Aaron Tiensivu's Blog

KB 888372 - “Stop 0x0000007E” errors with XP SP3 on AMD systems - fixable

This seems to be the #1 issue seen in the field so far with XP SP3 and typically, unfortunately, relates to OEM XP installations that includes the Intel CPU driver on machines that are clearly AMD based. Previous to SP3, this would not cause problems. I will leave my rant about most OEM builds for a future date.

If you have an AMD based machine that seems to be rebooting continuously after installing XP SP3, and it is running an OEM XP install, please investigate KB 888372 for the fix.

Personally, although I know it isn't exactly the most elegant or supported method, I've simply deleted the Intelppm.sys from %windir%/system32/drivers on machines I know are AMD based, before installing SP3. You won't want to do this to Intel based machines because it will render them unbootable until you replace the Intelppm.sys file.

I wouldn't be surprised to see an updated hotfix that replaces Intelppm.sys from SP3 with a version that does not crash on AMD based systems. A few CPU calls is all that it takes to 'bail out' on an AMD system instead of toggling bits on the CPU that make it crash.

Update: Looks like I'm behind the times on reporting this one - as shown here by Bill Castner.

KB 949391 - New VSS hotfix - When Volume Shadow Copy Service (VSS) tries to delete hardware support snapshots on a computer that is running Windows Server 2003, the operation may fail

I always keep an eye out for VSS related fixes for Windows 2003 because so many backup programs take advantage of the API lately. I am not sure how often this error occurs but it is good to know about ahead of time.

This one seem to replace quite a few VSS related DLLs and seems to improve upon KB 940349, which I tend to put on any Server 2003 system I have control over.

KB 949391 highlights:

Fixes Volume Shadow Copy Service error: Unexpected error IOCTL_STORAGE_QUERY_PROPERTY(, StorageDeviceProperty) - BuildLunInfoForDrive. hr = 0x80070037. This problem may occur because VSS incorrectly hides hardware support snapshots.

Update Rollup 2 for Exchange Server 2007 Service Pack 1

I know a few people that have run into KB 947360 and especially KB 947391, to the point of looking into a third party PST importation tool.

It is good to know these are fixed.

Update Rollup 2 for Exchange Server 2007 SP1 fixes:

KB 940462 - The public folder store may take several minutes to mount on an Exchange 2007 server

KB 944153 - Exchange Server 2007 does not have Transport Neutral Encapsulation Format (TNEF) capabilities for POP and IMAP protocols

KB 945917 - You receive an error message when you try to access the Microsoft Office Outlook Web Access global address list in a Microsoft Exchange Server 2007 environment

KB 947346 - Exchange Server 2007 mailbox users cannot retrieve the free/busy information for Exchange Server 2003 mailbox users in a large Exchange Server organization that has more than 100 administrative groups

KB 947360 - Error message occurs, and users cannot access the free/busy information after you use the Import-Mailbox cmdlet to import data to a mailbox in Exchange Server 2007 Service Pack 1

KB 947391 - The contents of .pst files are not imported into Exchange Server 2007 mailboxes when you use the Import-Mailbox cmdlet

KB 947451 - A recipient sees unexpected text in the top of an e-mail message that you send in Exchange Server 2007

KB 947458 - The Edgetransport.exe process may crash on an Edge server that is running Exchange Server 2007 Service Pack 1

KB 947551 - The Edgetransport.exe process may crash intermittently on an Exchange Server 2007 Service Pack 1 Edge server

KB 947577 - If you try to connect a mobile device to a mailbox server through a server that is running Exchange Server 2007, the mobile device may be unable to connect

KB 947646 - Event ID 12011 is logged every time that the MSExchangeTransport service starts after you install Exchange Server 2007 Service Pack 1 on a computer that is running the German version of Windows Server 2003

KB 948047 - An event ID 1080 message is logged in the System log every three seconds after you run the Set-ExchangeServer command to set the static domain controllers on an Exchange 2007 cluster node

KB 948297 - The OOF template may be delivered as an attachment in an Exchange 2007 environment when you use the "Reply with Template" option in Microsoft Outlook

KB 948332 - Failover takes a long time to finish in an Exchange Server 2007 cluster continuous replication environment

KB 948374 - The EdgeTransport.exe process crashes intermittently, and event ID 1033 is logged in Exchange Server 2007

KB 948666 - When you try to migrate a mailbox from Exchange Server 2003 to Exchange Server 2007, the Exchange Management Shell may stop responding

KB 948830 - The MSExchangeSyncAppPool application pool crashes on a server that hosts an Exchange Server 2007 Client Access Server role

KB 948831 - A user may be unable to synchronize with an Exchange Server mailbox from a mobile device when a Client Access server has been upgraded to Exchange Server 2007 Service Pack 1

KB 948844 - An exception occurs, and event IDs 4999 and 5000 are logged when you modify the Outlook Web Access user interface

KB 949186 - When you try to run the Restore-mailbox cmdlet on a server that is running Exchange Server 2007, you receive an error message

KB 949193 - The address rewrite agent does not rewrite the address for Out of Office (OOF) messages in Exchange Server 2007

KB 949463 - An exception error is generated after you run a Set-AttachmentfilterListConfig command together with the ExceptionConnectors option on an Exchange 2007 S949463-based server

KB 949541 - You cannot log on to Outlook Web Access Light, and an error message occurs in Exchange Server 2007

KB 949703 - Error message in Outlook when you click the signature icon of a signed e-mail message that an Exchange Server 2007-based Edge server receives: "The digital signature is invalid"

KB 949726 - After you install Exchange Server 2007 Service Pack 1, the Set-ExcecutionPolicy task causes an error message, and event ID 103 is logged

KB 949772 - If you run the "isinteg -dump" command against a dismounted store on a server that is running Exchange Server 2007, the Store.exe process stops unexpectedly

KB 950123 - Error message after you apply Update Rollup 1 for Exchange Server 2007 Service Pack 1 in a Japanese environment: "Public Folder Management Console is not an allowed Snap-in"

Vote for my wife (Photographer) and kid (Photo subject) in the 10,000th Jones Soda label.

This will be Juliana's first Jones Soda label, which is good because Sabrina has already been on over half a dozen. All of the Top 20 pictures will be on a Jones Soda label available in stores but only one, based on votes, will be chosen as the 10k Jones Soda label.

Normally I don't ask for people to vote for contests from this site, but I will make an exception this time.

Please go and vote here for the girl looking into the train window and casting a reflection. The last name should give away which photo my wife took (Cassandra N. Tiensivu - Photo #: 554644).

Story behind the photo: Juliana was watching the trees go by on the Coopersville/Marne train, which is somewhat near our house. She was in an exceptionally crabby mood that day, so it doesn't surprise me that she was sticking her tongue out like that.

I am also a bit of a fan of Jones Soda because they are one of the only companies that uses actual cane sugar in their products, instead of corn syrup. It is the same reason Coke from Mexico tastes better in a glass bottle than anything you can buy in the stores in the USA. Ditto for Dr. Pepper from the Dublin bottling plant.

Some people are into collecting wines - I'm into truly 'classic' sodas. It is a cheaper hobby too.

Some of my code might be running on your Linux computer system

This is a bit of a blast from the past but in the 90s, I liked to hack on the Linux kernel code and keep an eye on the development versions as they were released. Due to being a college student, my systems were rather cobbled together and not necessarily the fastest, so I was always looking for ways to make them run faster.

Based on a Slashdot article that mentioned an open-source code search engine, I decided to check to see how many of my 'code hacks' were still out there.

A few patches dealt with the Linux kernel TGA framebuffer, specifically on the DEC Alpha Multia, which at one point was my primary workstation. It was 64-bit before all the cool kids were doing it! I think I still have one in storage that runs the Digital Alpha version of Windows NT 4.0, and an early beta of Windows 2000 before the Alpha support was canned. Hopefully the hard drive still spins up but I suspect the power regulator on the motherboard is probably shot, which happened quite a bit on those systems.

The one patch I am most proud of made it officially into the TTY console layer of the Linux kernel in the 1.3 or 2.0 kernel era. I mention it from time to time to people, and due to how much Microsoft and other non-Linux 'stuff' I do these days, they tend to react as if I am making it up.

Thankfully, this is the proof that it really happened.

At one point I had a very temperamental Sound Blaster CD-ROM which had a custom interface card that plugged into the ISA port of my system. Due to some of the "interesting" code changes I made to the Sound Blaster CD driver, I was able to make the kernel driver about half the size and also make my CD-ROM spin up correctly 100% of the time. The standard kernel driver used to fall over when it received some of the error codes my hardware was throwing at it. Almost all of those original Sound Blaster CD-ROM drives had a defect that would eventually make them fail completely and no longer read any CD inserted into the caddy.

So, basically, I'm taking a little trip down code memory lane with this search engine.

KB 951937 - The XP SP3 and Vista SP1 blocker bug has been documented

I was always curious what issue came up at the last minute that would cause the delay of XP SP3. I had wondered if they were pulling it due to aspects of the XP SP3 release still referring to itself as a beta in spots. I also had wondered if it was somehow related to the NTFS.sys/filter bug that affected Home Server and if it had become a blocking issue in the other operating systems.

Overall, it isn't a terribly interesting bug to me, but I don't deal with CRM a lot. I'm curious if it could affect other SQL/MDAC applications, but it sounds pretty isolated. If anyone bumps into a new issue, please leave a comment. If I am reading the article correctly, it looks like it might be isolated to the msadce.dll file shipped with XP SP3.

I am just happy overall that XP SP3 is finally out and I don't have to carry around a USB stick of hotfixes for people. I'm also curious to hear if you have any issues installing XP SP3 and I'll make sure your comments get to the Windows Client team in Redmond.

Xobni (Inbox backwards) no longer invite-only - currently my favorite Outlook plugin

I can't say enough good things about this Outlook plugin. I even demoed it to the Windows Search v4 team at the Microsoft MVP Summit a few weeks ago and told them, "Make Windows Search do this!"

Originally introduced to me by my manager and another coworker, Xobni is finally available to everyone to download and install.

If you tried Xobni in the past and had performance problems in Outlook afterwards, that bug was fixed a few builds ago. If you don't know what Xobni is, read the press release here.

It is actually one of the only add-ins I use in Outlook. I normally avoid them. I love the analytics built into the interface and how it can pull phone numbers out of e-mail messages. I also like the fact that it keeps track of file attachments I have sent and received, per person.

Fun fact: Bill Gates uses it.

Note: This isn't a paid endorsement, but if they want to send me some coin, I'll gladly accept it.

Sync your Facebook contact pictures with your Outlook pictures

Pretty neat. A little application does it for you, located here.

Web 2.0 convergence is upon us, little by little.

New failover cluster APIs have been implemented in Windows Server 2008, and these APIs may pose interoperability issues with earlier versions of Windows

Some potential gotchas with clustering with Windows 2008. Don't let this KB article scare you away from using the updated clustering features. They are actually really nice, but it is good to get this information out there.

In Windows Server 2008, a new set of platform APIs has been implemented to provide better functionality, better scalability, and easier manageability for clustering environments. The manageability aspect includes remote management. However, this new set of failover cluster APIs also poses interoperability issues with earlier versions of Windows.

The two items that I find the most interesting from the KB article are:

1. The backup APIs have been removed in Windows Server 2008. You must now use the Volume Shadow Copy Service (VSS) writer to reach this backup functionality in a clustering environment. Additionally, several new APIs have been added, although the pre-Windows Server 2008 APIs should still function.

and

2. Because of a core protocol change in Windows Server 2008, you cannot call failover cluster APIs from earlier Windows clients to Windows Server 2008 clusters. Therefore, the new failover cluster APIs cannot be called from Windows XP or from Windows Server 2003. Currently, the cluster APIs can be called against a Windows Server 2008 cluster only from Windows Vista Service Pack 1 (SP1) or from Windows Server 2008.

Windows PowerShell V2 Community Technology Preview 2 (CTP2)

Most new MS products come with Powershell functionality. It is a good scripting language to learn. I find myself replacing 20 lines of VBScript with 2 lines of Powershell code. Anyone that does Exchange or System Center work should look into learning Powershell.

With that said, here is the second CTP for the next version of Powershell, here.

Here is the official description:
Windows PowerShell V2 CTP2 introduces several significant features to Windows PowerShell 1.0 and Windows PowerShell V2 CTP that extends its use, improves its usability, and allows you to control and manage the Windows environment more easily and comprehensively.

Need suggestions on comparing file security rights on a large set of files

There are many, many file compare utilities out there and I'm trying to find one that can fill a specific need.

Scenario: During a file server migration, I would to be able to compare directory and file permissions on both sides to show if there are any differences between the two. I've tried AccessEnum from SysInternals but due to the sheer amount of data involved, it isn't providing what I need.

Anyone know of a utility out there that can handle about 2 terabytes of file security compares? I don't care about the file contents in this case, only the security that is 'stamped' on both sides. I am sure I am overlooking a simple solution somewhere but I am drawing a blank.

Any help is most appreciated! Please leave a comment on this entry or shoot me an e-mail.

Updated Office Communicator 2007 client - v2.0.6362.64 - released 04/30/08

My good buddy Matt Wade spotted a new release of the OC 2007 client here.

This update fixes the following issues:
KB 951870 - Event IDs 8239 and 8206 are logged when you schedule and then cancel a meeting in Communicator 2007

KB 949498 - Error message when a Communicator 2007 user sends a message that contains only Japanese characters to Communicator 2005 users: " cannot receive message in the format you used"

KB 951871 - () The presence status changes to Away for all Terminal Server users when an administrator locks the desktop or lets the screen saver run in Communicator 2007

KB 951868 () Registry settings for certain protocols are overwritten, and Communicator 2007 becomes the default application for these protocols when you log on to Communicator 2007

Note: This update now enforces HTTPS in High Security mode. Some services that previously worked by using HTTP will now be required to use HTTPS when they are in High Security mode. These services include the address book service, the custom tabs service, and the custom presence service.

The USMT (User State Migration Tool) team now has a blog

Check it out here.

No "real" content yet, just an announcement so far.

Changes to Yahoo IM federation may affect users of Office Communications Server 2007 and Live Communications Server 2005

Thankfully, this has nothing to do with the buyout talks.

On May 5, 2008, Yahoo Inc. will move their servers that provide instant messaging (IM) federation with Microsoft Office Communications Server 2007 and with Microsoft Office Live Communications Server 2005. These changes may affect users of these products.

This change will affect only those users whose external firewalls accept traffic on TCP port 5061 only from known IP addresses. If your external firewall accepts incoming TCP traffic on port 5061 from any IP address, this change will not affect you.

You can read more about it, and the IP changes, here.

Visio - Exchange Server Connector

A great little add on for Exchange 2007 and Visio 2007 which will help automatically graphical representations of your Exchange 2007 site topology, including sites, servers, and connections for an organization. It looks like it will be very handy tool for consultants doing an Exchange health check to automate some of the documentation process of the existing environment.

Here is the "official" description from the download site:
The Microsoft Office Visio 2007 Connector makes it easy for Exchange administrators to visualize, explore, and communicate complex information. Instead of viewing single user data at a time, administrators can create data-connected Visio diagrams that display data at a glance and dramatically increase productivity.
The Microsoft Office Visio 2007 Connector is an add-in for Microsoft Office Visio 2007 that you can use to diagram a Microsoft Exchange Server site topology, including sites, servers, and connections for an organization.

Download it from here.

Microsoft Pro Photo Tools

The Pro Photo Tools allow you to add, change, and delete common metadata properties for digital photographs. You can place photos on the Live Earth map and then drag them to the right location. The GPS information will be stored back into the photos. If you have a GPS device, can load track route files from the most popular formats (NMEA, GPX, and KML) and see them on the map. Then you can place your photos on the track route. Again, the GPS info will be stored into your file. When you have the right GPS location for your photos, you can automatically generate location info like country, state, city and even street names. Or if you know the location where a picture was taken, you can type it in and get the GPS location information automatically.

Download it from here.

Something interesting I noticed is that it looks like it only supports 32-bit XP and 32-bit Vista with an English locale. I'm curious to see if it will install and/or work under a 64-bit OS.

Good news for Dish Network subscribers in the Grand Rapids Michigan area - local channels coming to Dish in HD

According to this site here, the local ABC/NBC/CBS/FOX channels are already uplinked and it is only a matter of time before they 'go live'.

From what I can tell, it is supposed to happen late April or early May 2008. The only channel I can receive OTA without use of a massive UHF Yagi antenna is WZZM 13, which broadcasts not too far away from here. Unfortunately if I use signal boosters to amp the other channels, TV 13 becomes too overpowered for my TV. Honestly, I haven't spent much time on the problem overall.

Ideally, for the best picture quality, I'd love to be able to pull all the stations in OTA but it just isn't going to happen where we live. Maybe when everything switches over to UHF in early 2009, we will receive better OTA signals.

BitLocker Drive Preparation Tool - no longer a hotfix request but a public download

I often wondered why this essential Bitlocker tool was locked away previously as a 'request-only' KB article/hotfix, but you can now download it freely at this location here.

It is a very handy tool to have to install Bitlocker on your system after you have already installed an OS to an unencrypted volume.

SCVMM 2008 Beta - is out - aka SCVMM that works with VMWare and Hyper-V

I’m sure the folks at MMS (Microsoft Management Summit) already know this but check out the new features of the upcoming SCVMM release here.

If you don’t know what SCVMM stands for, it’s “System Center Virtual Machine Manager”.

If you want to join the Connect group for SCVMM v2 so that you can download the binaries, go here.

You will have to sign in with your Connect profile to be able to join that group.
Exciting stuff, especially for Hyper-V and Windows 2008.

Mac Messenger 7.0 (Office Communication Server 2007 client) has been released

Check it out the announcement here.

You can check out the Mac site here.

If I had a Mac, I would try it out to see what it is like, but hopefully some others can try it out and leave comments here? That would be great, because I'm curious how well it integrates with everything.

RibbonCustomizer - allows Office 2003 users feel at home in Office 2007

To make a rash generalization, there are definitely three groups of people when it comes to Office 2007. You could almost consider these the "#1 - Hate", "#2 - Accepts", and "#3 - Loves" Office 2007 ribbon acceptance spectrum.

#1. Longtime, hardcare Office users that have tricked out their setup so they can do practically everything with use of their keyboard and macros, right Charlie? For these users, most if not all of their macros break and they have to relearn/redo their way of life. I know Office 2007 lost some of these users to OpenOffice and other platforms due to the lack of a 'classic' or 'legacy' mode. These are the kind of users you don't want to lose, however, because they can be very vocal and very loyal if you treat them right.

#2. Middle of the road users that have used Office versions in the past but aren't opposed to change and don't have any specific needs that are broken by the move to Office 2007. There are a lot of people in this category. They may grumble or be annoyed with the changes at first but eventually figure things out and tend not to go back to the older Office suites. I find myself as a member of this group.

#3. Users that have never used earlier Office versions. They tend to pick up on the ribbon and the user interface right away. The uptake or initial learning curve seems to be less than the earlier suites.

Why am I going on and on about this? Well, there is a cool product out there by a fellow MVP that adds the ability, as close as possible, to get a 'legacy' mode in Office 2007. It is a program called Ribbon Customizer. The free version is all you need to do this. If you want to go crazy with ribbon modifications, grab the professional version.

It might not win back all the people in group #1, because it can't fix broken macros, but people who want the look and feel of Office 2003 as much as possible will love this program.

Note: I don't own or use this program but I have installed it a few times for friends and others that wanted the "Office 2003 feel", so this is definitely not a sponsored post or anything like that. I just post about stuff I think is cool or useful. Nothing more, nothing less.

KB 949260 - An interesting OCS 2007 update has shown up - related to communicating with LCS 2005 and requires client updates

Check out this update - KB 949260 - here.

Normally I’d write this off as a one-off or an isolated issue, but what caught my interest was the fact that it appears as a High-Priority Update to be installed on all your OCS servers in your organization.

And here is the other oddity that doesn’t seem to be documented very well – which basically requires a LOT of client updates, and makes it sound like someone figured out how to spoof OCS/LCS packets:

This update package replaces the OCS2007-KB946763-x86-Server.msp update package KB 946763 - Update package for Communications Server 2007 (Web Components, Admin Tools, Web Conferencing, Audio Video, Mediation, Archiving, and Server): January 31, 2008

Note: The authentication protocol that is used by Communications Server and its clients has been updated to require a signature in all messages. This includes the first message that carries the challenge response. The version number of the protocol that is advertised in the challenge response has increased to version 4. Challenge responses that use version 4 of the protocol must contain a signature. The signature is a digest of the identifying headers in the message that is calculated by using the session key. To make the Conferencing Add-in for Microsoft Office Outlook work correctly, this update for the Conferencing Add-in must be installed.

Additionally, to make sure that all other clients work effectively against this update, the following hotfixes must be installed on the clients:

KB 948738 - Update for the Conferencing Add-in for Outlook: April 11, 2008

KB 946764 - Windows-based Live Meeting 2007 client update package: April 11, 2008

KB 946164 - Update for Communicator 2007: April 2, 2008

KB 951749 - Windows 2003 Terminal Server memory leaks plugged with a hotfix rollup for Gdi32.dll and Win32k.sys - related to Stop 0x000000AB (SESSION_HAS_VALID_POOL_ON_EXIT)

This hotfix includes all earlier fixes that address "Stop 0x000000AB" issues.

KB 951749 replaces 907242, 910362, 918673, 923035, 924806, 925919, 931282, 939442, 944916, and 946068.

The following memory pool leaks were plugged in GDI32.dll, Win32k.sys and Wgdi32.dll:
Gadd, Gcac, Geto, Gffv, Gfnt, Ggb, Gglf, Ggls, Gh*5, Ghtc, Ghx, Ghx4, Ghx7, GhxE, Gl*5, Gla4, Gla5, Glx4, Gpat, Gpfe, Gpff, Gpid, Gqnk, Gsp, Gtmp, Gtmw, Gtvp, Gump, Gxlt, knlf, Uscm, Usd1, UsdE, Usgh, Usjb, Usqm, Usrt and Ussy.

Needless to say, if you want to maximize the up-time and stability of your terminal server, I would investigate/test/install this hotfix! This typically only affects heavily loaded terminal servers or servers that are not rebooted for long periods of time. You could think of these leaks like a slow leak of air in your car tire. Left unchecked, eventually, it will cause problems.

Trip Report: MVP Summit 2008 - coming soon

I've been writing up a blog entry for this all week but haven't quite completed it yet. I've wanted to post it earlier but this week has been one big Murphy's Law in one way or another. I do this site in my free time and my free time has been non existent for the most part since flying back to Michigan.

Unfortunately, the XP SP3 release did not go very smoothly

XP SP3 is a solid release and everyone out there running XP SP2 should install it, especially if you are doing a new install. It is a great way to avoid 100+ updates post install, if you haven't slipstreamed them into your SP2 build already.

Things that could have gone better

#1. They should have released XP SP3 to MSDN and TechNet subscribers on the same day as the RTM announcement. This has potential to turn into a PR problem, especially after how Vista SP1's release was handled. I understand the technical reasons why Vista SP1 was trickled out, but as far as I know, the same situation doesn't exist for Windows XP. It is disturbing how quickly SP3 showed up on Torrent sites.

#2. KB 888111 was originally planned to be included for support for HD Audio but the decision seems to have been reversed. If you are looking to get your HD Audio chipset working with SP3, read this thread. Update: I was looking at an old thread - KB 888111 is included with SP3. Never mind!

#3. FAQ.htm mentions SP2 instead of SP3.

#4. Some setup text files inside the RTM build are still labeled SP3BTA instead of SP3GDR.

With that said, enjoy the updated Remote Desktop Client (RemoteApps!), faster performance, network access protection, crypto updates, 1000+ bug fixes, keyless installs and other little polishes that SP3 has to offer. Don't let these little quirks scare you away.

ADMT 3.1 Beta available on Connect

Go to Connect and use invitation code: Cust-YCKP-QFH6

Read more about it here.

Not sure what ADMT is? Here is the description of ADMT 3.0:
The Active Directory Migration Tool version 3 (ADMT v3) simplifies the process of restructuring your operating environment to meet the needs of your organization. You can use ADMT v3 to migrate users, groups, and computers from Microsoft® Windows NT® 4.0 domains to Active Directory® directory service domains; between Active Directory domains in different forests (interforest migration); and between Active Directory domains in the same forest (intraforest migration). ADMT v3 also performs security translation from Windows NT 4.0 domains to Active Directory domains and between Active Directory domains in different forests.

Do not let corrupt (kernel) dumps ruin your day in Server 2008 - install KB 950917

Mostly of interest to tech support people and debuggers, but there is a known issue with the shipping kernel of Windows 2008 that in certain cases, does not include system page directory information in the dump file it creates during a crash. Most people won't be interested/need this update, but for those tracing problematic system issues, it can be an important omission.

Read more about the update and download the updated kernel here.

XP SP3 RTM

Snippet from the announcement:
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.

Read more about it here.

Also noteworthy is that the UAA (HD Audio) hotfix - KB 888111 - is included in the RTM build.

If anyone discovers the build number, please comment here on it!

Update #1: Readers have posted that the build string seems to be 2600.xpsp.080413-2111, which would mean it was built on April 13th and then passed all the QC tests.

Update #2: Build number is 5512.

KB 942567 - Windows Vista Feature Pack for Wireless

This software update includes the following components or features that improve wireless support in Windows Vista: Bluetooth version 2.1 support, Unified Pairing user interface, and Windows Connect Now updates.

Some of these features may work with existing hardware. However, you must have new hardware to take advantage of the new functionality.

This update is compatible with all versions of Windows Vista and can be installed only on a computer that is running Windows Vista Service Pack 1 (SP1).

Read more about it here.

New Intel Wireless drivers for Windows 2000/XP/Vista - v11.5.1.2/v11.5.1.15

If you are not offered Vista SP1 from Windows Update, and you are using an Intel WiFi card (typically with model numbers of 4965AGN/4965AG or 3945ABG/3945BG/3965ABG/3965BG), please grab this full generic "reference" driver package from Intel to fix your wireless issues, here. 99.99% of the time, these drivers will work on any laptop or desktop with these chipsets.

Originally spotted here.

In general, if you are running a version of the wireless drivers with a revision date older than 2008, you should install this driver package ASAP. Although it doesn't specifically mention it in the release notes, many little quirks and problems have been resolved, including the Vista SP1 "blocking" issue.

Just to make sure Vista SP1 doesn't get a bad reputation due to this, the "block" was put in place on purpose due to a bug in the wireless driver package, not the OS.