Windows XP SP3 RTM

[Gnome]

Windows XP SP3 is finally finished

DailyTech reported last week that Service Pack 3 (SP3) for Windows XP would be released to manufacturing (RTM) on April 21. The initial reports from Neowin came true and Microsoft today officially announced SP3.

Microsoft's Chris Keroack posted the news in the TechNet Forums:

Today we are happy to announce that Windows XP Service Pack 3 (SP3) has released to manufacturing (RTM). Windows XP SP3 bits are now working their way through our manufacturing channels to be available to OEM and Enterprise customers.

We are also in the final stages of preparing for release to the web (i.e. you!) on April 29th, via Windows Update and the Microsoft Download Center. Online documentation for Windows XP SP3, such as Microsoft Knowledge Base articles and the Microsoft TechNet Windows XP TechCenter, will be updated then. For customers who use Windows XP at home, Windows XP SP3 Automatic Update distribution for users at home will begin in early summer.

Thanks to everyone here who installed the public betas -- you not only gave us detailed feedback but also helped each other out with timely troubleshooting. Through the beta program we found several important issues and were able to confirm some essential fixes. We couldn’t have done this without you.

We will still be monitoring this forum during the next few weeks in case you have more feedback about the release of Windows XP SP3.

Windows Connect and MSDN/TechNet Subscribers should be able to download soon. The public will have to wait until April 29, however, to download the update from the Microsoft Download Center and Windows Update.

Source

Service Pack 3 is officially out of the door

Hopefully it'll be on the news servers by tomorrow

 

[FlatspinZA]

Unofficially it's been around for a couple of months.

If you start having problems with your games, you know where to find me

 

[Gnome]

Unofficially it's been around for a couple of months.

If by unofficial you mean BETA/RC then yes it's been around for almost a year now, the RTM isn't even released on Technet/MSDN yet and I know for a fact it hasn't been leaked so this is the real final build. Next week it's available from M$ website.

 

[AirWolf]

If by unofficial you mean BETA then yes it's been around for almost a year now, the RTM isn't even released on Technet/MSDN yet and I know for a fact it hasn't been leaked so this is the real final build. Next week it's available from M$ website.

Any idea how big the update will be?

 

[Gnome]

Any idea how big the update will be?

It most likely will be very close to the last build 5508 which was +- 316MB

 

[kronoSX]

It most likely will be very close to the last build 5508 which was +- 316MB

 

[Gnome]

Actually I just looked at the SP3 release notes according to that it can be as big as 580mb So time will tell.

 

[TiredOfWaiting]

And when can we expect a slipstreamed XP SP3 version for download from a torrent site?

Not RC2 though, I want the final version...

 

[AirWolf]

ID13 where are you?

 

[ld13]

Right here

(Nothing to download from the Microsoft website yet Saule - Will keep a close eye on it in the days to come)

 

[Ou grote]

Between the OSX and XP ones, I'm probably going to use one of my 3 gigs on 1 May already.

 

[The_Techie]

I look forward to trying it

 

[Deenem]

Any chance of someone putting it on a local ftp site? Please, please, promise not to tell ;-)

 

[BTTB]

I look forward to trying it

Same here.
Slipstreamed would be good.

MY XP installation is getting a bit old.
Original Install Date: 2005/11/03, 19:41:58

 

[The_Techie]

Same here.
Slipstreamed would be good.

MY XP installation is getting a bit old.
Original Install Date: 2005/11/03, 19:41:58

That's impressive!

Mine should also be something like that, but I've replaced the installation a few times (thanks to Acronis True Image) so it's probably cheating

 

[BTTB]

That's impressive!

Mine should also be something like that, but I've replaced the installation a few times (thanks to Acronis True Image) so it's probably cheating

Drive Image here.

I wouldn't consider it cheating. More common sense.

Just recently I had more issues with Outlook Express.
This will be the second time over the last couple of years that it has bombed out my Inbox. This time around the harddrive light started to work continuously and after 2 minutes or so the PC just restarted - no blue screens - just restarted.
I can categorically state that my PC is free from Virii. OE just bombs when it gets bloated with emails I think - over 1 Gb of emails in various folders, one of which I think was corrupted as when I took a back up and overwrote the file, it worked again.
Last night I reinstalled Outlook Express, backed up my emails as I normally do and cleaned out all the folders - even changed the store folder to yet another harddrive. Seems OK at the moment.

I tried Thunderbird, but I cannot get used to it just yet. Doesn't import OE settings and folders properly either - perhaps a further sign that OE is full of chit.

 

[d0b33]

You will be able to download it on local from microsoft when it becomes available you know... it's an akamai server so use routesentry or similar and it will only cost a few rands on ADSL

 

[Gnome]

Well I thought I would post the schedule here, it isn't the official M$ schedule but so far it's correct:

* April 14, 2008: Support is available for the release version of Service Pack 3 for Windows XP
* April 21, 2008: Original Equipment Manufacturers, Volume License, Connect, and MSDN and TechNet subscribers
* April 29, 2008: Microsoft Update, Windows Update, Download Center
* June 10, 2008: Automatic Updates

Although they're apparently not making the download available on MSDN/Technet until *AFTER* it's available on the Download Center.

Still there is hope that it will appear through alternate channels before April 29

At this point it's going to be hard getting your hands on it...

 

[Nerfherder]

I installed the SP3 that was on last moths NAG cd... all seemed fine but now Remote desktop wont work, it keeps giving me this message about how it has expired and I must get the latest version from Microsoft, I cant find anything that works now. I found an install but I get an error that tells me the version is older than the current patch and it cant install.

 

[Gnome]

You still have XP SP3 build 3311 (RC1 or perhaps older) So you should update as soon as you can since you can't download updates with any of the RC/BETA versions of SP3 but for a fix until the update is available look here:

http://forums.microsoft.com/TechNet/ShowPost.aspx?PostID=3149944&SiteID=17

RTM build is 5512, to determine your current build: Start->Run->type "winver" that Window will report the build.