Windows Server 2003 SP2 released

After a nine-month testing cycle, Microsoft finally released Windows Server 2003 Service Pack 2 last night. The 32-bit, 64-bit, and Itanium editions of the update have been made available, and they can be applied to several systems including every version of Windows Server 2003, Windows Server 2003 R2 and Windows Storage Server R2, Windows Unified Data Storage Server 2003 SP1, Windows Small Business Server 2003 R2, and Windows XP Professional x64.

The update includes several fixes plus a handful of new Features such as Windows Deployment Services, the Windows Server 2003 Scalable Networking Pack, a tool for testing hotfixes, XmlLite, support for Wi-Fi Protected Access 2, the revamped Microsoft Management Console 3, and firewall per port authentication.

Although the update is certainly appreciated, some have complained that Microsoft sprung this update on system administrators. Susan Bradley, who runs the SBS Diva Blog, asked why Microsoft failed to provide upfront notice that the service pack was going to appear on Windows Server Update Services, or WSUS.

Microsoft? You gave us admins a heads up before XP sp2 was Microsoft updated out to our boxes...why can't you give us a heads up on this? The MSRC blog says "no patches" ...and yes I understand that they don't consider a Service Pack a "Security patch" but anything that you vaguely hint to on that Advance notice day should be discussed fully on your blog. Right now even the Microsoft Update blog isn't blogging that SP2 is out.

Microsoft... you TELL us that's coming out before you shoot it out on Microsoft update will you?

If you would like to temporarily keep Windows Server SP2 off your boxes, Microsoft has released a toolkit which will block the delivery of the software through Automatic Updates and Windows Update.

For those that wish to download the service pack, it can be obtained through the Microsoft Download Center.
Windows Server 2003 SP2 (x86)
Windows Server 2003 SP2 (x64)
Windows Server 2003 SP2 (Itanium)

If you're planning to upgrade to the full retail version of Windows Small Business Server 2003 or migrate to Windows Server 2003, you may need to remove Windows Server 2003 SP2 first. KB 932600 has more information about the problems that can occur from leaving the service pack installed.

Windows Server 2008 will ship with SP1 installed

Windows 2008 is scheduled to begin shipping in the next few weeks. When it does, business customers and IT staff who are interested in the OS, but who don't have plans to deploy it until its first service pack, are in for a surprise. According to Microsoft, Windows Server 2008 will ship with what the company refers to as SP1 already installed. As a result, the first post-release service pack for WS 2008 will be SP2.

management for Windows Server, Ian McDonald, explained the rationale behind this decision a few days back. According to him, Microsoft has actually been attempting to synchronize its client/server release schedule for most of the past decade. After the Windows ME/Windows 2000 launch, Redmond apparently intended to do a combined release, but opted to fork and launch Windows XP early due to customer pressure. Windows Server 2003 didn't appear until April, 2003, well after the launch of both XP and XP SP1. Microsoft kept both products updated—XP got SP2 in August, 2004, while WS 2003 R2 tipped up in December of 2005—but the two products were never working from the same codebase or on the same release schedule.

After nearly eight years, Microsoft has resolved this particular issue, and the implications are positive. Building Vista and WS 2008 SP1 on the same codebase should make it easier for the company to patch vulnerabilities, port new features from one version of the OS to the other, and generally simplify the entire update process. Microsoft's update service is now advanced enough to distinguish OS-specific fixes; a patch for a media player issue won't end up downloading to a WS 2008 system, and patches for a server system won't end up in a Vista machine.

The only problem with McDonald's explanation comes at the end, where he states: "So, it's [Windows Server 2008] called SP1—in retrospect i should just say its called that so you don't have to wait for SP1 for it to be right like people have before." McDonald appears to be missing the point. Businesses don't wait for a service pack release because the addition of an "SP" suffix imbues an operating system with some sort of magical powers. A service pack represents a comprehensive body of software updates released and approved by Microsoft after the relevant OS has spent a significant amount of time (typically one year or more) in the wild.

In the real world, it doesn't matter if Microsoft releases a new product with SP1 or SP10 attached to its name. In almost every case, businesses have a huge number of reasons not to jump for a new OS—any new OS, for that matter—immediately. IT departments are unwilling to risk the stability and security of their infrastructure for any new product, from Microsoft or anyone else. Implying that a suffix change is sufficient to allay corporate IT concerns is akin to saying that such concerns are needless and silly in the first place. That's not a statement likely to resonate well with security and network administrators.

Microsoft pushes Windows Server 2003 SP2 out via Automatic Update

June 12 isn't just another Patch Tuesday for Windows IT administrators—it's also the day Microsoft has chosen to distribute Windows Server 2003 SP2 via Automatic Update. The service pack has been available for download since March 13 but will now be automatically distributed to the appropriate systems. IT administrators who wish to block the download can do so by downloading an SP blocker utility.

Microsoft caught some flak back in March for releasing the service pack on a Patch Tuesday that happened to coincide with an earlier start to Daylight Savings Time, and the same scenario may play out again if admins feel overloaded by having to deal with the usual security fixes plus the new service pack. Server 2003 Pack SP2 is a cumulative update for Windows Server 2003, 2003 R2, 2003 SP1, Storage Server R2, Unified Data Storage Server, Compute Cluster Server, Small Business Server 2003 R2, and Windows XP Professional x64.

Microsoft Delivers Vista SP1 Release Candidate to Customers

Yesterday, Microsoft issued Service Pack 1 (SP1) for Office 2007 along with a Release Candidate version of Ser3 (Svice Pack P3) for Windows XP. Today, the boys from Redmond are turning their attention to Windows Vista.

Windows Vista users can now download a release candidate version of SP1 for the operating system. SP1 RC1 was released to a select group of testers last month, but this is the first time that the service pack has been opened up to the public.

SP1 includes numerous bugfixes and security updates introduced since the release of Vista on November 30, 2006. Also included are improvements to ReadyBoost, increased network performance, faster file copying and stepped-up anti-piracy measures.

Neowin also notes that improvements have been made to Vista's update engine including support for hotpatching:

• Improves patch deployment by retrying failed updates in cases where multiple updates are pending and the failure of one update causes other updates to fail as well.
• Enables reliable OS installation by optimizing OS installers so that they are run only when required during patch installation. Fewer installers operating results in fewer points of potential failure during installation, which leads to more robust and reliable installation.
• Improves overall install time for updates by optimizing the query for installed OS updates.
• Improves robustness during the patch installation by being resilient to transient errors such as sharing violations or access violations.
• Improves robustness of transient failures during the disk cleanup of old OS files after install.
• Improves the uninstallation experience for OS updates by improving the uninstallation routines in custom OS installation code.
• Improves reliability of OS updates by making them more resilient to unexpected interruptions, such as power failure

Service Pack 1 RC1 can be downloaded directly from Microsoft's website via a standalone package. Users can also choose to download a small 348KB applet which will use Windows Update do only download SP1 updates specific to your system.

Microsoft Extends Sales of Windows XP

Taking into consideration customer and partner requests, Microsoft will sell Windows XP for another 5 months

In a recent press release Microsoft announced it will eextnd sales of its Windows XP operating system to OEMs and retail channels for five months over the initial end date, through June 30, 2008. The move comes after a great amount of feedback from customers and partners regarding the original end-of-sale date of January 31, 2008.

Mike Nash, the corporate vice president of Windows Product Management, stated, "While we’ve been pleased with the positive response we’ve seen and heard from customers using Windows Vista, there are some customers who need a little more time to make the switch to Windows Vista."

Nash went on to say that Microsoft's original policy of a four-year availability of operating systems to OEM and retail channels had been established in 2002. However, due to the delays in the launch of Windows Vista, Microsoft felt that offering Windows XP for sale for an additional five months would make more sense.

When asked about what Microsoft was hearing in terms of feedback from customers regarding Windows Vista Nash stated, "With more than 60 million licenses sold as of this summer, Windows Vista is on track to be the fastest-selling operating system in Microsoft’s history."

Microsoft's Nash feels that the strong sales thus far are due to the doubling of sales of pre-built desktop and laptop computers bundled with Windows Vista as the primary OS. However, recently Microsoft also decided to offer OEMs theoption to let customers downgrade from Windows Vista to Windows XP.

Microsoft Provides XP Downgrade for Unhappy Vista Users

OEMs now have the option to provide XP downgrade to Vista Business, Vista Ultimate

customers

Windows Vista is Microsoft's current flagship operating system for consumers. The operating system launched in late November for OEMs and was released to consumers on January 30.

Microsoft has long-touted the operating system as a revolutionary product for desktops and notebooks -- a product that would leave no consumers longing for the 5-year-old Windows XP operating system.

"Windows Vista and Microsoft Office 2007 will transform the way people work and play," said Microsoft chairman Bill Gates on January 30. "Windows Vista and Microsoft Office 2007 squarely address the needs and aspirations of people around the globe."

"The visual effects are spectacular; the navigation is streamlined and intuitive," added Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer. "They make it much easier to protect your PC, yourself and your children online. And they work together to help you accomplish more throughout the day."

In the months following the consumer launch of Windows Vista, Microsoft played the numbers game with sales figures. The company announced in late March that it sold 20 million licenses of Vista within two months compared to just 17 million for Windows XP. The number crept up to 40 million by mid-May and by late July; Microsoft reported that 60 million copies of Windows Vista had been shipped around the world.

Microsoft expects to have shipped one billion copies of Windows by the end of 2008.

Despite the many successes that Microsoft has touted with its operating system, some consumers just aren't impressed. Some have derided Windows Vista as being a bloat-fest with a prettier GUI and slower performance than its well-seasoned Windows XP predecessor -- ironically, both of those "flaws" were leveled against Windows XP in comparison to Windows 2000 after its launch in late 2001.

Other features that have irritated a number of consumers include the intrusive User Access Control (which can be turned off), application and driver incompatibilities, beefed up anti-piracy/activation scheme and Explorer's inability to remember View Settings among countless others -- feel free to add your own in the comments section.

The numerous issues many customers have with Windows Vista are compounded by the fact that many feel that Microsoft's pricing for the operating system doesn't quite mesh with the perceived value offered over Windows XP. Windows Vista is priced at $199/$99.95 for Vista Home Basic, $239/$159 for Vista Home Premium, $299/$199 for Vista Business and $399/$259 for Vista Ultimate (full/upgrade).

As a result of the complaints from customers and businesses regarding Vista, Microsoft recently began offering an "XP downgrade" option for OEMs. The decision to downgrade a Vista installation is fully supported by Microsoft, but it’s up to each individual OEM to provide the option to its customers. Unfortunately, the option only exists for Vista Business and Vista Ultimate installations – Vista Home Basic and Vista Home Premium users are out of luck.

Fujitsu, which took matters into its own hands by offering copies of Windows XP with its Vista notebooks and Tablet PCs, fully embraces Microsoft's decision.

"That's going to help out small- and medium-size businesses," said Fujitsu's Brandon Farris to CNET News.

Other PC retailers such as Hewlett-Packard, Dell and Lenovo also provide their customers with Windows XP if they so choose.

"For business desktops, workstations and select business notebooks and tablet PCs, customers can configure their systems to include the XP Pro restore disc for little or no charge," said HP spokeswoman Tiffany Smith.

"We've been offering it and we're still offering it," added Dell's Anne Camden.

While Vista Business and Vista Ultimate users have always had the right to downgrade to Windows XP per the licensing agreement, the actual implementation of the program has been lacking. The process by which to get XP media for new systems with Vista Business or Vista Ultimate pre-installed was often complicated and troublesome, but changes made over the past few months have made it considerably easier for customers.

Some companies, such as Dell, have even gone so far to allow consumers to purchase new PCs with Windows XP pre-installed; thus leaving Vista completely out of the equation.

With that said, the window of opportunity to acquire Windows XP is slowly closing. Direct OEM and retail license availability of Windows XP will cease on January 31, 2008.

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Microsoft Releases Office 2007 SP1, XP SP3 Release Candidate to the Public

Microsoft releases updates for two popular software platforms

Microsoft has two presents for its customers today with the release of Service Pack 1 (SP1) for Office 2007 and Service Pack 3 (SP3) Release Candidate 1 (RC1) for Windows XP.

According to the Office 2007 SP1 whitepaper [DOC], Microsoft took steps to enhance its productivity suite in the areas of stability, performance and security.

In reference to stability, Microsoft addressed at least five bugs in each of its Office 2007 applications and improved the stability of its server components. Performance improved across the board with Excel, Outlook, PowerPoint and the SharePoint Server seeing the biggest gains. Likewise, Microsoft made incremental improvements to security and offers better protection against malicious software.

Office 2007 SP1 can be downloaded directly from Microsoft and weighs in at 281MB.

Microsoft also has a surprise for customers that have stuck with the company's long-serving Windows XP operating system. Windows XP made the headlines in recent months for its increased popularity despite the introduction of Windows Vista.

SP3 includes 1,073 hotfixes and contains four new feature additions for customers: a new activation scheme, Network Access Protection Module, Microsoft Kernel Mode Cryptographic Module and a Black Hole Router detection algorithm.

Previous beta and release candidate versions of SP3 were available to beta testers, but RC1 is now available for the public to test.

Those who wish to try out Windows XP SP3 RC1 can download it directly from Microsoft.

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The Vista Death Watch

by John C. Dvorak

Microsoft has extended the life of Windows XP because Vista has simply not shown any life in the market. We have to begin to ask ourselves if we are really looking at Windows Me/2007, destined to be a disdained flop. By all estimates the number of Vista installations hovers around the number of Macs in use.

How did this happen? And what’s going to happen next? Does Microsoft have a Plan B? A number of possibilities come to mind, and these things must be considered by the company itself.

So what went wrong with Vista in the first place? Let’s start off with the elephant in the room. The product was overpriced from the outset. Why was it so expensive? What was special about it? All the cool and promised features of the original vision of Longhorn were gutted simply because it was beyond Microsoft’s capability to implement those features.

This failure to deliver what was promised—even after several delays in the product’s release, by the way—did nothing to excite anyone. It made the company look bad. It directly resulted in a no-confidence vote that was manifested in a lackluster reception and low sales. Microsoft should have scrapped the project two years ago and instead patched XP until it could deliver something hot.

To make things worse, there are too many versions. Exactly what is the point of that? Don’t we all just want Vista Ultimate? The other versions seem like a way to maybe save money for some users who cannot afford to get the real thing. You can be certain this version glut results only in complaints about what each variation is missing.

Microsoft’s initial approach to marketing this turkey was obviously going to be to put it on just new machines, which would eventually saturate the market, but the PC manufacturers squawked and demanded the continuation of XP sales. Though there is some chatter about how Linux could use this lull in the Microsoft juggernaut to make some real headway onto the desktop, this is unlikely to happen. But Microsoft, with all its paranoid thinking, might have believed it to be possible. So XP is still with us and will be until deep into next year.

I should mention here that much of this mess, I strongly believe, is due to Microsoft’s recent obsession with Google and online search. Now Microsoft wants to be in the advertising business because Google is in the advertising business. Meanwhile, it can’t do its real job.

So what can Microsoft do to improve things with Vista? Here are three suggestions:

1. It can give up on the stupid variations and lower the price on the one good Vista, Vista Ultimate. I’d say $99 would be a price everyone can live with.

2. Microsoft can scuttle the entire product. Why not? Work on a whole new OS starting today with one team and work on SP3 for XP with another team to keep users on Windows.

3. Roll out Vista 2.0. Figure out some way to add some nifty features, perhaps stolen from the next version of the Mac OS. Bring in some outside designers if you have to. Oh, and lower the price on this one, too.

I remember the old Bill Gates speeches of the mid-1980s when Microsoft, as he told it, "sold code." Selling code was what he did, and selling code is a terrific business once you are established. It’s even better if you can monopolize a market with your code. It’s easy money compared with most businesses. Halo 3 is code. It sold $175 million worth of code on its first day of release. Once code is fixed in place and burned onto a CD-ROM or DVD, it has a manufacturing cost of a buck or two and sells for anywhere from $30 to $1,000 or more.

But Microsoft sees a new kid on the block, Google. Google is a service combined with an advertising sales engine. It looks profitable, too. But is it as profitable as selling code? Apparently Microsoft thinks it might be. Besides, there is no $2 manufacturing cost.

Until now, Microsoft could sell code better than anyone, but it seems the company would rather sell services: software as a service, ads, search engine results—you name it. This is like the local storefront that opens as a knife-sharpening business and is soon selling junk jewelry, moose heads, toaster repair, and cheap chocolate. In the meantime, the knife-sharpening business goes by the wayside. This is what has happened to Microsoft, and Vista is the result.

I’m certainly not going to be a happy camper if I have to switch to a Mac or Linux system full-time, yet that is exactly where this scatterbrained company seems to be sending me.

Windows XP SP3 Specifics Revealed

NeoSmart goes over SP3's new features

News on Microsoft's aging Windows XP operating system has surprisingly been coming in at a steady pace over the past few weeks. Although Windows Vista is Microsoft's current bread-and-butter consumer operating system, there is still much love to go around for Windows XP.

In late September, DailyTech reported that Microsoft is providing XP downgrades for unhappy Vista customers. Microsoft followed up on that news a few days later with the announcement that Windows XP sales would be extended to June 30, 2008.

The company followed up with a new build of Internet Explorer 7.0 for Windows XP that doesn't require product activation and released a Service Pack 3 (SP3) beta for a select group of testers.

The latest SP3 beta is labeled as build 3205 and is a rather small 334.92 MB download. The bloggers over at NeoSmart have gotten a hold of the new SP3 release and have detailed many of the new features and bugfixes with the software update.

According to NeoSmart, SP3 contains 1,073 hotfixes and patches; 114 of which are security related. SP3 also adds four major features to the Windows XP operating systems.

The first is a new activation scheme which will not require a product key during installation. The second feature is a new Network Access Protection Module first featured in Windows Vista. Other new items include a Microsoft Kernel Mode Cryptographics Module and a Black Hole Router detection algorithm.

The release of SP3 coupled with the announcement that XP will be available to businesses and consumers for a longer period of time could breathe new life into the venerable operating system. Many gamers have stuck by the operating system and OEMs like HP and Dell still offer XP on brand new systems.

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