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To SP2 or not to SP2?

I'm sitting on the fence as far as downloading the new Windows XP Sp2 service pack. I've read a lot of reviews, good/bad, but still don't know enough to decide whether I should install the SP2 pack. I note that some "security people" prefer not to touch any windows updates at all. I'd like to get some opinions on precisely why (or if) I should install SP2 (after you read my background!). If I can determine this thing will be of no use to me, I'd rather keep my computer resources intact and avoid it.

I'll go through the PRO's side first, because they don't do anything for me:

- Installs improved Firewall: I don't need and won't use the SP2 firewall. I have a router/firewall and plenty of firewalls that are much better.

- Security Improvements to IE and Outlook Express: I don't use Internet Explorer and avoid it like the plague. I only use it if a site won't work with an alternative browser, and even then, I set the security settings as tight as I can. I also don't use Outlook, or any MS program if I can avoid it.

- Security Center: This is nothing short of a joke. I witnessed a friend's SP2 security center say nothing when his firewall was disabled by a TROJAN/WORM (and the PFW was one of those recognized by SP2. Many aren't). In any case, I won't put my faith in something that doesn't deserve it, and the first thing I'd do with SP2 is uninstall the security center and free up resources.

- Wireless/Bluetooth Improvements: Don't care, don't have wireless.

- Improvements to Windows Media Player: Don't use this fat bloatware product either, especially when there are 100,000 players that are better. Don't use DirectX either, for that matter.

- DEP Feature: This mostly applies to 64bit architecture, which I don't have. Did a test on this security feature once, and it failed the test, saying that I did not have it installed. It -was- installed and turned on. So I consider this feature useless too.

- Automatic Updates: Well I'm certainly not going to download SP2 so I can give Gates free and full acces to my PC, so this isn't a reason to get it either.

CON's:

So far, I haven't seen a legitimate reason to install SP2, only many reasons not to. Including the fact that you are taking your life in your hands if you try to uninstall it (I once trashed one and a half years of work trying to install SP2). It takes hundreds of megs of HD space, and I'd rather use that for something more suitable, if necessary.

On the other hand, I want to do all I can to protect my PC from net-based malware, which is the only reason I'm seriously considering SP2. If SP2 can protect it in ways that I can not achieve with 3rd party software, Windows gurus, please enlighten me. Yes, I realize just installing SP2 means I can begin receiving regular Windows updates, which I won't be able to under my present SP1. But I'm also nervous about the Windows Updates, from all the horror stories about people's PC's slowing down, crashing or worse, after taking windows updates. Hackers always seem to treate new updates and service packs as a challenge to circumvent anyway, and I've also read of SP2's security being compromised by such hackers. Maybe in that sense, SP1 machines are safer?

Reply to
rladbury
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Do you know enough that you should be saving file backups (logical) and making drive images (physical) to provide for recovery? Then if you don't like what happens after an install - of a service pack, application, or whatever - then you data is safe and you can restore back to just the way it was before.

Reply to
Vanguard

Only security people that don't understand service packs don't install them. The SP2 is more than a security update, it includes many fixes that are needed for XP. The firewall gets the most press, but it's far from the only thing installed by SP2.

If your machine is already free of malware and is not more than 3 years old you should not experience any problems. If your machine is not free of malware then you need to get it cleaned before you install SP2.

Reply to
Leythos

While I agree with you on most issues, I:

1.- Don't care about privacy on my Windows box. Nor should anyone, it's seems to me just a false hope.

2.- I *do* backups.

So I happily installed SP-2 and enjoyed (?) it.

Reply to
Krohon

There are other security-improvements that you didn't list. Note that some of the most-recent "buffer-overflow" exploits do not affect computers running SP2 -- Microsoft proactively(!) fixed many potential exploits, by recompiling most of the source.

In addition, the pop-up blocker within IE does work, if you do use IE.

The "base" one works fine, for an "end-user" computer, i.e., one not part of a SOHO network. The updated firewall _is_ improved.

If you do get a virus/worm/trojan on your computer, it may exploit IE or OE or Outlook, unless you've patched them. Either way, your computer is still infected.

Disk-space is cheap!

Yes, it takes some space to download the SP file(s). When you run the file(s), they unpack to a "temporary" directory -- more space. It writes a backup of the about-to-be-changed files into an "uninstall" directory - more space.

When the install is complete, and you're happy with SP2, you can delete the above files, and reclaim the space.

As I said above, Microsoft has "proactively" patched many _potential_ exploits. All the updated/recompiled code makes the size of the download of SP2 larger.

Huh? Automatic updating is available in SP1. (My Computer -> right-mouse click -> Properties -> Automatic Updates tab)

Safer? Not in my opinion. To be safe:

  • run a firewall, to block net-based attacks.
  • run a _quality_ anti-virus product (
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    ) to scan what you allow into your computer via E-mail attachments, malicious content on web-pages, P2P-content, USENET newsgroups, et cetera.
  • practise "safe-computing".
  • try the free Microsoft spyware-scanner (
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    )
  • update everything (WinAmp, putty, RealPlayer, AcrobatReader, WinZip) that you have chosen to install.
  • apply SP2, and then allow Automatic Updates to download the post-SP2 fixes.

My $0.03 (CDN).

Reply to
Melvin Klassen

the problem is that if you turn off Windows firewall and use your own, the computer will keep pestering you about no firewall installed. I have Tiny running, but the system keeps pestering me becuase I have Windows firewall turned off, despite the fact that I have another firewall running.

Reply to
Charles Newman

You can tell the security center to stop pestering you about the firewall, you know.

Reply to
Bob Ladbury

If I didn't list them, its because I never found anything on them. That's why I posted this message. To my knowledge, Microsoft did not put out a list of what specific 'exploits' SP2 was designed to protect against. All I could find from them about SP2 is just general improvements made, much of what i mentioned here. If you know where I can obtain a list of such information concerning the specific exploits SP2 is supposed to protect against, I'd love to hear about it.

Well, why do you think I called it an "improved firewall"? I also mentioned the fact that improved or not, its still a lousy firewall compared to even the worst 3rd party firewalls. And I already happen to have the best, so as mentioned, this does nothing for me.

How do you figure, when you just quoted me as saying that I don't use IE, OE or Outlook?

Not on my hard drive it isn't, thank you very much.

The reason I'm asking about what SP2 does, is because I want to know if its worthwhile -before- installing it, so I can avoid having to go to all the fuss you just described (and more). I can very well know whether it's worthy my while if I know exactly all that it purports to fix or patch up. I'm sorry but simply running it is not going to tell me that. Not to imply that there's anything "simple" about installing this beast...

Haven't tried it yet, but I read somewhere that SP2 spells the death of SP1 updates. Are they the same updates for SP2 as SP1? It would seem not, since SP2 has functions and capabilities SP1 doesn't. It would also seem that if SP1 updates are still available, they won't be for too long, when MS finally manages to finish updating most people's machines for SP2. After all, the first thing the updates tell you when you have SP1 is to take the SP2 update!

So you're saying all those "potential exploit" patches and all the rest that SP2 does doesn't make you any safer? I guess that means you're advising me not to download it.

(BTW, there's a difference between "safe" and "safer"...).

So now you're advising me that I should take SP2?? And I still don't know why, because I don't have nearly enough information to make a judgement as to whether this service pack is worthwhile.

Reply to
Bob Ladbury

Did you already read:

Windows XP Service Pack 2

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That is the consumer page. For the IT page, see:

Windows XP Service Pack 2: Resources for IT Professionals

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Which has links to:

Security Information for Windows XP Service Pack 2

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Features and Functionality in Windows XP Service Pack 2
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Reply to
Vanguard

If you have done the impossible, i.e., completely uninstalled IE and OE, then a virus on your computer would not be able to exploit IE and OE. Since you have them installed, a virus on your computer will be able to exploit the MAPI interfaces on your computer.

The 1980s are gone -- disk-space no longer costs $100 per gigabyte. Trim your mullet, and spend less than $100 and get over 100 gigabytes. Too easy?

On the computers I use, it was simple. Just a few clicks.

Windows Update answers your question. If you're stuck with XP RTM/Gold or XP/SP1, any "new" update (since August 2004, when SP2 was released) has been tagged by Microsoft, to indicate whether the patch is necessary (for SP1) or unnecessary (proactively fixed in SP2).

Define "too long". Microsoft recently announced the end-of-support for the "gold" version of XP, about 4 years after it became available. So, SP1 will continue to be supported for a "long" time.

All the released updates for Windows 98 are still available via Windows Update, almost seven years later. The current updates for XP will continue to be available via Windows Update for a "long" time.

I did not say that -- please don't put words into my mouth.

Your guess is incorrect.

I advise you to switch to Mac OS X, if you really want to be safe, to end your paranoia about Microsoft operating systems.

Reply to
Melvin Klassen

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