Still waiting on installing XP Service Pack 2, should I? (1 Viewer)

[Mary M S]

I've had, oh about 4 blue screens in the past two years. That's doing everything with them you can imagine

Carried away with poetic license. I have not had a blue screen in 4(?)or more years even when the last harddrive was rotten to the core with infestations. I kept beating it all back and the most irritating issue I had (and still do) is an occasional screen freeze, which one reboot resolves. When I yanked the last harddrive I still had not yet had a system wide crash.

But it is the loss of one of my necessary functions (for business) like the printer or my DSL, for any length I fear. It's easier to just purchase and reload something new,...except as we all find out on occasion, this too is never guaranteed; just plug and play.

Additionally those little glitches short termed lockups, slowdowns, or temporary "when you hit enter with your tongue held just right" momentary device conflicts that nibble you to death I hate.

Really this old DT has been exceptionally stable (for what it has been subjected to at times). But I dread the learning curve of upgrading everything, learning the ends and outs of shopping a new socket architecture, choosing a chip and the best compatible cards: sorting it properly. I am sentimentally attached to this one, since it evolved over so many years. I know when it goes. This time I will gut from the case up all at once, for the next one.

Thanks Max very much for the backup suggestion. I will look into the product.

 

[Ronald Epstein]

Works great on my computer.

Tried installing it on my Mother's computer
and it totally screwed it up.

 

[Carlo_M]

I think a huge consideration for any major Windows upgrade should be the components your system is made up of, I'm talking CPU, mobo/chipset, type of ram, video card, etc. I'm going to make this explanation very basic, so most people who aren't PC builders/techies can follow:

Cheaper, smaller PC makers have traditionally cut corners by using VIA, SiS and other discount chipset makers. Now VIA and SiS have their good chipsets, but also their bad ones. Even recently, the larger manufacturers (the ones you see in Best Buy, Circuit City, etc) have used VIA and SiS chipsets.

MS is "in bed" with the major player in the field, Intel. They exhaustively test out their OS on those systems. Of course they test with the others as well, but I'm led to believe they really cover their bases w/ Intel. As such, at work (where we have hundreds of machines in the building) most of the ones w/ Intel chipsets/mobos upgraded just fine. They were mostly Dell Precision Workstations (either Intel chipsets or good VIA sets).

Some staffers who used cheaper PCs for home had sporadic problems. It's not an absolute correlation (i.e. cheap PCs will have problems, expensive will not) but I would tend to think if you created a graph/chart you'd find at least a tendency. Makes sense, as Intel mobos are among the more expensive boards out there, so if a company is competing in the $500-$700 PC range, they'd opt to go with a different set.

My old PC (2 PCs ago) used a VIA KT133 chipset that was nothing but a heartache. Ever since, the two I've built I sprung the extra $40 to use an Intel chipset, and have had no freezing, upgrade, issues whatsoever. Sure, I can't overclock (but with my current P4 3GHz I have no need to) but man, the increase in stability is worth its weight in gold. I know the newer VIA sets have been good, but VIA has several lines, and from what I hear, their "budget" line still can be buggy.

Also, budget PC makers tend to purchase boards with all of the components built in (sound and video, etc.) so that might add to the upgrading problems.

The bottom line is: upgrade at your own risk. But MS does offer added security with each upgrade, so if I were unsure, what I would do is:

1. Back up all of my data. All of it.
2. Make sure I had a backup of Windows SP1 to go back to in case of problems.
3. Upgrade to SP2.

In the event of problems, wipe the drive, reinstall SP1 and your data.

If you've got a bit o' money on the side, and find you want more room, 80-120GB drives routinely go on sale (Best Buy has 80GB Seagate on sale for $49 after rebate). Maybe buy one, take your old HD out, put the new one in, install Windows and upgrade to SP2, if it all works, use your old HD as a slave drive and all of your data will be on it, and you'll have a brand spankin' new drive to store more stuff on!

 

[Shane Martin]

Works great on my new PC. I updated it to sp2 right off the bat once I had it built.

 

[MarcS]

Carlo--question for you (BTW, nice explanation)...

In the scenario at the very end of your post--is it not true that most PC's don't come with a full OS installation disk? Mine only came with a "recovery" CD...

In another thread I asked what I'd do if my existing HD crashed--how would I install Windows on a new drive? I think the short answer is I'd be SOL.

Modifying your suggestion (perhaps at greater risk to data on original drive?), keep the old drive in, install the second new one, boot from the restore CD, and reinstall the OS on the new disk?

Would that work?

(BTW, I still only have SP1--I'm afraid to do the upgrade after reading horror stories...)

 

[Jon W H]

I tried to install SP2 four separate times. Caused me to have to re-install Windows XP from recovery disks because apparently my eMachines laptop has a security feature on the AMD chip. I was stuck in a continual re-boot loop as a result.

 

[Carlo_M]

Marc, I can't speak for all recovery CDs, but the few I've seen actually have the full OS in there, as well as all the native programs that came w/ your PC/laptop. The reason they're "recovery" as opposed "Windows XP" discs is that MS doesn't want people using those discs to install OS's on other PCs. As such, they're branded recovery discs and won't work with other PCs (needs to be the one that the disc came with). But you should be able to install a blank new HD and use the recovery disc to reinstall everything. "Should" being the operative word...no guarantees.

 

[MarcS]

Some have suggested that the recovery CD is only partial, and that the bulk of the OS is in a hidden partition on the HD...

Not much use if your HD crashes (sorry, WHEN your HD crashes)... :frowning:

So I guess it makes sense that the recovery CD is complete, but as you say, linked to the hardware... fair enough I suppose... (well, as fair as Microsoft can be).

 

[Mary M S]

Carlo, Thanks for the recomendation to follow for system saftey. I will try to not get ancy. And follow your instructions before ever attempting to load SP2. I can't remember my mobo (this thing is old)(Via rings a bell) but the chip is AMD

 

[Carlo_M]

If this is true, this is a terrible, terrible practice. Some viruses embed so deeply that the only way to purge them is to do a full, complete wipe of the HD. Or what if someone wants to buy a new HD (storage, speed increase)?

That would be terrible and I would get on the horn and complain ASAP.

Mary, the AMD chip is fine, and like I said, just because it's VIA doesn't mean it's bad (they make some good sets). It's really hit or miss, just be sure to back all of your data and have a restore (or even better an original WinXP) disc handy.

 

[MarcS]

So what portion of the PC is the recovery CD linked to?

What if I need to replace my motherboard? Is that considered to be my "computer"? Is it my physical box? The CPU?

If I still only have one computer, should I be able to re-install the original OS I bought with it? Even though due to "catastrophe" I had to replace my motherboard, CPU and hard drive?