Windows XP SP4 in the works!
Even though Windows XP Service Pack 3 has a long way to go before being released to the public, word is out that Microsoft has Service Pack 4 in the works. SP3, set to be released in mid-2007, will be a massive update for XP, and many people have said it may be the last for the OS because of Vista.
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14.6.2006 WinXP Manager 5.1.1
WinXP Manager offers an easy way to optimize, tweak, tune up and clean up Windows XP.
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10.4.2007 Hotfix Update Pack (WinXP SP3) No. 5 to be released soon!
After a long wait, TheHotfix Update Pack (WinXP SP3) #5 will be released soon with 30+ new unreleased hotfixes that will most likely be in WindowsXP Service Pack 3! We're sorry it took so long for us to put it together, but we've finally pulled it together thanks in large part to the help of the forum members and community.
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5.2.2006Windows XP SP4 In The Works!
Even though Windows XP Service
Pack 3 has a long way to go
before being released to the
public, word is out that
Microsoft has Service Pack 4
in the works. SP3, set to be
released in mid-2007, will be
a massive update for XP, and
many people have said it may
be the last for the OS because
of Vista.
But
rumor has it that because of
the massive delays with
Windows Vista, Microsoft may
be forced to release one final
hotfix pack to keep corporate
IT customers happy due to the
predicted delay in switching
to Vista for many
companies.
A
Chinese version of PC Magazine
spilled some small tidbits
about SP4 last year that went
unnoticed, stating that it's
on Microsoft's release
timeline. A quick search of
the internet can find
scattered referrals to the
package as well.
We've heard that there will
be no new features with SP4,
but most likely there will be
many fixes for both IE7 and
WMP11 as the products mature.
Although no known fixes have
been designated to SP4 just
yet, TheHotfix.net will be the
first to bring them to you
when they begin arriving, most
likely early next year.
jcxp.net -
15.06.2006Windows Server 2008 is called SP1. Adventures in doing things right?
Iain McDonald, General Manager, Windows Server Group: I had a bunch of people internally ask me why Windows Server shows it's version as Windows
Server 2008 SP1 (for brevity - WS08). <...> The history here goes back to problems we had from the split we had when we broke Windows XP from Windows
Server 2003 (WS03) way back in 2000.
At the time we had Windows 2000 (Win2k) out in the market & it was being very well
received. Especially on the client side which was doing well with corporate desktops. At the same time in the consumer side, we had Windows ME. I
never worked on WinME, I have never installed it, & I know nothing about it except what people have told me.
.
Mid 2000, we had a combined release on the rails but the pressure to do a client release for
consumer got high. So we forked WinXP from what was to become WS03. On one side, I think we did exactly the right thing. We met the dates required
from OEMs for WinXP & closed down the server release in exactly the right way. I believe the longevity of WS03 in market was because we did a load of
right things in the end game. I sill think what we knew when we released WinXP in august 2001 it was a great product. It's just that the world
changed 2 weeks later...
winbeta.org - 16.02.2008
Windows Driver Foundation 1.7 slated for April 15
Windows Driver Foundation (WDF) is a set of Microsoft tools used to develop drivers for Windows. It is available in two flavors: the Kernel Mode Driver Framework (KMDF) and the User-Mode Driver Framework (UMDF). WDF 1.7 is the latest version of the tools and it
supports the largest number of operating systems yet: KMDF 1.7 supports Windows 2000 SP4, Windows XP SP2, Windows Server 2003 SP1, Windows Vista SP1,
and Windows Server 2008, while UMDF 1.7 supports the same list with the exception of Windows 2000 SP4.
winbeta.org - 04.04.2008
Supported upgrades for domain controllers to Windows 2008
Brad Rutkowski: Currently we are running Win2k3 SP1, R2, SP2, Win2k8 Beta3, RC0, RC1, and RTM Escrow idomain controllers in production... Since
we're running some downlevel servers in the environment and I was interested in what is supported to be upgraded to Windows 2008 when we sign off and
the the DVDs start getting pressed. Luckily a mail came by on one of our discussion aliases that has the details I (we) desire.
- You can have DCs with down-level OS down to Windows 2000 SP4 in the same forest along with WS2008 DCs.
- This means you can have
forests with a mix of WS2008, WS2003 SP2, WS2003 R2, WS2003 SP1 and Win2K SP4 (please have in mind that this depends on the forest and domain
functional levels).
- If you have a down-level only forest (i.e. no WS2008) and want to introduce a new WS2008 you will need to run ADPrep
(ForestPrep and DomainPrep).
- You can run ADPrep having down-level OS down to Win2K SP4, you don’t need to have all of them with WS03
SP2.
- However if you are going to in-place upgrade any of the down-level DCs, these have to be at least WS2003 SP1.
Refs:
Upgrading
Active Directory Domains to Windows Server 2008 AD DS Domains
What Service Packs can be
upgraded to Windows 2008
winbeta.org - 24.01.2008
As WinXP Deadline Looms, OEMs Turn To Vista Downgrade Rights
Microsoft may be preparing to discontinue sales of Windows XP, but some OEMs have found a way to circumvent the software giant's June 30
deadline.
In yet another sign of the market's resistance to Windows Vista, Dell Computer, Hewlett Packard (NYSE:HPQ), and Sony on
Wednesday all confirmed plans to exercise the downgrade rights Microsoft offers with OEM versions of Windows Vista Business and Vista Ultimate in
order to continue offering XP-equipped PCs to their customers.
Downgrade rights, which Microsoft also offers to volume licensing customers,
give users the ability to roll back to the previous version of the product they're using. Downgrade rights have existed since 2001 for Windows,
but many Microsoft partners say they've been seeing a recent uptick in the number of customers exercising downgrade rights to roll Vista back to
XP Professional.
neowin.net - 25.04.2008
Beta Test Comic Book Creation
Software
Centercode is seeking beta
testers for a new software
application that automates the
creation of comic books
compete with bubble text using
in-game screenshots, family
photos, sports and other
pictures. The test is open to
users with Windows XP or
Windows 2000 SP4...
betanews.com - 09.09.2005
WinXP SP3 Yields Performance Gains Over Vista SP1 Again
exo.blog has at
the request of their members re-run the
original OfficeBench test, this time with 2GB of RAM in the test system. Unfortunately the outcome is unchanged bar a 4% improvement on the
previous score. One can argue that Windows XP system requirements are quite a bit lower than its successor, and thats probably got a lot to do with
it. This, coupled with claims that Vista SP1 will
not improve on performance but will in fact be all about stability and reliability instead, doesn't offer much hope for those people on older
systems.
Make of it what you will, I personally don't have performance issues at all. I use Vista with 2GB of RAM and I have a Sandisk
2GB memory stick that is used for the "Ready Boost" feature, maybe they should re-run the test with that scenario.
Chris Pirillo
had this to say on all those negative articles
surrounding Windows Vista, enjoy!
Read full story.....
neowin.net - 28.11.2007
Vista SP1 Also Halted
This is a bit of an update to the story posted earlier, but just so everyone knows… Vista SP1 and Windows XP SP3 have been halted. I know there are a
bunch of websites out there telling you that they are available through Windows Update but that is incorrect. Both Vista SP1 and WinXP SP3 have been
pulled for now.
jcxp.net - 30.04.2008
Exploit Code Out for IE Flaw
Security experts have
warned of the existence of
exploit code for a new flaw in
Internet Explorer, that can
leave systems open to remote
attack.
Se
curity researcher - Secunia,
said in its advisory, that the
exploit code aims at taking
advantage of the "extremely
critical" vulnerabilities in
IE 5.5 and IE 6 running on XP
Service Pack 2 (SP2), as also
in IE 6 running on Windows
2000 SP4.
The
exploit code was published by
an organization called
"Computer Terrorism".
In the event a
user is tricked into visiting
a malicious Web site, the
exploit triggers off
automatically without the user
having to do anything. The
attacker can use the exploit
to run any code on a user's
system...
winbeta.org - 22.11.2005
Hackers exploit Windows UPnP
flaw
Proof-of-concept code takes
advantage of unpatched
vulnerability
<
strong>Hackers have developed
proof-of-concept code that
attempts to take advantage of
an unpatched Windows
vulnerability to crash
systems, according to a
http://www.microsoft.com/techn
et/security/advisory/911052.ms
px]security alert from
Microsoft which rates the risk
as
'low'.
T
he code disables machines
running Windows XP SP1 and
Windows 2000 SP4 in certain
configurations by taking
advantage of flaws in Windows
memory allocation
functions.
The
vulnerability manifests itself
when a malformed request is
made to the UPnP service in
the data section of a call to
the GetDeviceList function...
winbeta.org - 22.11.2005
IE7 for WinXP RTM in Dec 06,
new IE every year!
According to MSBlog.org,
Internet Explorer 7 will hit
Beta 3 this summer, and then
become RTM (final) in December
2006.
Also
information regarding the
future of Internet Explorer is
that a new version will be
released on a yearly basis,
and according to KenLin's
Blog there will be IE7.x in
2007, and IE 8 in 2008. IE8
will support better networking
and re-rendering.
jcxp.net - 27.05.2006
Microsoft releasing 4 security patches on Tuesday
Microsoft has posted a security bulletin advanced notice on their website, detailing 4 patches to be released on Tuesday, February the 10th,
addressing security issues within their Windows operating systems. The patches, targeted at Internet Explorer 7, Exchange, SQL and Visio, are rated
by Microsoft as critical (for the first two) and important (for the other two). These will cover a range of operating systems, including Windows 2000
SP4, Windows XP SP2/3, Windows Server 2003/2008 and Windows Vista SP1. Additionally, Microsoft has stated "Microsoft will release an updated version
of the Microsoft Windows Malicious Software Removal Tool on Windows Update, Microsoft Update, Windows Server Update Services, and the Download
Center".
Read full story.....
neowin.net - 06.02.2009
eWEEK Labs Tests Microsoft's Hyper-V RC1
Cameron Sturdevant: Hyper-V, Microsoft's virtualization option for Windows Server 2008, has taken another step toward final release. Released for
download by Microsoft on May 20, Release Candidate 1 adds support for Windows 2000 Server Service Pack 4 and Novell's SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10
SP1 for both x86 and x64. Support for Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5 will be available in a future update, according to the release notes for the LIC
(Linux Integration Components) add-on software. During tests of RC1, I bolted on LIC and installed SUSE, along with Windows Server 2000 SP4, to get a
look at the new capabilities.
winbeta.org - 31.05.2008
Microsoft Will Not Release
DirectX 10 for WinXP
Microsoft will not release
next-generation graphics
application programming
interface (API) called DirectX
10 for the currently shipping
Windows XP operating system
(OS), instead, the company
will keep the new API strictly
for the forthcoming Windows
Vista OS, despite earlier
assumptions about DirectX 10
for the XP.
jcxp.net - 26.05.2006
Hacker releases working GDI-bug attack code
Security researchers on Monday spotted malicious code that triggers a critical vulnerability in the Chinese version of Windows 2000, and warned users
of other editions to expect attacks.
Symantec Corp. confirmed that the proof-of-concept code publicly posted to the milw0rm.com
site earlier in the day successfully attacks Chinese editions of Windows 2000 Service Pack 4 (SP4) by exploiting one of the two critical bugs in
Windows GDI, or graphics device interface, that Microsoft Corp. patched last week.
But while the attack code works on
Chinese versions of Windows, it doesn't when pitched against other editions. Rather than allow hackers to execute additional code -- malware to
hijack the PC, for instance -- the exploit simply crashes Explorer, the Windows file manager, on non-Chinese versions of the OS.
winbeta.org - 15.04.2008
First Vista vulnerability confirmed
MSRC Blog: We are closely
monitoring developments
related to a public posting of
proof of concept code
targeting an issue with the
Client Server Run-Time
Subsystem. The PoC reportedly
allows for local elevation of
privilege on Windows 2000 SP4,
Windows Server 2003 SP1,
Windows XP SP1, Windows XP SP2
and Windows Vista operating
systems. Initial indications
are that in order for the
attack to be successful, the
attacker must already have
authenticated access to the
target system. Of course these
are preliminary findings and
we have activated our
emergency response process
involving a multitude of folks
who are investigating the
issue in depth to determine
the full scope and potential
impact to Microsoft?s
customers. Currently we have
not observed any public
exploitation or attack
activity regarding this issue.
While I know this is a
vulnerability that impacts
Windows Vista I still have
every confidence that Windows
Vista is our most secure
platform to date. As always,
we here at the MSRC encourage
everyone to enable a firewall,
apply all security updates and
install anti-virus and
anti-spyware software.
Regardless of it being
the holiday season the MSRC
will be monitoring overall
threat conditions for this and
any other issue reported to
us. If we do see anything that
we believe puts Microsoft
customers at risk, or
significant new developments,
we will update everyone
through our standard
mechanisms including this blog
and if need be, an Advisory
with additional details.
jcxp.net - 22.12.2006
Creative Goes After Driver Modder
Since the release of Windows Vista, Creative has promised their Sound Cards as being 'Vista Ready'. Unfortunately, as many unlucky customers
did discover, this is not true. What the users actually found were buggy, feature crippled drivers. Creative insisted that features such as Decoding
of Dolby® Digital and DTS™ signals and DVD-Audio which worked fine in WinXP, would not work on Windows Vista. With Creative releasing less
than one new driver a year, things seemed bleak. Fortunately, a talented user, Daniel_K, was recently able to 'fix' many of the drivers,
enabling the incompatible features and also fixing many bugs. Just today Creative has decided to put a stop to this. They removed all links to his
modified drivers, and banned several users who were posting links to the now banned drivers.
neowin.net - 31.03.2008
Microsoft to release four critical patches next week
Microsoft has announced plans
to issue four "critical"
security bulletins next week
that address vulnerabilities
in Windows, Internet Explorer,
Outlook Express and Windows
Mail in Vista. "Critical" is
the most severe ranking
Microsoft assigns to security
flaws, which typically
indicates a system can be
compromised remotely with
little interaction required by
the user. Specifically,
Windows XP Service Pack 2,
Windows Server 2003, IE 5.01
running on Windows 2000 with
SP4 and Windows Mail in Vista
are among the affected
software. There are six
bulletins in total according
to Microsoft's advance
advisory notification, all of
which will be released next
Tuesday as part of
Microsoft's monthly "Patch
Tuesday" ritual.
neowin.net - 08.06.2007
Driver: Nvidia Quadro Plex 95.97 (WHQL)
Issues Resolved in
Version 95.97
The
following are changes made and
issues resolved in driver
version 95.97:
* Sedona:
Synchronize Displays link is
not available when primary
display is not connected to
G-Sync card.
* Sedona, 2
× Quadro FX 4500, WinXP:
Unable to return to Landscape
mode after a Rotate.
*
Sedona: Unable to turn on SDI
in Dualview mode from nView
display page.
NOTE
Use
this driver for Quadro Plex
model 1, 2, 3 ONLY!
neowin.net - 14.10.2006
Chinese Windows 2000 attack crashes PCs
Security researchers have spotted malicious code that triggers a critical vulnerability in the Chinese version of Windows 2000, and warned non-Chinese
users to expect attacks. Symantec confirmed that the proof-of-concept code publicly posted to the milw0rm.com site earlier in the day successfully
attacks Chinese editions of Windows 2000 Service Pack 4 (SP4) by exploiting one of the two critical bugs in Windows GDI, or graphics device interface,
that Microsoft patched last week.
But
while the attack code works on Chinese versions of Windows, it doesn't when pitched against other editions. Rather than allow hackers to execute
additional code - malware to hijack the PC, for instance - the exploit simply crashes Explorer, the Windows file manager, on non-Chinese versions of
the OS.
"This exploit will not successfully allow for remote code execution against English systems can successfully trigger a
crash on English versions of Microsoft Windows," Symantec wrote in an analysis for customers of its DeepSight threat notification service.
neowin.net - 16.04.2008
