Quick guide to installing XP Service Pack 2

   In the previous section, I went through the history of Windows XP,
its enhanced security features and why Microsoft had to introduce Service Pack
2 with sweeping changes to the operating system.

 

   In this section, I will give a tour of the installation of Windows
XP Service pack 2. The most surprising fact about Windows Service Pack 2 is
that it was a whopping 270 MB application and was available through 2 channels.
One was the “Windows Update” where users downloaded and applied Service Pack 2
as part of their security updates. And since it was too large and could not be
downloaded by those who had low bandwidth, Microsoft made this pack available
through CDs. While both the installations are same, the Windows update is only
around 80 MB since Service Pack 2 is a culminate update of previous fixes
including Service Pack 1 and hence consumers who had their computers patched
regularly only had to download the remaining package which resulted in a 80 MB
download.

 

   Since I was on sufficient bandwidth I decided to download the
package through Windows Update. Microsoft also had introduced a new version of
Windows Update Version 5.0 (v5) with the release of Windows XP Service Pack 2.
The reasons for releasing the new version of Windows Update are

 

• Simple changes to the Web site's technology offer faster and better ways to get
  the updates that your PC needs.
• More in-depth information helps you choose and manage updates that you install.
• More help and troubleshooting support for keeping your PCs and networks secured
  and up to date is available on this site.

  Windows Update v5 had three new modes of downloading the security
patches and hot fixes. They are:-

  Express and custom
installation options.

  This Express install option automatically selects all high priority
updates for your computer so you can select them with one click. To choose from
the optional updates as well, the Custom install option can be used.

  Smart downloading.

  If the Internet connection is lost or if the user disconnect while
updates are downloading, no information is lost. The download will resume next
time from where it was interrupted so that valuable connection time is saved.
If Automatic Updates is enabled then, Windows Update will not download any
updates that is already downloaded.

  Automatic Updates.

  Automatic Updates, automatically delivers the latest high priority
updates to your PC silently and seamlessly without any performance penalty on
the computer's performance or bandwidth resources.

  The windows update also comes with a new interface to give more
information to the user about the security fix that was being downloaded. This
is how the download screen looks like.

Figure 1.The enhanced download screen for
downloading critical patches.

  The most important things to do before starting the process of
downloading/installing Windows XP Service Pack 2 are :-

  Check your computer for
unwanted software.

  This is the most important step since Trojans and spy-ware have to
be removed before installing Service Pack 2. Installing Service Pack 2 on a
computer infected with Trojans and spy-ware can have unpredictable results.
There are a number of third party tools to detect and remove unwanted software
from your computer.

  Get the latest PC
manufacturer updates for SP2.

  This applies for the computers that are OEM (Original Equipment
Manufacturer). Since these computers are pre-installed with the operating
system, the users might not have the original software CDs to perform the
re-installation in case of failed installations. Also OEM dealers pre-configure
the computers with additional softwares and have specialized configuration
which cannot be altered by the user. It is recommended to visit the PC
manufacturer's Web site first and search for any information about SP2 that
might apply to your computer. Users of retail versioned computers are also
encouraged to update their hardware drivers if any.

  Protect your important
files.

  It is strongly suggested that you back up or make a copy of your
important and irreplaceable personal information, such as pictures, documents,
music, and financial data.

  Now I was ready to install Windows XP SP2 and went to Windows
update through the link “Get updates for your computer” from “Help and
support”. A notice in the right hand side of the window informed that the
computer had to be updated to XP SP2. Clicking on that link took me to the
Microsoft Windows Update and asked me to update the version of Windows Update
from v4 to v5.

  After updating the computer with Windows Update v5 this is how the
screen looks like.

Figure 2. Windows update v5.

  Clicking on the Express Install (remember that this is for critical
updates and updates which should be installed immediately as soon as they are
available) notified me that Windows XP SP2 was ready to be installed. And the
screen is seen below.

Figure 3. XP SP2 notice board.

  Based on the state of my computer (critical updates and regular
updates) Windows Update determined that the download size would be 75 MB and it
would take around 1 hour and 36 minutes to download. Clicking the “Download and
install Now” button invoked the End user license agreement screen which is a
part of all installation applications.

 

Figure 4 End user license Agreement for
Windows XP SP2.

  Accepting the agreement, invokes the download screen where the
package is downloaded and the long process of downloading the 80 MB file began.
First the verification of the file was done.

 

Figure 5 Verifying the download.

Figure 6 Downloading Windows XP SP2.

  After the downloading finished, the installation wizard started to
guide me in the installation of the update. The starting screen of the wizard
is seen below.

 

Figure 7 Wizard to install the package.

  The wizard proceeded through the steps that are found in most
service packs. They are

Inspecting the current configuration.

Archiving the existing files.

Updating the new files.

  For XP SP2, the wizard creates a new folder called sp2.cab to as
part of its installation. Then it uses this folder for performing the
installation of XP SP2. The screen shots for the installation are seen below.

 

Figure 8 Creating the file sp2.cab.

Figure 9 Backing up the existing files.

Figure 10 Updating the registry keys after
installing.

Figure 11 Finalizing the installation.

Figure 12 Successful install notice of XP
SP2.

  Finally after the successful installation, the application prompts
me to restart the computer. If you thought that it was the end of the
installation of Windows XP Service Pack 2 like other service packs where
rebooting meant the completion of the installation and the computer would boot
as normal, you are completely wrong. The configuration of Windows XP Service
Pack 2 continues after the reboot and we will see in the next few paragraphs.

 

  When the computer booted up I expected to see the new logo on the
splash up screen which would say Windows XP Professional — Service Pack 2 like
most other applications where the Service pack version is indicated on the
splash screen to distinguish it from earlier versions. But I was taken by
surprise to see the new screens and more baffled at the process how Windows XP
prepared itself with the introduction of Service Pack in its armour. The new
screen is seen below.

 

Figure 13 Splash screen of Windows XP —
after installing SP2.

  Not only that the words Service Pack 2 hasn't been implemented, but
the word Professional is also removed and it has a totally new screen.

 

  Now when Windows starts loading, it loads as if it is loading for
the first time. This is because the screen seen below comes only at the first
time when Windows XP is installed on a new computer. It says Please wait...

 

Figure 14 Preparing for the configuration
of Windows XP SP2.

  Clearly this is an indication that major changes are made to the
boot sequence of the operating system and indeed there are a host of changes
that are made in the boot sequence, which I will cover in a future article.

 

  Now Windows requests to wait for sometime while it does something
mysteriously in the background. No idea at all what is happening but no other
choice to do but wait.

 

Figure 15 Initiating the final
configuration of Windows XP SP2.

  Now the welcome screen comes and I login to the computer. Pre to
the release of Windows XP SP2, Windows didn't warn the user about the
implication of turning off Windows Update and it was up to the user to secure
his computer from the threats of hostile attacks from outside when he was on
the Internet.

 

  But with the release of Service Pack 2, Microsoft isn't taking any
chance to let the user work without keeping his computer up to date and so
gives this configuration screen to the user to let him make the choice. So if
the user declines to turn on Windows Update, he is already warned that his
computer is more vulnerable to viruses and other security threats.

 

Figure 16 Giving a choice about the
settings of the firewall.

  So the best choice is to turn on Automatic updates and this is the
recommended approach since the user need not worry when the patches will be
released. Automatic Updates does this silently in the background. There are
certain features to help the user work with the settings in Automatic Updates
which will be discussed later.

 

  With the release of Windows XP SP2, Microsoft has introduced a new
concept to manage the security settings of the computer like firewall, Internet
Options and Automatic Updates. It does a check to see if all the requirements
are met with. If any of these requirements are not met, then it shows a warning
and displays the recommended solution for the same. In my case the antivirus
scanner was not installed and so I got this screen as seen below.

 

Figure 17 Windows Security Centre warning
that Antivirus is not installed.

  This completes the installation of Windows XP Service Pack 2. Now I
am glad that my system is patched with the most advanced security package ever
developed in the history of Microsoft.

 

  In the next article, I will continue with the tour of the system to
see what are the areas that are affected with the installation of Service Pack
2 and how it impacts our day to day functioning.

 

  To be continued...