Last week when Microsoft released Windows XP Service Pack 3 unto the world, a few "lucky" XP users had their computers come to a screeching, brain-jarring halt. Kitty Kilobyte's best friend Penny Penryn was hit badly by this bug, and she had to do a full reinstall of her operating system.
As frustrating as a crash of this magnitude can be, Penny Penryn was surprisingly as cool as a fan for a quad-core CPU. She didn't lose any of her important documents because followed Power Downloader's advice and backed them up using SyncBack. She didn't lose any of her bookmarks, extensions, passwords, or other important settings for Firefox or Thunderbird, either, because she used MozBackup.
MozBackup is a minuscule program that makes saving and restoring bookmarks, extensions, and other personal settings a streamlined and stress-free experience. It's dead simple to use because it walks you through both the backup and restore process. For example, even if you've backed up everything but you only want to restore your bookmarks, all it takes is a couple of mouse clicks.
MozBackup works with most Mozilla application, and has been translated into dozens of languages, so it can be used by the same worldwide audience that favors Firefox. It's a must-have tool for this software superhero, and since it's free, there's no reason you shouldn't have it, too.
This blog was updated at 9:30 a.m. PDT with information from Microsoft about the cause of the glitch.
Owners of some AMD-based computers are finding that the move to Windows XP Service Pack 3 has sent their systems into an endless reboot cycle.
"While the root cause of this issue is complex, it results from OEMs improperly placing a Windows XP image created for an for Intel-based computer onto machines with non-Intel chipsets," Microsoft said in a statement. "Microsoft issued guidance to OEMs advising them to only load Windows XP images onto like hardware in 2004."
The issue was noted late last week on Microsoft forums and by others, including ZDNet's Mary Jo Foley. Those with a problem are encouraged to contact Microsoft's customer support.
The reboot cycle glitch is the latest hiccup for Microsoft with the service pack update. The company had to delay the release of the XP update after discovering at the 11th hour an incompatibility with one of its own programs.
With that issue, customers running Microsoft's Dynamics Retail Management System could face data loss if they run that program in conjunction with SP3.
After delaying the release of XP SP3 because of the issue, Microsoft finally made the OS update available last week, after creating a filter to ensure that those running Dynamics RMS did not get offered XP SP3.
Microsoft on Tuesday said it is resuming two major Windows updates that had been halted because of a conflict with one of its own software products.
A week ago, Microsoft delayed the release of Windows XP Service Pack 3 because of a problem that could lead to data loss when running the XP update in conjunction with its Microsoft Dynamics Retail Management System program. It also halted automatic updates to Windows Vista Service Pack 1 because of a similar issue.
The software maker on Tuesday said it is releasing XP Service Pack 3 for Web downloads, and resuming automatic updates to Vista Service Pack 1, after developing a filter that will prevent machines running Dynamics RMS from getting either update.
The filter is not a fix for the incompatibility, though Microsoft said it is working on that as well.
"A fix for this issue is currently in testing at Microsoft and with customers, and we hope to make it publicly available this month," the company said in a statement. "Until then, Microsoft is advising Microsoft Dynamics RMS customers to not install either service pack."
Those already running Dynamics RMS with one of the Windows updates should contact customer support, it said.
Microsoft confirmed Tuesday that it has stopped automatic updates of Vista to Service Pack 1 in the wake of a newly discovered glitch.
The problem, which has also halted the availability of Windows XP Service Pack 3, prevents Microsoft Dynamics Retail Management System from working with either operating system update.
"We are temporarily holding any additional automatic distribution of Windows Vista SP1," Microsoft said in response to an inquiry from CNET News.com. The company said it will continue to make Vista SP1 available for manual download. Microsoft had just started pushing out the Vista service pack last week via automatic updates.
"While we are recommending that customers running Microsoft Dynamics RMS should not install SP1, there are many other customers who can benefit from installing Windows Vista SP1 immediately, so we are maintaining availability via (Windows Update)," Microsoft said. "We are delaying the release of Windows XP SP3 and holding any additional automatic distribution of Windows Vista SP1 as a precaution and to help ensure that our customers have a great experience with Windows."
The company has not yet described the problem, beyond saying it is a "compatibility issue." I have also asked for data on how the problem was discovered, why it took until XP SP3 to find it, and how many users run Dynamics RMS.
Microsoft on Tuesday said it is delaying the release of Windows XP Service Pack 3 because of a newly uncovered glitch.
The software maker said there is a "compatibility issue" between the XP service pack and Microsoft Dynamics Retail Management System, a retail chain management program for small and midsize businesses.
Microsoft finalized the code for Windows XP SP3 last week and had planned to make it broadly available starting Tuesday.
"In order to make sure customers have the best possible experience, we have decided to delay releasing Windows XP SP3 to Windows Update and Microsoft Download Center," the company said in a statement.
The glitch also exists between Microsoft Dynamics RMS and Windows Vista Service Pack 1, though that product has already been broadly released. Microsoft started pushing out Vista SP1 last week via Automatic Updates.
"To help protect our customers, we plan to put filtering in place shortly to prevent Windows Update from offering both service packs to systems running Microsoft Dynamics RMS," Microsoft said. "Once filtering is in place, we expect to release Windows XP SP3 to Windows Update and Download Center."
Microsoft advised those running Microsoft Dynamics RMS to not install either service pack. The company said a "fix is currently in testing and will be available as soon as that process is complete."
Microsoft on Tuesday released another version of Windows XP Service Pack 3, but the software remains in the testing phase.
Unlike Windows Vista Service Pack 1, which was finalized in February and made available broadly last week, Microsoft has yet to give the final go-ahead for XP SP3.
"Windows XP SP3 RC2 Refresh was made publicly available today via Microsoft Download Center," Microsoft said in a statement. "We've made this release candidate available in order to receive further user feedback prior to the release of Windows XP SP3."
ZDNet's Mary Jo Foley states that she had heard that Microsoft planned to release it this week in final form, but changed its mind.
There's not too much different in the "refresh" from the RC2 version released last month, according to a TechNet posting. "Beyond fixes for common Windows Update issues, and the inclusion of support for HD Audio, there are no substantial differences between this beta release (build 5508) and XP SP3 RC2 (build 3311)," Microsoft stated.
For its part, Microsoft said the final release is still slated for some time in the first half of the year, with the standard caveat that its timing will depend on customer feedback.
Meanwhile, computer makers are supposed to stop selling machines with XP come June, although this deadline is likely to be extended.
Microsoft has been quietly readying several Service Packs for its operating systems. Windows Vista SP1 has undergone several public release candidates, but CNET Reviews' Rob Vamosi got his hands on a copy of the real deal, not due out until March. The verdict? You'll have to click through to find out.
CNET News.com's Ina Fried got word of private beta testing of Windows XP SP3--that's right, I said Service Pack 3. Although it's nearly six months away from being ready, Microsoft promises that SP3 will contain the usual security fixes, but no word on whether it will introduce any major overhauls, like Windows XP SP2 did.
That could indicate Microsoft will not be abandoning its old workhorse anytime soon, or it could also be a last fling to keep Vista-haters happy until Redmond figures out what direction it wants to take its operating systems in, as they bleed market share to Apple's OS X and various Linux flavors.
Microsoft said on Thursday that it has released another updated test version of Windows Vista Service Pack 1.
The company said that the new version, dubbed "Windows Vista SP1 RC Refresh 2," has been released to about 15,000 beta testers. The code is not being made available publicly, Microsoft said.
The product is still on track to be finalized this quarter, Microsoft said, while offering its standard caveat. "The final release date is based on quality, so we will continue to track customer and partner feedback from the beta program before setting a final date," the company said.
Earlier this month, Microsoft released the first refresh to the release candidate of Vista SP1, first to about 15,000 testers and .
As for XP, Microsoft said it released (get ready for another mouthful) "Windows XP SP3 RC Refresh 2" to beta testers on Wednesday. Microsoft said it is aiming for a release sometime in the first half of this year, but added: "our timing will always be based on customer feedback as a first priority."
Microsoft on Tuesday said it will make publicly available a beta version of Windows XP Service Pack 3. But, like a car salesman pitching the new Corvette over the old jalopy, Microsoft argued that a switch to Vista is the better move.
"While Windows Vista provides the most advanced security and management capabilities of any Windows operating system, Windows XP SP3 will ensure PCs running Windows XP will have the latest updates, as well as compatibility with the Network Access Protection functionality of Windows Server 2008," Microsoft said in a statement.
Lest anyone misread that as an endorsement, Microsoft goes on to say that "Windows XP SP3 does not bring significant portions of Windows Vista functionality to Windows XP."
The service pack has already been delayed several times as Microsoft has put its focus on getting Vista out the door and then updating that release.
Microsoft issued a release candidate version of XP SP3 in November and expanded its testing earlier this month, promising the public test version would come at some later date.
For anyone who still wants to try the darn thing, Microsoft says, the beta should be up on Microsoft's Web site later Tuesday and ready in final form in the first half of next year.
Microsoft late last week released an updated test version of Windows XP Service Pack 3 to about 15,000 beta testers. The update, the third such service pack for the six-year-old operating system is due out in final form in the first half of next year. The company said before its final release it expects to issue a public test version of the service pack, though it did not provide more specificity than at "a later date."
"We are targeting (the first half of) 2008 for the release of XP SP3," Microsoft said, "though our timing will always be based on customer feedback as a first priority."
Speculation over the timing and features of the release has been going on for years. The release was initially expected as early as 2006, but was pushed out as Vista work remained the priority for the Windows team. The first service pack for Windows Vista is also due out in the first half of next year.
Both updates are focused largely on things such as bug fixes and performance improvements rather than new features.
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