get ready folks, windows xp service pack 3 is coming!

Hi all,
The following is for your information, from the windows super site.
Harry
"Windows XP Service Pack 3 FAQ

It's time to say goodbye to an old friend. Windows XP Service Pack 3 (SP3), =
due in the second quarter of 2008, will be the final XP service pack , according
to Microsoft. It can't come a moment too soon: XP SP2 (
see my review
) shipped over three years ago at this writing, and the company has since shipped =
hundreds of hot-fixes for the OS, giving users a painful updating experience,
with multiple reboots. XP SP3 will consolidate all of these fixes into a single =
package and, surprisingly, add a few new features, including some that--go
figure--debuted first in XP's successor, Windows Vista. Here's what I know =
about Windows XP Service Pack 3.=C2=A0

WN_House_42-529_RonRec_Anne/MasterySeriesPt2-336x280  =C2=A0
Q: What is Service Pack 3?

A: Windows XP Service Pack 3 (SP3) is the final Windows XP service pack, a =
collection of previously-released fixes and product enhancements, as well as
a few new features that are unique to this release.

Q: Does SP3 include everything from SP1 and SP2 or do I need to install those =
first?

A: Though XP SP3 aggregates all of the previously-released XP fixes, Microsoft =

now says
 that you will need to install at least SP1 on XP before installing SP3. The =
company recommends installing SP2 first as well, though that is not required.

Q: What versions of Windows XP will work with SP3?

A: You can apply Service Pack 3 to Windows XP Home Edition, Professional Edition, =
Tablet PC Edition (any version), or Media Center Edition (any version).

Q: What about Windows XP Professional x64 Edition?

A: SP3 does not apply to the x64 version of Windows XP. Instead, that operating =
system is updated via service packs aimed at Windows Server 2003. The latest
Windows 2003 service pack is SP2.

Q: Windows XP SP2 was released over three years ago. Why the delay on SP3?

A: While Microsoft is an enormous company with over 77,000 employees worldwide =
and over $50 billion in annual revenues, its organizational structure actually
constrains which products are actively developed in some cases. For example, =
while a large team of developers, product managers, and program managers are
involved during the ramp-up to any major OS release, Microsoft then pushes =
the product into its support organization for follow-up development in the =
form
of hot-fixes, service packs, and so on. Other teams work on out-of-band updates =
that are typically shipped via the Web and, eventually, a new or existing
team is constituted to work on the next major release and the entire process =
begins anew.

With Windows XP, however, Microsoft was forced to temporarily halt development =
on XP's successor, Windows Vista, in order to complete XP SP2. That's because
this release, though provided to customers for free as a typical service pack, =
was in fact a major OS upgrade and was developed outside of the company's
support structure, a first for any service pack release. After XP SP2 was completed, =
the people involved with that project moved onto other things, typically
Vista or Windows Server 2008.

In the case of Windows XP SP3, Microsoft simply dedicated every available employee =
it could to completing Windows Vista, which by that time was years behind
schedule. So it's only been since the beginning of this year that anyone turned =
their attention back to XP's next and neglected service pack.

Q: What are these new features I keep hearing about?

A: Windows XP Service Pack 3 will not include any major new features, but it =
will include four minor new features that improve the system's reliability
and security. Contrary to reports, Microsoft has been very up-front about these =
functional additions for quite some time now. 

These new features include:

Network Access Protection compatibility. Announced years ago, this feature =
allows Windows XP machines to interact with the NAP feature in Windows Server
2008. This functionality is built into the RTM version of Windows Vista as =
well.

Product Key-less install option. As with Windows Vista, new XP with SP3 installs =
can proceed without entering a product key during Setup.

Kernel Mode Cryptographics Module. A new kernel module that "encapsulates several =
different cryptographic algorithms," according to Microsoft. 

"Black hole" router detection algorithm. XP gains the ability to ignore network =
routers that incorrectly drop certain kinds of network packets. This, too,
is a feature of Windows Vista.

And that's about it. Nothing dramatic, as promised.

Q: That's it? Is there anything else?

Nothing major. Some features have actually been removed, like the taskbar-based =
Address Bar option.

Q: Why is Microsoft even bothering to release this update? Isn't everyone moving =
to Windows Vista?

A: Given the relative security, stability, and reliability of XP with SP2, =
and the subsequent release of Vista, XP SP3 may seem like a pointless update,
but nothing could be further from the truth. Many businesses will roll out =
new XP-based PCs in the coming years, and as anyone who's had to update an =
XP
SP2 system can tell you, the 100+ updates that Microsoft has shipped since =
SP2 can be a nightmare to deploy. If you're already running XP and have been
regularly updating your systems all along, the release of XP SP3 will be a =
minor event. But if you have planned XP deployments in the future, look very
carefully at this release and consider it the baseline for your next generation =
of PCs. Or, you could always consider Vista, which will of course be updated
with genuine new features far longer than will XP.

Q: When will Microsoft ship XP SP3?

A: Microsoft finalized Windows XP Service Pack 3 on April 21, 2008 and 
released it publicly
 to the Web on April 29, 2008.

Here's the complete Windows XP SP3 release schedule:

RTM (release to manufacturing): April 21 
Windows Update (optional update): April 29 
Microsoft Download Center: April 29 
MSDN/TechNet download: May 2 
Windows XP SP3 fulfillment media (CD-based): May 19 
Volume license customers download: June 1 
Windows Update/Automatic Updates: June 10 

--Paul Thurrott 
October 12, 2007 
Updated October 21, 2007; December 5, 2007; March 19, 2008; March 27, 2008; =
April 21, 2008; May 1, 2008=C2=A0=C2=A0

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Windows XP SP3 release schedule

First private beta
August 2007

Semi-public beta
September 2007

RC1 preview
November 2007

RC1 release
December 4, 2007

RC1 refresh public release
December 19, 2007

RC1 refresh 2
January 24, 2008

RC2 release
March 6, 2008

RC2 Refresh release
March 25, 2008

Release to Manufacturing (RTM)
April 21, 2008

Release to the Web (RTW)
April 29, 2008

MSDN/TechNet download
May 2, 2008

Windows XP SP3 fulfillment media (CD-based)
May 19, 2008

Volume license customers download
June 1, 2008

Windows Update/Automatic Updates
June 10, 2008"


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