News
Microsoft Doubles Delay Period for XP SP2 Tool
- By Scott Bekker
- 09/08/2004
Microsoft this week updated an administrative tool for delaying Automatic Update and Windows Update rollouts of Windows XP Service Pack 2 from four months to eight months.
Microsoft created the tool in early August in response to feedback from IT administrators who did not want Windows XP machines on their networks downloading the service pack automatically.
The service pack provides key security improvements, such as a much more robust firewall, a security settings dashboard and additional protections against malicious downloads. At the same time, the aggressive defense settings have been shown to break nearly 100 commercial applications.
Microsoft made the tool available on a resource page called, "Temporarily Disabling Delivery of Windows XP Service Pack 2 Through Windows Update and Automatic Updates." The delay is intended to give organizations more time to test their commercial and internal applications with the new settings. Putting a time bomb on the tool, whether it is 120 days or 240 days, is evidence that Microsoft eventually wants all of its customers to get up to speed with SP2.
The tool is available at:
www.microsoft.com/technet/prodtechnol/winxppro/maintain/sp2aumng.mspx.
About the Author
Scott Bekker is editor in chief of Redmond Channel Partner magazine.