How to stop updates from pushing Win XP SP3

I don't know what the reason you don't want SP3, but at some point down the line any updates will have the requirement that SP3 is installed.

fireberd, Thats not much of an answer to my question, maybe you should read it again. Regards, oldad

My response was not intended to be a "fix" for your problem.  Just a comment since it appeared you did not want SP3.

 

Sorry.

Double click the yellow updates icon in the system tray to bring up the update window.  Choose custom install.  Click on the box with the checkmark next to Service Pack 3 to remove the checkmark.  Click the "Close" button; before the windows disappears you should get a small window containing a phrase to the effect that you need to click the box next to it to prevent Updates from showing you the update again.  This hides the update, though you may be nagged about it again in the future, particularly if you request a manual update.

 

Appreciate the reply Jack, However I don't get the shield as I have Auto updates turned off and go directly to Updates..due problems with repeated shield with same update which requird install with Safe Mode to stop the repeats. Why would MS ask if you no longer wanted to be notifiesd with SP3 offer then blast you with twice as much garbage re installing the SP3? I guess I could turn on Auto Updates and wait for the shield then try your suggestion....in fact I will . Regards, oldad

---

oldad wrote:

Is there anyone who has successfully stopped this thing?

---

Why don't you want to install it ? It's for your benefit to install it....:smileywink:

Jack, the first thing I did was accept MS offer to NOT offer this again... and for info of all , there is no repeat no little box like other installs to check :" Do not show this again". Now It is hidden, repeat hidden but ms updates now have tripled the push to install: Here is what now shows : ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- To help protect your computer, Microsoft strongly recommends that you install Windows XP Service Pack 3. Learn more about What’s New in SP3. Why am I being offered an update that I have previously hidden? Windows XP Service Pack 3 (KB936929) is an important update to help ensure customers stay secure and up-to-date. Microsoft highly recommends installing this update. Download and install it now You can use other programs while you wait. I f the download is interrupted, it will resume the next time you connect to Windows Update. You can also enable Automatic Updates to download it for you or order SP3 on CD. What to know before installing… Download and Install Now Typical download size: 66.9 MB , 22 minutes Windows XP Service Pack 3 (SP3) is an update to Windows XP that addresses key feedback from our customers and is a cumulative update that includes all previously released updates for Windows XP, including security updates. Windows XP SP3 contains a small number of new updates and should not significantly change the Windows XP experience. After you install this item, you may have to restart your computer. Details... ------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Having had my share of troubles with various Microsoft and other updates I feel the pain.  Previous posters in this thread do have a point, however, which is Microsoft will likely require SP-3 to be installed at some point in order to get future updates.  I have yet to accept the update myself over concern for compatibility with my older software.  I'm still running a Compuserve Information Service client that was originally written for Windows 95 and was never updated for operating systems later than Windows NT version 4.  I accept, however, that at some point I will have to give in and risk performing the update.

 

For oldad:

 

If you have always performed the manual updates I'm surprised you haven't discovered the box for hiding the updates yourself.  If you click on custom install you will get the option of chosing which updates you will accept, and somewhere in that box you will find the checkbox for hiding the update.  Microsoft thinks SP-3 is sufficiently important that the last time I performed the manual update search they gave me a message informing me that I should reconsider my refusal.

Yep, I saw that on my last manual update check.  I don't see it anymore on the auto updates though, so I guess I have a bit of relief there.

 

One additional comment.  Posts I've seen from others indicate that this update can be sensitive to viruses (as was the SP-2 update), doesn't like to install properly in the presence of a functional anti-virus auto-protect program, and better luck is had by installing in safe mode.  When I finally decide to install I will be downloading the full version for IT Pros (as I did for SP-2) and burning it to CD so that I can be disconnected from the Internet in safemode with anti-virus disabled when I install it.

On top of all of oldad's issues, I have an additional one.....my Symantec System Works protection utililty will not allow me to turn off MS updates without it going into a permanent warning mode! So that's both MS and Symantec that are not allowing us to skip the SP3 download. Why mess up a good thing? My SP2 is working fine; I have installed ALL the other updates from MS, and I don't want to hassle any of the problems that so many folks are having with SP3! Someday maybe, but not now!

Jack, the first thing I did was accept MS offer to NOT offer this again... and for info of all , there is no repeat no little box like other installs to check :" Do not show this again". Now It is hidden, repeat hidden but ms updates now have tripled the push to install: Here is what now shows : ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- To help protect your computer, Microsoft strongly recommends that you install Windows XP Service Pack 3. Learn more about What’s New in SP3. Why am I being offered an update that I have previously hidden? Windows XP Service Pack 3 (KB936929) is an important update to help ensure customers stay secure and up-to-date. Microsoft highly recommends installing this update. Download and install it now You can use other programs while you wait. If the download is interrupted, it will resume the next time you connect to Windows Update. You can also enable Automatic Updates to download it for you or order SP3 on CD. What to know before installing… Download and Install Now Typical download size: 66.9 MB , 22 minutes Windows XP Service Pack 3 (SP3) is an update to Windows XP that addresses key feedback from our customers and is a cumulative update that includes all previously released updates for Windows XP, including security updates. Windows XP SP3 contains a small number of new updates and should not significantly change the Windows XP experience. After you install this item, you may have to restart your computer. Details... -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

When it was first released by Microsoft, I installed it and it removed items in my links bar and rearranged certain folders in "my documents" that I had spent a good amount of time customizing; so I removed it.

 

I've since tried it again a few days ago and so far... so good...  I don't know if Microsoft added a couple hotfixes to it, or if I need new eyeglasses here, lol...

 

I am two years overdue with my eye exam though....:smileyvery-happy:

Oldad,

 

Like JackShack, I have some older programs that I'm afraid will cease to function if I upgrade to SP3.  I have  my updates set to automatically download, but let me choose when to install.  When notified of updates, I click on the shield, choose Custom install, and uncheck the SP3.  Of course, it keeps notifying me, and I keep unchecking it.  Sort of like a nagging wife.  You get so used to ignoring her, that you don't even see the frying pan in her hand.

 

Tony

This is from Windows Secrets: How to remove SP3 from your Automatic Updates. and remove it from appeaaring in Windows updates If you decide you don't want SP3, Microsoft offers a tool for suppressing the automatic installation of the service pack. The Service Pack Blocker Tool Kit won't prevent you from downloading SP3 manually from the company's site, nor will it stop you from installing the patches from a CD or DVD. All it does is stop the service pack from being installed via Windows' Automatic Updates, and removes is from Windows update site I n addition, the Service Pack Blocker postpones the installation for only a year from SP3's release date last April. Surf over to Microsoft's Service Pack Blocker download page and click the Download button for SPBlockerTools.exe. Click Yes to accept the license agreement and type in the path to the folder where the files will be stored (click the Browse button and navigate to the folder if you want to avoid typing). Now open the folder containing the extracted files and double-click SPBlockingTool.exe. A command prompt window appears for a few moments and displays the statement "Action successfully completed." Unfortunately, that doesn't tell you very much. The action the message refers to is the addition of a Registry entry instructing Windows Update not to send you SP3. (The same setting on Vista blocks SP1.) If you want to see the code that is added, do the following: Step 1. Choose Start, Run. Type regedit and press Enter. Step 2. In the Registry Editor, navigate in the left pane to this entry: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE \ SOFTWARE \ Policies \ Microsoft \ Windows \ WindowsUpdate Step 3. With the WindowsUpdate icon selected in the left pane, look in the right pane for a key named DoNotAllowSP. If you later decide you want Automatic Updates to offer you Service Pack 3, simply select the DoNotAllowSP key and press Delete (or click Edit, Delete). If you're concerned about editing the Registry (which involves risks of its own), the Service Pack Blocker can also undo the block: Step 1. Choose Start, Run. Type cmd and press Enter. Step 2. At the command prompt, either type the path to the SPBlockingTool.exe file, or drag the file into the command prompt window and let Windows do the typing for you. Step 3. At the end of this command, type a space followed by /U and press Enter. Once again, you'll see the "Action successfully completed" message and Windows Automatic Update will no longer be blocked from installing the service pack on your system. The other tool included with the download, SPreg.cmd, is a batch file useful for administrators who want to block the service pack on remote computers; this utility requires that the machine name be specified in the command line. Even though most of SP3's problems should now be in the past, these precautions can help ensure that you aren't one of the service pack's installation victims. HTH oldad

Thanks for that! I'll try it tonight.

 

One question: Will it still let all other (non-SP3) updates through via Auto Update?