5th, 2008 at 8:55 pm
I had the reboot problem twice now , and reinstalled windows 3 times now once to a virus , at this time everything is working well.i'm sure they will soon be patching the patch that patched the last patch.
June 5th, 2008 at 9:14 pm
Installed SP3 @ month ago on my Dell and other than the download/verify/initialize/install stalling a couple times and taking forever (@ 3hrs total), it went smoothly enough and have experienced no ill effects. Explorer with Yahoo, MSN and Webroot toolbars is actually more stable now (only 1 crash since). I ran PC Pitstop Optimize2 immediately after the install and it did a big slew of reg fixes and that helped, I'm sure…
June 5th, 2008 at 9:22 pm
I have installed SP3 on four AMD ASUS motherboards with no problems at all. There was a recent survey by PC Pitstop, but I must have missed the results. What is the percentage of people having problems out of all those who responded?
June 5th, 2008 at 9:31 pm
Wow! So much frustration from so many people. I have Vista on my desktop and XP - SP3 on my laptop. I have not had a single problem from either of the operating systems. I have had Vista over a year and love it. It runs smoothly, fast and efficiently. I have not had any problems with any additional software from other vendors.
June 5th, 2008 at 9:34 pm
I have had no problems because I read your newsletter. Thank you so much for the heads up. I turned off my automatic updates before they had a chance to download SP3. Thank you, Thank you, Thank you. I check your website before I do anything.
June 5th, 2008 at 9:46 pm
Absolutely no problems with SP3
June 5th, 2008 at 10:09 pm
I installed SP3 on my XP media center PC and Media center no longer worked.I also have the pc networked to my xbox360 and when I tried to connect to pc after SP3 install it said no media center pc found.Uninstalled SP3 could not get MEdia center working again.I had to Format and reinstall Xp.I dont think I will install sp3 until there is a fix for Media center.
June 5th, 2008 at 10:24 pm
I installed SP3 on my two home computers on May 11. After a week without problems, I installed it on my two office computers. I have not had any problems on any of the four computers since.
I suspect many of the problems described above are occurring to "shade tree mechanics" who think they are smarter than the people who design these systems. I bought my first PC in 1986. I have never had to reformat my hard drive and start over. How many of the "mechanics" have done just that and blamed it on something or someone other than themselves.
June 5th, 2008 at 10:34 pm
Installed SP3 on my laptop ~1 month ago, because I heard that it should increase the speed of winXP. I didn't see any speed increase, but on the other hand I haven't seen any of the problems described on this site either. Only problem I've experienced was that the incoming video in skype only showed the first image for some of the people i video-skype with.
Fix for skype problem was to persuade the person I couldn't see live pictures from to upgrade her skype software.
June 5th, 2008 at 10:43 pm
I installed SP3 in my Intel Core2 custom built computer (built this one after having nasty problems with my last 2 Dells). It ran very nicely before and has been running great guns ever since downloading. I might add, my Word Processor of preference is (and has been for years) Word Perfect (now Corel Word Perect) and I also keep regular checks on my system using both Registry Mechanic and PC Pitstop.
I notice one comment mentioned losing Windows Update … I lost that well before SP3. Just one of "those things." It, as he said, was not difficult to repair.
June 5th, 2008 at 10:44 pm
i installed sp3 and 2 days later my computer would not boot up not even in safe mode i called dell and they said sp3 wont work on mine ,2004 dell they tried to fix it and could noti lost everything on it,hundreds of pics had to reinstall windows ,stay away from sp3
June 5th, 2008 at 10:46 pm
of course many people (with only one computer0 who have had problems with the xp3 upload have NOT BEEN ABLE to comment or find fixes because they are left incommunicado
June 5th, 2008 at 11:58 pm
I'm batting .800 on SP3 updates. Nice system boost too.
June 6th, 2008 at 12:12 am
I come from a PC user time when you had to know how to fix your own problems, write some of your own software, plus do daily system maintence just to keep the crashs at bay. I never run into problems, partly from my starting PC habbits and because I'm a performence junky…never overclocked a system enough to need extra cooling. Though I do run into Dell propritory hardware incompatibilty, Dell modified version of hardware will work in the system, all other hardware does not even get seen though RAM and Processors still work fine without a hitch.
Simple retrival of data from an HD, plug it into another machince, copy said files…done. You can also defrag system files that way.
June 6th, 2008 at 12:17 am
I installed SP3 on 3 of my DELL laptops, and have had no problems with any of them! I read the first warning about a week after the installs, and had no clue what was being referred to. I have 2 more older DELLS that haven't been updated as of yet, but as soon as I have time, I'll update those to SP3 also! I guess the MOCROSOFT GODS are SMILING ON ME!
June 6th, 2008 at 12:20 am
I too installed SP3 through and automatic update update IE7 became unsusable and so did Outlook uninstalled but still had problems. Did not have a restore point, but I did have a recovery points through Norton Ghost. Rcovered back to 4/24/08. thanks for the link to block SP3.
June 6th, 2008 at 12:24 am
ive had minor problems, i installed sp3 2 weeks ago on my hp pavilion 532w with 1.7 celeron cpu and 1 gig pc2100 ram running xp home avg and spybot so far only had 1 freeze with a reboot that required registry fixes and no matter what i try the date and time is always wrong adjust doesnt keep right now it shows tuesday, june 3rd 12:46 am? annoying but not critical
June 6th, 2008 at 12:26 am
I Totally agree in the whole news letter in this email that sp 2+3 have nothing but problems from the day it was introduced.
And with the way Technology moves every minute of the day we will pay for more problems in the computer world.
So it comes to this a never ending problem,as new technology has to be put on trial and sold, to try and correct problems.
So we can't win that easy.
Yours,R De Raad.
June 6th, 2008 at 12:29 am
When will it ever end,problems that is.
June 6th, 2008 at 12:56 am
I thought I had no problems but my notebook (HP9000)cannot access the Home computer (Dell)using Network Magic. The home computer can see the shared files on the notebook OK but not the reverse. I've tried the suggestions for LiveOnecare firewall but it worked OK before. Has any one else had problems with their home network?
June 6th, 2008 at 1:06 am
Well, I've installed it on 2,600 or so PCs with problems on about 22. Clean build of those PCs with SP2 then upgrade to SP3 sorted them all out. PCs range from P4 1.6 to Dual Core E8500s. All apps we use seem fine, mainly versions of MS Office from 97 to 2007.
June 6th, 2008 at 1:14 am
I am one of the lucky ones - I allowed SP3 to install on three machines - I was blissfully unaware of any problems and still am, several weeks later.
June 6th, 2008 at 1:38 am
thank God I turned off automatic updates, SP3 does not stand for service pack 3, it stands for Satan-Paimon 3 hahaha…stay away from the devil
June 6th, 2008 at 1:39 am
I have 2 Vista Home Premium SP1 machines and 1 XP Pro SP3. All running well. I keep drivers updated as well as all applications - also I back up important files regularly. Ever since Windows 95, whenever MS does something, a great wailing goes out in blogs and forums. I've never quite understood the cry - never had much of a problem.
June 6th, 2008 at 1:44 am
forewheel Says:
June 4th, 2008 at 6:55 pm
Since downloading sp3 my only hitch has been that I have lost all Windows sounds and net audio. Anybody got any ideas?
I had the same problem and was at my wits end until I updated my Realtek drivers (from Realtek) Microsoft wouldn't update them. Now everything is fine
June 6th, 2008 at 1:53 am
I installed SP3 just after it was released. I was in the process of setting up a new PC on XP Pro. I hit a snafoo when trying to install Adobe Audition 2.0. During installation it looks for an OS namely WIN XP with SP2. When this is not found (because now you have WIN XP SP3) the installation fails with a message stating that you don't appear to have the appropriate OS installed on your machine. I quickly uninstalled SP3 and haven't been back since.
June 6th, 2008 at 1:53 am
I have an hp desk top that's going on two years old with xp2 media software on it and amd panthien…….late March I did get the security technical screen and what happened next you wouldn't want to know. I have a warrantee with Office depot extended warrantee company. My computer shut down completely. My Motherboard was burned out after loading xp3 software. As luck would have it, the replacement motherboard and a new converter were ordered. The first one that came was the wrong motherboard and was returned with a new one ordered. I finally got the new motherboard today. Now I'm waiting for the maintence tech. to come to do the install. Who knows if it will work? I have been without my operating system since March! I hate computers.
June 6th, 2008 at 2:00 am
installed it from the microsoft website, not noticed any problems one bit. ran smoother and happier since sp3
June 6th, 2008 at 2:06 am
I'm running an AMD AthlonXP 2200* and not only have had no problems, but Rome Total War no longer locks up after installing SP3. Other programs that used to be unstable seem to work better, too. I've also noticed that it seems that Windows Movie Maker has been fixed. I no longer have problems with it, either.
June 6th, 2008 at 3:09 am
I was rear-ended by this install too. After installing SP3, one of my stripped drives wouldn't initialise. Despite many attempts to re mount the drive, nothing. After losing over 500GB of data, I decided to reinstall and avoid SP3 like the plague. I have been told that SP3 contains no drivers, maybe so, but it does a damn fine job of b***ering up what's there.
June 6th, 2008 at 3:20 am
SP3 installed without my knowledge. Two blue screens then Windows advised it had encountered a serious system error. It re-booted itself, and since then it seems to be okay. However one thing does concern me - something is running on my machine and reporting to somebody via the internet. Until it has completed (takes 3-4 minutes), I cannot use my machine Does anybody know of a way of finding out what this job is and how to stop it.
June 6th, 2008 at 3:39 am
i installed sp3 in may since then i cannot burn music to cd's with windows media player and my dvd rewrite drive does not show up on my send to menu even when i try to put a shortcut in there my drive being a philips dvdr1628p1 even though i updated the drivers for this drive with phillips intelligent agent i even uninstalled sp3 and did a full reinstall of windows xp but the problem is still there so much for microspot or is it microcrackpots
June 6th, 2008 at 4:13 am
I had "download but don't install" turned on when Microsoft dumped SP3 on us. SP3 is downloaded on two of my PCs and I get a prompt to install it every time that I turn on the PCs. Does anyone know how to delete the SP3 downloads totally? It is somewhat like knowing that I have cancer but not knowing how to remove it–albeit the analogy is imperfect. I am running XP Pro MCE 2005 on one PC and XP Pro on the other.
June 6th, 2008 at 4:21 am
I run an AMD desktop. After reloading XP following a crash I accepted about 45 updates and then switched off auto updates to avoid MicroSoft's nag icon in the bottom right hand corner.
Having read all the problems with XP SP3 and AMD processors, for which many thanks to Pitstop PC, I shall not be switching them on again for some time.
Keep up the good work, Pitstop!
June 6th, 2008 at 4:36 am
Just thought I'd put a note in regarding my experience with installing SP3. I've installed it on 70+ machines that I manage and not one has shown any problems. All the machines have system restore turned off. We use daily Acronis Disk imaging on all systems. I tend to agree with Keith - 5th June - many systems are corrupt before the SP3 update - and then SP3 gets the blame.
June 6th, 2008 at 4:47 am
Don't get it!!! Installed sp3 with NO hitches… Everything works… Ran into some trouble with the beta release but haven't had any probs at all with the final… So… whats up with your setups that cause all the problems??? and what is the percentage of ppl having hassles compared to ppl having no probs at all???
June 6th, 2008 at 5:15 am
I had problems with IE 7 after installing XP SP3, but installed IE 8 Beta. This fixed the problem for me.
Apart form that everything seems OK.
June 6th, 2008 at 5:53 am
SP3 left me unable to play video in Media Center- Code 13 error, similar to what SP1 did to people. I applied the fix from then and it worked. But I had to reinstall SP3 and the same video problem came back and this time no attempts by me could get video/tv working with MCE. So I went out and got Vista, which is maybe microsoft's objective
June 6th, 2008 at 5:59 am
Wait just 1 second, Microsoft deserve an award for their release of XP3, and before you jump down my throat hear me out. OK we all hate VISTA, and MS know this, so just to be helpful, they want to release service pack 3 to mae our transition to VISTA that little easier, sweet you may say, but (dum dum dum Sinister Music Plays) MS play the oldest game in the book, they have intentionally created a pack that will corrupt every system that its installed on, we are then requested to mess about for so long until we give in and go to VISTA, nice try MS, These MS guys are paid 6 figure salaries to make mistakes, this was an intentional move by MS and I'd argue anyone who could prove me wrong, Now im going into hiding before MS send a hitman after me.
June 6th, 2008 at 6:00 am
I have had nothing but issues w/ SP3, iAStor errors are slowing my pc to a halt,- my system have been running flawlessly for a year and the minute SP3 is installed, it goes to hell,- how can anyone ignore the countless complaints all over the net?- all one have to do is google it and read about this nightmare.- I have to agree :; - STAY AWAY FROM SP3.
June 6th, 2008 at 6:08 am
I can say that I have no problems with SP3. It installed cleanly, I installed IE7 cleanly and have not had any network problems. I haven't had any problems with Word or my motherboard or BIOS.
It could be that the SP will only conflict with some makes of computer or certain series of Hardware from a brand.
I use Pheonix Technologies BIOS, and my brother who has an AMD motherboard has no problems either.
June 6th, 2008 at 6:22 am
I am not quite sure whether it has given me problems or not. I did first a repair install using xp with slipstreamed sp2 on an older cranky machine which fixed a lot of problems I had been having. (I am still not sure of the origin of these, but I suspect some corrupt stuff in the registry). I then added sp3 which made no apparent difference to anything. The machine eventually was working better than it had done for years, so I decided to add a bit more ram, then an extra HD via an ide porton a pci card. Then stuff started going downhill, though I am not certain of the reason or reasons, and the machine eventually died. I have now built a new system (intel board, sata drive in ide mode, 1gb ram) and used the same slipstreamed disk followed (after a brief interval during which update had already downloaded and installed about 90 updates)by sp3. SO FAR everything has been absolutely fine. Make of this what you will, but at the very least, it seems to work OK on a clean system. I have also installed the Japanese beta version (downloaded before Christmas)on a second-hand laptop I bought for my wife, again with no apparent problems.
June 6th, 2008 at 6:24 am
I have three machines here, 1 XP Pro, 2 XP Home .
1 is a Pentium 4 Dell 8124 the others are AMD Socket 2 dual core on Abit boards.
I installed SP3 on all 3 machines as soon as it came out and have as yet seen no issues of any kind at all.
June 6th, 2008 at 6:38 am
I dunno, I have no problems with SP3. NOne. NO registry issues, no programs stalling, no problems running it. I've had it for about, three four five weeks now and I haven't had a single issue.
(Dell Dimension 9100, Pentium 4 with 1 gig ram)
June 6th, 2008 at 6:43 am
I have installed xp sp3 and have no problems with anything at all. I have office 2007, norton and loads of main games and programs and have no glitches. When i went to vista then i get all the errors. I have A Intel core 2 quad and asus mobo.
June 6th, 2008 at 7:00 am
I installed sp3 on a clean system everything is working just fine
June 6th, 2008 at 7:19 am
Concerning the hide&seek icons, I lost my volume icon permanant and my anti-virus is there on one boot-up and not there the next, so I'm thinking thats what was meant by hide & seek icons. I have an intel P4 3ghz with biostar MB
June 6th, 2008 at 7:26 am
Well, I think it's a bit harsh saying that SP3 is a 'viper'. Although M$ has not had the best track record, these issues are limited to a specific set of configurations. I don't have an AMD processor nor an AMD mobo, I don't have Home Server, haven't had any issues with Word, have had no registry corruption, and If I ever found a 'branded' version of IE7 on my system it would have been immediately wiped off my drive as soon as I discovered it as I do for any Big Box Branded computers (Dell and HP to be more specific). All in all, SP3 has done nothing wrong nor has it made any improvements on my system.
June 6th, 2008 at 7:45 am
It's been a month now since I installed SP3 and no problems to-date. I have notice my web browser is working faster and boot time is quicker. But.. I have not notice anything else that SP3 has done. I have four computers in my network and all seem to be fine after updating to SP3.
June 6th, 2008 at 7:52 am
Have Sp3 installed on both my Intel based desktop and AMD laptop with no problems. I guess it's more of a "weirdly" configured system problem than an update one.
June 6th, 2008 at 8:07 am
I installed SP3 with no problems what so ever! word works just fine every application works fine! I did the install manually but did all of the other install's that came before it manually first. this includes all of the office updates. Like the one pesn said, I must be one of the lucky ones!
June 6th, 2008 at 8:12 am
Installed SP3 , no problems what so ever , no significant changes to pc were needed , however I imagine had I had some type of spyware,adware, virus etc etc etc … I would have had some problems. As some have said , it is best to keep your pc clean as possible and keep it maintained as you would anything else (house , car , etc etc ..)
June 6th, 2008 at 8:16 am
Has everybody forgotten about THE FIX for all Windows problems? Guatanteed to work.
1. Save all you data to whatever (another partitions, DVD, etc).
2. Insert "Startup Diskette" or "Startup CD" (I made my own from the excellent one in Win 98 SE.)
3. Shuit down and restart.
4. When it's up, enter "Format C:"
5. Reinstall a Half-Decent version of Windows.
6. When ready, use the dreadful IE ONCE to go to either opera.com or firefox.com, and permanently fix that problem.
7. Be Happy!
June 6th, 2008 at 8:19 am
Something is wrong here. I have seen people who installed XP SP3, with absolutely no problems. As to those 'garbage' entries in the registry, I've seen a few of them in Vista and Vista SP1 in all honesty. In fact, about once a week I have to remove garbage entries from the 'Local Machine' registry hive because some application (it appears to be Microsoft Office on Vista) keeps on putting them into the registry and it slows down the computer MASSIVELY.
Something tells me these problems are not totally a problem with SP3, but with SP3 AND some pieces of hardware and software out there, that Microsoft was too darn stupid to test on.
June 6th, 2008 at 8:24 am
I installed SP3 upon release and to date I haven't had any problems at all.
June 6th, 2008 at 8:26 am
I specialize in software installation and repair and from my own experience and contact with customers SP3 will foul up most newer AMD/HP machines and users of Symnatec products. Users who install and/or auto install SP3 without turning off or disabling their Antivirus software will also strike problems. If your machine is clean (ie registry, temp files, %temp% files etc) Sp3 will run well and marginally improve performance. If you 3rd party download Sp3 ie Cnet etc you had better turn off your Autoupdate.
June 6th, 2008 at 8:27 am
I installed Sp3 on first day available so far so good. I don't see any difference in performance good or bad. If I have problems I am in trouble because I run restore at bare minimum. I also had no problems with Sp2
June 6th, 2008 at 8:36 am
Patches on the patches. Sooner or later it gets ya! Saw this with software development in engineering. So, XP has a lot of miles on it and stuff is bound to get lost, corrupted, conflicted, et al. But, here's something positive related to above. I installed SP3 on my ancient eMachine with MSI mutha-board, Intel powered. Didn't crash but kinda clunky - especially during boot. Then I did something wonderful - installed Norton Antivirus 2008. The biggest improvement in speed and system smoothness I've seen in years. Then came the updates from Norton which I surmise were related to SP3. I've been golden since (knock on wood). Maybe we all need Norton Antivirus? These guys have always been on top of the game, we used it at EDS for years - not perfect but seem to do a first rate job. But remember this: There is not such thing as bug-free software. Gonna git cha sooner or later! Mike
June 6th, 2008 at 8:37 am
after installing sp3, i have had not one problem
June 6th, 2008 at 8:43 am
Boy, I sure feel for you guys … I remember the days when I used Windows. Macs are so much better. And if you need to run Windows, they can do that to. Amazing machines! Solid Unix operating system.
June 6th, 2008 at 8:47 am
Guess I'm one of the lucky ones. Got a Micro-Star KN8 AMD Athlon 64×2 3800 Socket 939 m.b with 2 gigs memory, Nvidia Network Controller, Nvidia Graphics Card.
No problems so far. SP3 installed with no hicups and been running good ever since.
But ya also gotta understand that I have minimal services running in the background (18 for what Bill Gates thinks I need and 5 user option).
Use NOD32 for antivirus, ZoneAlarm for firewall, Linksys Wireless Router, DSL internet connection.
Hopefully it will keep running as it has since 15 May when I updated.
Hope everyone gets their problems fixed. It's a damn shame that MS still puts out BS.
Now go have a great day.
Bill
June 6th, 2008 at 9:06 am
I've seen several people asking what % of people are experiencing problems. Our survey shows that 1 in 4 are experiencing problems with service pack 3. That's extremely high regardless of operator errors. You can see the full survey here.
http://techtalk.pcpitstop.com/2008/05/27/windows-xp-sp3-survey-results/
June 6th, 2008 at 9:13 am
I've noticed on all my XP SP3 machines, even the default IE 7 struggling to open at times. Click the icon, and wait….and wait….and wait. Check task manager and the it sez IE7 is using a lil over 35,000, when it should be twice that much when running correctly. So, it's not just the branded IE7's that are getting screwed.
June 6th, 2008 at 11:17 am
Installed SP3.
Now my email spelling check is in French!
Damn…
June 6th, 2008 at 11:22 am
I've had no problems since installing this update. I have a Dell Dimension C521 running XP Version 2002, SP3 v. 3311, on an AMD Athlon 64 Processor 3200+. I use Automatic Update all the time. I don't use Norton at all, rather McAfee Security Suite. I don't use MS Office, rather MS Works. I have several manual and automatic "cleaner" programs for each of the Registry, temporary files, junk files, cookies, adware, spyware, and malware, and run them weekly (at least). I'm wondering if dumping all the blame at the foot of Microsoft is being a bit simplistic.
June 6th, 2008 at 11:25 am
Maybe my brain is waisting away, but I did install SP3 the first day available on my Emachine T2885 and have had absolutely no problems. Also have IE7pro on system before SP3. I also use Netscape 7.2 and no problems. What is your advice?
June 6th, 2008 at 11:26 am
I have successfully upgraded some 12 XP Professional systems (all Intel except 1 AMD) with SP3 without any problems. In every case, I followed up with disk defrag, Registry cleaning and Virus/Spam Protection run. Just luck?
June 6th, 2008 at 11:31 am
I have one computer I built using OEM Vista Home Premium with SP1 and all other updates with no problems of any kind. The second computer made locally and about 5 years old has XP Home with SP3 and updates with no problems now. The one problem was messenger starting when Outlook Express was opened despite clearing all boxes to prevent it. I eventually uninstalled messenger through Add/Remove/Windows programs. That method never worked before but it does now. If that hadn't worked I would have just renamed the messenger file so it could'nt be found. In regards to System restore, I turn it off and use Erunt. It is far superior and makes a restore point when the computer is turned on the first time each day. You can even make your own restore points when adding software or running a reg cleaner, etc. If Erunt was used you would'nt have MS deleting restore points. You can get Erunt at http://www.larshederer.homepage.t-online.de/erunt/
June 6th, 2008 at 11:38 am
I have an ASUS motherboard with dual Intel processors. I had several incidents with registry errors after installing SP3. However, I was able to clean them up with Registry Booster and Registry Mechanic. I did not see any additional problems after loading SP3. However, I have been getting random "vanishing connections (in this case computer lockups- no blue screen) and missing network cards" as mentioned above. I started getting this with SP2 after I loaded IE7. Frankly I think IE7 is the culprit for this problem. Cleaning IE7 cookies and cache manually seems to prevent the problem most of the time. The browser gets really sluggish just before it locks up the whole system (otherwise there is no other indication a catastrophic event ever occurred). However I am using PC-cillin (anti-virus only), Ad-Aware, Spybot and Registry Booster full time to keep things super clean. It has fixed my problems 99.5% of the time.
June 6th, 2008 at 11:42 am
im glad ive been running good. may 20th i did a reformat, installed sp2 from disc and installed sp3 from windows update. no problems.
June 6th, 2008 at 11:42 am
Runs fine for me did a fresh install sp1 sp2 sp3 in that order my windows has never been better. If you have a junk registry to start with this is a monster but for best results i suggest keeping windows on a seperate drive and doing a fresh install!!
June 6th, 2008 at 11:44 am
I installed SP3 right after it came out, and I ended up having to completely wipe my computer, and 2 hard drives. This little bugger took out 300 gigs of photos, and work I had poured my soul into. I lost my job because I couldn't recover the data I'd lost. I had the endless reboot, and the BSOD.
June 6th, 2008 at 11:48 am
I have installed SP3 on over 80 machines since it was released. On four computers the install failed. That's it, it failed four times. On those four computers there were no negative results resulting from the failed installs. Two of those were Mac Powerbooks. I know that sounds weird, but they came as part of two ultrasound units in a doctors office. The manufacturer blew away the Mac OS and installed XP Pro. When I called him to ask why they pulled such a stunt, he said the marketing department liked the brushed stainless case as it went with the rest of the equipment. Also, they wanted Macs. They got them, just without the Mac OS. I didn't think SP3 would install with that equipment and I was right.
Tim
June 6th, 2008 at 11:52 am
Hi, I have installed SP3 on both my Pcs a few weeks ago and have had no problems at all.
June 6th, 2008 at 11:52 am
I installed XP SP3 and have had no problems at all I have it on both my laptop and my desktop both which are Vista ready. Maybe it is a problem with older slower computers that just can not handle the speed necessary to run the program correctly. My registry is not full of those problem entries. I keep my systems updated and as clean as possible. I am also a computer programmer by education but work in a totally different field.. With both computers running with dual proccessors and 2gb of ram All my programs, games and interent run great with no glitches or slow downs..
June 6th, 2008 at 11:57 am
Lol. Using Windows XP Professional SP2, and I'm taking NO Chances to upgrade to SP3. Stay away, UNLESS, you want to format your harddrive and lose all of your valuble data!
June 6th, 2008 at 12:13 pm
just a follow-up, installed xp3, on sony laptop
vgnfj150,hp DV1000 (added 2GB memory, bought both sticks at frys electronics 4 $54.35)and dell desktop. have had no issues since installs. i ran sppware/virus,(pitstop program) first,ran norton 360 v2full scan, dumped temp files,registry clean-up etc, then defraged. then installed XP SP3. all three computers to date are having no issues. i am a happy camper thanks to pitstop, i recommend pcpitstop.com to others all the time, and tell them to run always first, the full tests, and buy the programs as needed to keep their computer running at top performance.
June 6th, 2008 at 12:16 pm
Same here I am running a AMD64 on a epox motherboard and no issues with sp3. Since I installed Winxp SP3 havent seen any issue with my nic card. Or the issues other people are having.
June 6th, 2008 at 12:19 pm
It is very scary reading through everyone's woe's. I put together my own PC, all intel from the board to chipsets and sound. It was actually designed to run fast with Vista but since I have 30 programs that will not work with vista I decided to go back to XP. I do have SP3 on my system and have already recieved many updates since the install. Not a glitch so far. Now I dont know if this has anything to do with it but I have had Reg Cure installed since before the update and it runs countless times per day. Maybe it caught any idiocies before it could damage the system but I dont know for sure as my system runs great…
June 6th, 2008 at 12:22 pm
So far so good for me, haven't experienced a single problem, i have a gateway with intel celeron D processor
June 6th, 2008 at 12:22 pm
Ladies and Gentlemen:
I downloaded SP3 and have had no problems. Mine was an upgrade since I had been running Windows XP, SP2. I am also running Trend Micro security, and if there was a problem they will catch it or will not let me download.
June 6th, 2008 at 12:23 pm
All of this is pure BS. There's nothing wrong with SP3, i myself and A LOT of colleagues have installed this important update and we haven't seen any issues with it.
I'd dare to say these kind of articles just direct users to change their OS and move to the crappy Vista.
Pure marketing strategies from MS & friends.
June 6th, 2008 at 12:35 pm
Appsolutely no errors of any kind here… Intell due processor 4 gig ram 3 hard drives windows xp media center edition…
June 6th, 2008 at 12:37 pm
I installed SP3 on 4 PCs (Sony Vaio laptop, HP a720n, eMachines T2862, my own e8400-based custom build) without a problem. All machines are operating properly (buggy PCs are no buggier, slow machines are no slower). The only noticeable side-effect is the slow response of the printer driver on my custom built PC but this has always been finicky. I have Vista Ultimate SP1 installed on my HTPC and it works well for the most part.
Having said all this, I am migrating as many of my machines as feasible to Linux (Ubuntu distro). Performance of the PCs is much better and cost doesn't even compare. I'd go to Mac but there are feature-competitive Linux distros that don't have the costly entry-point.
While the SP3 upgrade hasn't caused me problems, I'm just tired of the Microsoft tax and the OS bloat.
June 6th, 2008 at 12:38 pm
I have installed it on two HP Laptops and a computer running a amd bassed motherboard… and to date there has been no problems !!!
June 6th, 2008 at 12:42 pm
I haven't had any problems with the SP3-I still use the Internet Explorer 6 which originally came with XP.
As for recovery points, I've deactivated the Windows System Recovery and use Acronis True Image 11.0 Home (this program is a piece of genius-takes about 10 minutes to take your PC back to where you liked it). Of course I have the recovery point on an external DVD disc. If Windows' Autoupdate and Security reminders keep pestering you, unclick them at MSConfig-u'll find them under services at Config
June 6th, 2008 at 12:47 pm
After SP3 blindsided my system, i could not get on to any internet site using IE7, opera, or firefox. did a system restore, and all went well…the next night SP3 came back to haunt me, did another system restore and disabled all microsoft updates and life is great
June 6th, 2008 at 12:55 pm
I have sp3 have had it since the 2nd release date around may 10th. NEVER once had any probs with anything loading up or running. Its in your personal settings for most people who are having problems. Ive been using pc's now for 11 years . I NEVER DO AUTO UPDATE as most of the crap they send you to update is usless anyway.i have a pent 4 3.4 ghz 4 gig 667 mhz memory standard pc for most. Does everythign i need it to do . NEVER a problem with word , money works office nothing. Check your settings before saying its someone elses fault
June 6th, 2008 at 12:57 pm
Have installed SP3 on 3 machines with no problem at work. At home it flatly refuses to install. Work machines are running a bunch of different programs. Maybe Im just lucky so far. Can believe Microsoft cannot do a better job. If I could go MAC I would.
June 6th, 2008 at 1:10 pm
I have installed it on my HP laptop and home PC, Word and Office 2003 and 2007 both work, all network connections appear, i do not have symantec, and have all restore points.
Sorry about your luck.
June 6th, 2008 at 1:26 pm
I have installed SP3 on many PCs. No problems.
1. We stopped using Symantec products years ago since they were not uninstallable and simply did not find the bad stuff out there.
2. We ONLY use IE 7.0 and remove anything else.
3. We keep all the obscure software off the systems.
4. The only issue I had was with Dell "support". They had a user go back to a previous date which unfixed what was fixed. Dell has no idea how to do DSL with a router, along with almost anything else.
June 6th, 2008 at 1:40 pm
I have installed SP3 on my six machines all different brands with no problems at all.
June 6th, 2008 at 1:42 pm
I built a new machine in Jan, 2008….it has an XFX XFX Nforce 680i LT1 mobo @266 mhz… Phoenix BIOS LTD 6.00 PG dated 09/27/2007. I also have an Intel 2.40 ghz Core2 Quad Q6600, with 2 gb Ram. with 320 gb HD. I also use an 80 gb HD for all my backup stuff,and any internet downloads….
I installed SP3 through Microsoft's advance feature that "reserved" my copy of SP3 when it was ready for download….SP3 ran great but I got skittish when I read of all the multitude of problems the "masses" were having…….. and I uninstalled it. I'm now back to SP2 again and things are running fine… with one exception and perhaps someone could help me out……….. I am unable to do a "System Defragment"… from the "All Programs Menu". Acessories, System Tools, Defragment….. I am, on the other hand, able to go to my Control Panel, Administrative Tools, Computer Management Shortcut, then select the Disk Defragmenter from the Storage List" and do the normal disk defrag. Is there a possibility the install and un-install of SP 3 has messed up the Defrag? When I try and do the defrag from the Accesories menu I get the error message:
"MMC cannot open file: c:\WINDOWS\system32\dfrg.msc." " This may be because the fikle doesn't exist, is not a MMC Console or was created by a later version of MMC" "This may also be because you do not have sufficient access rights to the file"…….As I say, I have had no problems with Defrag in the past and don't know if it was working or not after I installed SP3……..Any ideas????
June 6th, 2008 at 1:53 pm
I loaded SP3 6 days ago. The decline was slow and had me checking several different things over the last few days. My notebook then started having problems finding it's devices. I have adaquate Anitvirus and Spy and well as a registry checker. I ran 3 deep scans and then the registry check without updates. It found 2087 entries in error. I run it weekly and was one day short of it's typical run. Something happened… So, the only thing I could see that installed was SP3. I restored to a day prior to the SP3 unpate. Everything is back to normal and I have all my devices. I run a HP NC2510, 2GB 1.83 Core 2 with 120 GB HD.. Coincidential?
June 6th, 2008 at 1:55 pm
I installed XP SP3 the first day MicroSoft offered it through automatic updates. I went to the download catalog and saved it to file, then installed it. It installed ok. I then did the same with my laptop with the same results. They are both running just fine (thank the Lord)as of today. Best of luck to all! If You have not installed it yet, I advise not to. I got lucky so far.
In Christ,
Thomas