Overview of the SPVerify Tool (819035)

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Overview

SPVerify is a command-line tool that simulates the installation of a Windows service pack or Windows hotfix. It generates an Extensible Markup Language (XML) log that lists the files that are copied to the computer's hard disk when you install the service pack or hotfix.

You can use SPVerify with any Windows service pack or Windows hotfix that contains version 5.2.0.0 or later of the Update.exe file.

SPVerify identifies the files that are added or replaced when you install the service pack or hotfix on the computer. Typically, a service pack or hotfix may also make other changes to the computer, such as registry modifications or registration of new components. SPVerify only detects files that are added or replaced by the service pack or hotfix. The tool does not detect additional changes that a package may have on the computer.

Note For this article, the term package refers to a Windows service pack or a Windows hotfix.

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Operating System Requirements

You can run SPVerify on computers that are running any of the following operating systems:

• Windows XP Professional
• Windows XP Home Edition
• Windows 2000 Server
• Windows 2000 Advanced Server
• Windows 2000 Professional

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Syntax of SPVerify

SPVerify uses the following syntax:The parameters that you can use with SPVerify are:

• /c Path: Use this parameter to specify the path of the self-extracting CAB file of the package that you want to verify.
• /p Path: Use this parameter to specify the path of the folder that contains the extracted package files. This folder must contain a subfolder named Update, and the Update subfolder must contain the Update.exe and Update.inf files.
  
  Note To extract package files, you typically run the self-extracting CAB file with the -x option.
• /l Level: Use this parameter to specify the information level of the XML output that SPVerify generates, where Level is one of the following options:
  • full: The output contains information about all the files that are analyzed by SPVerify.
  • warning: The output contains only information about the files that are copied when the package is installed on the computer. If you omit the /l Level parameter, this is the default option.
  • version: The output contains only the version numbers of the files that are analyzed by SPVerify.
• /f: Use this parameter to force the extraction of the installation files in the CAB file. When you use this parameter, SPVerify does not verify that the file that you specify by using the /c Path parameter is a recognized self-extracting CAB file.
• /o Path: Use this parameter to specify the name and location of the XML output log that SPVerify generates. If you omit this parameter, the log file is named SPVerify.xml by default. This file is created in the current folder.

Note You can use either the /p parameter or the /c parameter, but you cannot use both parameters.

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Examples

• To use SPVerify to generate a full information report on Microsoft Windows 2000 Service Pack (SP) 4, where the package files that are extracted from the CAB file are located in the C:\Sp4\I386 folder, type the following line at the command prompt, and then press ENTER:

  spverify.exe /p c:\sp4\i386 /l full

• To use SPVerify to generate a warning report on Microsoft Windows 2000 SP4, where W2ksp4.exe is the name of the self-extracting file, type the following line at the command prompt, and then press ENTER:

  spverify.exe /c w2ksp4.exe

• To use SPVerify to generate a full information report on a hotfix that is documented by Microsoft Knowledge Base article 810585, where the name of the self-extracting file is Q810585_w2k_sp4_X86_en.exe, type the following line at a command prompt, and then press ENTER:

  spverify.exe /c q810585_w2k_sp4_X86_en.exe /l full

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When to Use SPVerify

The following are examples of some situations when you may want to use SPVerify:

• To help you troubleshoot issues on Windows-based computers in situations when you are not sure that reinstalling a package will resolve the issue.
  
  For example, if you are troubleshooting an issue on a Windows 2000 SP3-based computer and the cause of the issue is unknown, you can use SPVerify to list the files (if any) that are replaced if you reapply SP3 on the computer. As a result, you can use SPVerify to help you determine whether reapplying SP3 is a troubleshooting step that you have to perform. In this situation, SPVerify is used with a package that is already installed on the computer.
• To help you identify the root cause of an issue on a Windows-based computer.
  
  For example, you can determine the files that are replaced by the package when you reinstall it on a computer and evaluate whether any of these files may be involved in the issue that you are troubleshooting.
• To list the files that are contained in a package before you install the package on a computer. In this way, you can determine the files that are added and replaced by the package.
  
  You can use this feature to determine whether a specific hotfix must be installed on the computer or to determine if the files that are modified by the hotfix are already updated by other packages that are installed on the computer.

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