Tech Query

Subject: BS: Tech Query
From: Bill H //\\
Date: 29 Aug 08 - 05:37 PM

Anyone have any idea how to uninstall Microsoft Service Pack 3. It installed itself and never did complete and in so doing ate up a hell of a lot of memory.

I have tried the "restore" option but for some reason I can never restore to a previous point on the machine.

I have tried "uninsatall" but cannot do that since according to the list the SP3 is not installed. I suspect it backed everything up somewhere (eating up the memory) and then just could not install.


Bill Hahn

Subject: RE: BS: Tech Query
From: artbrooks
Date: 29 Aug 08 - 06:23 PM

It shows up as "Windows XP Service Pack 3". It may be necessary to have "show updates" checked for it to appear.

Subject: RE: BS: Tech Query
From: Bill H //\\
Date: 29 Aug 08 - 06:42 PM

Thanks---I did that already. It does not show as an update.Who knows where it is buried. Somewhere near Jimmy HOffa I guess

BH

Subject: RE: BS: Tech Query
From: JohnInKansas
Date: 30 Aug 08 - 01:20 PM

Click the Start button. You should have an icon on the start menu for "Microsoft Update" (preferred) or "Windows Update." The update site will check for updates that you need, after which you can view your update history, which should show Microsoft's list of what updates are installed, including a list of any for which installation failed. Failed installations should be included, even if they didn't get far enough to show in your installed programs list in Control Panel.

Once you find the exact name, and/or hopefully a Knowledge Base article number that describes it, for any failures to install, a search at Microsoft for the KB article usually will lead you fairly easily to descriptions of common installation problems and what to do about it.

(I'm on a quickie home trip from WVA, so can't provide more detailed help.)

John

Subject: RE: BS: Tech Query
From: Bill H //\\
Date: 30 Aug 08 - 05:39 PM

Thanks for the help. While that did not help I found that lowering the reserve for restore points added a lot of memory. Since it does not restore I figured why not.

BH

Subject: RE: Tech Query
From: Andrez
Date: 30 Aug 08 - 07:41 PM

You can use system restore to take you to a particular point prior to the time you installed SP3. So in checking the dates when the "update" was installed you could restore the system to an earlier point in time. That is unless of course you deleted some of those restore points in regaining some hard disk storage. Do a google search or check the Microsoft knowledge base on how system restore works if you want more info and see if this solution helps.

Cheers,

Andrez

Subject: RE: Tech Query
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 30 Aug 08 - 11:14 PM

You can log on at Microsoft's update page and it will check your computer for MS updates it needs. You can also, from that same page, ask for a summary of all of the updates you have downloaded and installed so far--take a look for it there; if it failed, it should tell you. You may have to redo the installation, and it should write over any files incompletely downloaded or installed. If you don't like SP3, then you should be able to uninstall it. Right now you're in limbo, the only thing is to move forward and install it and work from there.

Good luck!

SRS