Re: XP still available (new) without SP2?
From: R. C. White (rc_at_corridor.net)
Date: 11/29/04
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Date: Mon, 29 Nov 2004 15:32:46 -0600
Hi, Trumpet.
After reading the thread thus far, I agree with Ken Blake's comments. It
seems to me that it would take at least as much effort for your sister to
revert to pre-SP2 WinXP as it would for her to actually solve the problem
and move forward rather than backwards. Without SP2, she would again be at
the mercy of all the viruses and other malware that SP2 thwarts.
It might help if you tell us the make and model of her computer and the
important components (video, sound, RAM, etc.). A few CPUs (Intel's
Prescott P4s, for example) have or had SP2 conflicts way down deep in the
microcode. (If I sound like I know what I'm talking about, don't be fooled.
It's just that I've read lots of threads by the big boys who do understand
it.) If your sister's CPU is one of those, somebody here should be able to
point her to a solution pretty quickly.
Your original post said:
"The most frequent advice from other gamers is to wipe the drive and
reinstall XP (without SP2) - but that's not really an option for her at this
point, since she has important business apps and data on her drive that she
can't risk losing or even being without for a day or two."
> She's asked, searched, tried everything anyone could suggest - there
> was no fixing it short of reinstalling, and as I said that is not an
> option
First, who is "anyone"?
Second, if reinstalling is her only option, has she considered an "in-place
upgrade"? This reinstalls WinXP itself, but preserves existing applications
and data. For instructions, read either Microsoft's official version or the
version written by MVP Michael Stevens:
How to perform an in-place upgrade (reinstallation) of Windows XP
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=KB;en-us;q315341
How to Perform a Windows XP Repair Install
http://michaelstevenstech.com/XPrepairinstall.htm
Use an upgrade or "full" retail (not OEM, for the reasons Ken mentioned)
WinXP CD-ROM with SP2 included. As those references say, boot from the CD,
bypass the first R-for-Repair by pressing Enter to Install, then elect to
Repair the existing WinXP. It will take about as long as a fresh install of
WinXP itself, but she should not need to reinstall her business apps or
data. Of course, power failures and other accidents do happen so a backup
is always a good idea, but I have yet to see a report that the in-place
upgrade caused loss of apps or data.
It's best to do the reinstall (or a fresh install) with only essential
peripherals connected. After WinXP is up and running right, add the other
periphs and reboot to let WinXP detect them and install the native drivers.
Then visit each hardware manufacturer's website to make sure you have the
latest and greatest driver for each device; those on the WinXP CD-ROM may be
slightly out of date by now. It's probably best to uninstall her antivirus
and anti-spyware applications, too, before the reinstall of WinXP, then
install them again afterwards - but BEFORE going back online! Users have
reported that their unprotected computers were infected within minutes of
going online.
RC
-- R. C. White, CPA San Marcos, TX rc@corridor.net Microsoft Windows MVP <trumpet@telus.net> wrote in message news:78jlq0duij4iclmav7992qke7prmedi9g5@4ax.com... > On Sun, 28 Nov 2004 17:19:30 -0700, "Ken Blake" > <kblake@this.is.an.invalid.domain> wrote: > >>In news:b3qkq0pestr28h5d1bvmtk92q3gd9ugm74@4ax.com, >>trumpet@telus.net <trumpet@telus.net> typed: >> >>> I'm hoping you might provide some direction here, with regard >>> to SP2. >>> My sister's PC has been nothing but trouble since SP2 was >>> installed - >>> to the point she went out and bought parts for a new system, >>> and a new >>> OEM copy of XP home so she could get rid of SP2. >> >> >>Wow! Talk about overkill! Why didn't she (or you) come here to >>ask for help before taking such a drastic step? Almost certainly >>her problems could have been solved without spending any money. > > > She's asked, searched, tried everything anyone could suggest - there > was no fixing it short of reinstalling, and as I said that is not an > option > >>> I assembled her new >>> system, and installed the OS - unfortunately this CD comes with >>> SP2 >>> included, and did not provide any option during installation to >>> deselect SP2. >> >> >>Most CDs that are now available now come with SP2. If it does >>come with it, it's never optional. >> >> >>> Is there any work around, >> >> >>No. >> >> >>> or should she be looking for >>> an older copy of XP? >> >> >>Neither. She should just install it *with* SP2. Doing a clean >>installation with it will probably not result in the problems she >>had earlier, which were likely caused by all te spyware she had >>on her machine. > > Well, perhaps I wasn't clear on that; I did install it with SP2, and > it functions no better than her old machine as far as her games! > >>> I'd be fine with buying her new copy and >>> upgrading my own (win98SE) PC >> >> >>No, you wouldn't. OEM copies can not be used to perform upgrades. > > Miscommunication here - I'm well aware I can't upgrade; what I meant > was upgrade in the sense of replacing 98, which has pretty much > reached the end of its useful life since MS will no longer be > supplying security patches for it. Fortunately for me, I don't run a > business and have no problem wiping my drives and starting over. > >>> so she can buy what she needs - but is >>> it even available new without SP2? >> >> >>Probably, if you look hard enough. But most copies you will find >>now will include it. > > Fair enough; used it is then. > > I hope I'm not sounding too bitter about this whole thing - I seem to > have gotten your irish up a bit here. Let me say that I've been > monitoring the win98 groups for many years, and have gotten excellent > advice many times - and even (hopefully) given some from time to time. > I very much appreciate the effort you gurus put in here helping the > more obtuse among us. As for MS, I've been a loyal customer since > windows 3.0, and I truly believe its the best OS available for PC. I > also recognize that SP2 is an excellent product for probably 95% of > those who've applied it, and addresses some serious issues - I'm not > knocking it. It does, however, create problems for the remaining 5%, > and that's only to be expected; there are always a few glitches with > any software. All I know is that for many serious online gamers, its > a real issue; I'm not blaming MS for that - I don't think its > reasonable to expect 100% success - I'm just saying it worked great > before SP2, and works lousy or not at all after SP2. To me the > obvious solution in this case is to go back to what worked, until > either MS or Sony addresses the issue. So far, neither is even > admitting there is any issue - but that isn't fixing my problem <g>. > > Who knows - perhaps the root cause is neither - perhaps its her > hardware firewall that doesn't play well with SP2, or her anti virus; > the thing is, she's been an avid gamer for years, and has been shut > out of her game since last summer over this. At this point she'd > cheerfully throw the whole kit and caboodle in the dumpster if not for > the business needs. To me, a clean installation without SP2 is a good > option if it solves the problem, and the new sytem is just a bonus > (but her old PC was only just within specs for the game anyway, and > would have to be upgraded in the near future) - mostly on the off > chance it was a hardware issue, like video card or drivers. The new > machine has a different brand of video (ATI Radeon), new SATA drive, > new everything, and it didn't solve anything. I think at least we've > ruled out hardware. > Note - to reply by email, please reformat the addressee (should be pretty > obvious)
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