Considerations Before You Uninstall Windows 2000 Service Pack 1 (268989)


The information in this article applies to:

  • Microsoft Windows 2000 Server SP1
  • Microsoft Windows 2000 Advanced Server SP1
  • Microsoft Windows 2000 Professional SP1
This article was previously published under Q268989

SUMMARY

You can use the uninstallation feature in Windows 2000 Service Pack 1 (SP1) to restore your computer to its previous state. When you run the Update.exe program to install Windows 2000 SP1, a subfolder that is named $ntservicepackuninstall$ is created in your %systemroot% folder.

Considerations Before You Uninstall Windows 2000 Service Pack 1

  • If you install any programs or services that require Windows 2000 SP1 or have fixes that are contained in Windows 2000 SP1, uninstalling Windows 2000 SP1 can adversely affect those programs.
  • You should not uninstall Windows 2000 SP1 if you have installed any programs after you installed Windows 2000 SP1. If you do so, you may need to reinstall these programs.
  • You cannot uninstall Windows 2000 SP1 if you used an integrated mode installation.
  • System updates (such as file format, database format, and registry format changes) are not captured, and these changes are lost after you uninstall Windows 2000 SP1.
For additional information about the latest service pack for Windows 2000, click the article number below to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

260910 How to Obtain the Latest Windows 2000 Service Pack

MORE INFORMATION

To uninstall Windows 2000 SP1, use the appropriate method:

Uninstall Windows 2000 SP1 by Using the Add/Remove Programs Tool

  1. Click Start, point to Settings, and then click Control Panel.
  2. Double-click Add/Remove Programs, click Windows 2000 SP1, and then click Add/Remove.
  3. Follow the instructions on the screen to finish uninstalling Windows 2000 SP1.

Uninstall Windows 2000 SP1 from a Command Prompt

  1. Click Start, and then click Run.
  2. In the Open box, type cmd, and then click OK.
  3. Change to the \%systemroot%\$NtServicePackUninstall$\spuninst folder.
  4. Type spuninst.exe, and then press ENTER.
  5. Type exit, and then press ENTER.
NOTE: To uninstall Windows 2000 SP1, you must use the same drive letter for the hard disk that you used during the installation. Note that if you change the drive letter for the hard disk, you cannot uninstall Windows 2000 SP1. For additional information about how to change the system/boot drive letter in Windows 2000, click the article number below to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

223188 How to Change the System/Boot Drive Letter in Windows 2000



For further information about uninstalling Windows 2000 SP1, refer to the following documents:
  • Microsoft Windows 2000 Professional, Windows 2000 Server, and Windows 2000 Advanced Server Readmesp.htm file for Windows 2000 SP1.
  • Microsoft Windows 2000 Service Pack Installation and Deployment Guide SpDeploy.doc file.
Modification Type:MajorLast Reviewed:10/27/2004
Keywords:kbinfo KB268989
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