Terminology Used in This Guide
Installing Updates on Computers Running Windows XP
About This Guide |
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This guide provides instructions for administrators who are installing software updates for Microsoft® Windows® XP Service Pack 2 (SP2).
The term software update refers to any update, update rollup, service pack, feature pack, critical update, security update, or hotfix that improves or fixes a software product that is released by Microsoft Corporation. (For definitions of each of these types of software update, see article 824684, "Description of the Standard Terminology That Is Used to Describe Microsoft Software Updates," in the Microsoft Knowledge Base.)
Throughout this guide, all of these software updates are referred to as updates unless otherwise specified.
This guide includes technical information, procedures, and recommendations for installing updates on multiple computers in a small business or corporate environment. This includes installing updates either alone or in combination with Windows XP (with or without a service pack).
If you want to deploy either the standalone version of SP2 or the version of SP2 that is integrated with the operating system, see the "Guide for Installing and Deploying Microsoft Windows XP Service Pack 2" (SPDeploy.htm).
Although this guide includes some basic operating system information, it assumes that you already have a working knowledge of Windows XP and update installations.
It is designed to complement formal training and other sources of information, such as Windows XP documentation—not to replace them.
This guide includes the following main sections:
The terms in the following table are used throughout this document.
Term | Definition |
---|---|
Integrated | An installation in which the operating system and the service pack are installed together as a single installation. |
Standalone | A service pack that is not integrated with other software and can be used to update the operating system that it is designed for. |
systemdrive | The drive where the operating system is installed. For example, on most computers, systemdrive is C:\. |
systemroot | The "root" directory of the Windows installation on the computer's hard disk. For example, on most computers, systemroot is C:\WINDOWS. If you have upgraded your computer to Windows XP from another version of Windows, systemroot might be C:\WINNT. |
Update | Noun: A broadly released fix for a specific problem.
Verb: To make a system or data file more current. |
Upgrade | Noun: A software package that replaces an installed version of a product with a newer version of the same product. The upgrade process typically leaves existing customer data and preferences intact while replacing the existing software with the newer version.
Verb: To change to a newer, usually more sophisticated version of a product. |
What Is an Update? |
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An update is a file or collection of files that you can apply to your operating system to correct a specific problem. You can install updates either alone or in combination with Windows XP (with or without a service pack).
An update is provided as an executable (.exe) file. When you install an update, backup files are created automatically so that you can remove the update later if you want to. The installation process also copies files to specific folders and updates registry settings.
Windows XP update programs are named according to the following convention:
WindowsXP-KB######-x86-LLL.exe
where:
Updates are packaged in a self-installing format. There are two main types of update installations:
Important
The Update Installation |
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During the update installation, Windows updates are applied to a computer that is already running Windows XP. When you run the update program, it automatically installs the updated system files and makes the necessary registry changes. After the computer is restarted (required only for some system files that are in use during the installation), the installation is complete, and the operating system runs with an updated file set.
You can install the updates by running the WindowsXP-KB######-x86-LLL.exe program, which extracts the update files and runs the Update.exe installation program. Update.exe then checks the service pack version that you are currently using. If the service pack version was released before the updates, and the language is the same, the Update.exe program installs the updates automatically. If your service pack version was released after the updates, the installation is not completed, and an error message appears stating that the version is incorrect.
Note
If the language of the updates does not match the language that you selected for your Windows XP operating system, Setup is interrupted. If there are no version conflicts, Setup continues with the installation. The Update.exe program registers the updates under the following registry keys:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft
\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Hotfix\KB######
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Updates\WindowsXP\SP3\KB######
During the installation, information for removing the updates is stored in a hidden folder named systemroot\$NtUninstallKB######$. For information about removing updates, see Removing Updates later in this document.
There are several methods that you can use to perform an update installation. These include the following:
You can distribute updates either by using a shared network distribution folder or by downloading the updates from the Web. Because this guide is intended primarily for corporate users, its update installation procedures focus on the shared network distribution method, which is the most common method of update distribution for this audience.
The instructions in this section explain how to install updates on computers that are already running Windows XP.
Windows XP updates have Qchain.exe functionality built in as part of the Update.exe installation program. You can install SP2, and then install any number of post–SP2 updates without having to restart the computer between installations.
If multiple updates replace the same file, Qchain.exe ensures that the correct version is retained. If you install multiple updates, be sure to use the /Z option that is described in Command-line options for the update package later in this document.
If the update that you are installing does not use Update.exe as its installation engine, you might need to install that update separately.
For more information about how the Qchain.exe tool works, see article 296861, "How to Install Multiple Windows Updates or Hotfixes with Only One Reboot," in the Microsoft Knowledge Base.
The following table identifies the command-line options that the update package supports.
Command-line option | Description |
---|---|
/F | Forces other applications to close after installation and before restart. |
/N | Does not back up files for removing updates. |
/Z | Does not restart the computer after the installation is completed. |
/Q | Uses quiet mode. Shows no user interface. |
/O | Overwrites OEM files without prompting. |
/U | Uses unattended Setup mode. Requires no user interaction and shows only critical errors. |
/L | Lists installed updates. |
Some updates include the new options described in the following table.
Command-line option | Description |
---|---|
/help | Same as using /?. |
/quiet | Same as using /Q. Uses quiet mode. Shows no user interface. |
/passive | Same as using /U. Uses unattended Setup mode. Requires no user interaction and shows only critical errors. |
/uninstall | Uninstalls an update. For example, you can type: WindowsXP-KB######-x86-LLL.exe / uninstall instead of using Add or Remove Programs. |
/norestart | Same as using /Z. Does not restart the computer after the installation is completed. |
/forcerestart | Forces the computer to restart after the installation is completed. |
/integrate:fullpath | Integrates this software update into fullpath. For fullpath, provide the absolute path to your operating system source files. |
To install an update on a single computer, run the update program, WindowsXP-KB######-x86-LLL.exe, on that computer.
If you want to install the update on more than one computer, you can create a distribution folder for the update on the network. The following procedure describes how to install one or more updates using this method.
Note
To install an update by running the Update.exe program
For example, to create a distribution folder named Update, type the following:
mkdir Drive:\Update
For example, to copy the Windows XP Update.exe program to the distribution folder named Update, type the following:
xcopy C:\WindowsXP-KB######-x86-LLL.exe Drive:\Update
For example, to install the update from the distribution folder named Update, type the following:
Drive:\Update\WindowsXP-KB######-x86-LLL.exe
The WindowsXP-KB######-x86-LLL.exe file supports the same command-line options as the Update.exe program. You can use command-line options that are described in the tables that precede this procedure.
You can group multiple updates together in a batch file and install them as a unit. This makes it unnecessary for you to restart your computer after each update is installed. The update installer provides options that you can use when performing this type of installation.
The following code sample is a batch file that installs updates and ensures that the correct files are replaced after the computer is restarted.
@echo off
setlocal
set PATHTOFIXES=Drive:\update
%PATHTOFIXES%\WindowsXP-KB######-x86-LLL.exe /quiet /norestart
%PATHTOFIXES%\WindowsXP-KB######-x86-LLL.exe /quiet /norestart
%PATHTOFIXES%\WindowsXP-KB######-x86-LLL.exe /quiet /norestart
Important
The Combination Installation |
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The combination installation uses both the update installation and integrated installation processes to install the service pack with one or more of the following:
For a combination installation, you can include the components that you want to install as entries in the Svcpack.inf file, along with the updates. You can also choose to install the service pack at the same time.
This section provides instructions for using unattended Setup mode to simultaneously install Windows XP and updates.
Important
This section explains how to perform a combination installation that includes the service pack and post–service pack updates, integrated with Windows XP in a shared distribution folder on a network. A combination installation makes it unnecessary for you to perform separate installations of Windows XP, the service pack, and the Windows XP updates.
If you want to install Windows XP with updates, you must use this method. This process installs the updates during Windows XP Setup.
Before you deploy the installation of Windows XP and the Windows XP updates across a network, you must copy the Windows XP and Windows XP update installation files to a shared distribution folder and complete the steps described in the following procedure, "To create and set up the required folders and files for Windows XP."
If you are an original equipment manufacturer (OEM) and you plan to install additional OEM files (such as device driver, application, or component files) on the destination computers, create a \$1 subfolder within the \$OEM$ subfolder. The \$1 subfolder corresponds to systemdrive, which is the destination drive for the Windows XP installation.
Note
To create and set up the required folders and files for Windows XP
For example, if D: is your
xcopy /E /I /V D:\ Drive:\ WXPDIST
For more information about how to integrate updates, see article 828930, "How to Integrate Software Updates into Your Windows Installation Source Files," in the Microsoft Knowledge Base.
You can deploy the installation of the Windows XP updates and the Windows XP operating system to multiple computers from a shared distribution folder on a network. During the standard installation process, Windows XP Setup installs the operating system and applies the updates.
To deploy the installation
Note
Removing Updates |
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You can remove an update for Windows XP by using Add or Remove Programs in Control Panel.
If you install multiple updates that replace the same files, and you want to return your computer to its original state, you must remove the most recently installed update first. For example, assume that UpdateA and UpdateB replace the same file and that you installed UpdateA before you installed UpdateB. To return your computer to its state before the installation of UpdateA, you must remove UpdateB before you remove UpdateA.
To remove an update for Windows XP
Important
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