Vista SP1

[Dr. Z]

Anyone else installed this yet?

I did so last night! Thoughts:

1. It doesn't seem to have affected my "genuine" status (I have the OEM Bios Hack on the go).

2. It took at least 7 hours to install (I started it at about 9pm and it was still going at 4am when I woke up). Not sure what was going on there really, my only thought is that I might have left folding@home running and it might have started that when it rebooted into the update mode.

3. Everything is snappier. My network speeds aren't quite what they should be but they are much, much better than they were and file copies start faster etc etc.

Nothing else is visibly different though...

[Feek]

Is it on general release yet? I've been getting pre-req updates come through for a few days, but not seen anything that's the actual SP...

[Dr. Z]

Its not out out but it has been RTMd (Released To Manufacturers). There are copies of it all over the net :) Just make sure its build 6001.18000 to be sure its the official release and not the RC2 Refresh 1 release (which is identical but time limited).

[Dymetrie]

Think I'll be waiting for the official rollout...

Any idea when that's due to be?

[Stan_Lite]

Think I'll be waiting for the official rollout...

Any idea when that's due to be?

I believe it's imminent. I read somewhere a couple of weeks ago that it was due for general release in a few weeks - so, any time now I would think.

[Feek]

Ahhh, that's what I thought - I, like Dym will [probably] wait for the official roll out which I think is in a couple of weeks.

[Dr. Z]

It will be available through Windows Update in April, although you will be able to download it "by force" from mid-march. Personally, the network speeds thing was bugging me so much I just went ahead and torrented myself a copy - the digital signature is still intact etc so its as good as official :)

[Daz]

I have access to the RTM build but haven't installed it yet. Waiting to hear from the grapevine how it is really, although general feedback is positive. Will still probably a wait until the masses get it.

As for the long install time - I assume you're running x64?

[Feek]

Which way did you get it, did you download the whole thing or use the registry hack to persuade Windows Update to hand it out?

[Daz]

I know a couple of guys at Technet :o Plus I think it's on MSDN anyway. Should ask someone at the office to check really.

[Feek]

Sorry Daz, that was meant for durz ;)

[Dr. Z]

I torrented the offline installer.

Daz, I am running 32 bit but I think it must have loaded the F@H client after the reboot so that could potentially explain why it took so long :p

[Daz]

:o

The main reason I'm holding off on the main rig and laptop (on a random note) is that the network installer is supposed to be much quicker and require less space than the redist.

[LeperousDust]

I was gonna leave it, but i'm grabbing it now and i'll give it a go since its the RTM, can't hurt can it ;D :p (Just wait for the next reply!)

[Feek]

Here's the registry hack method I found...


1. Uninstall all older version of Windows Vista SP1 if you have installed any of them before you executing the next few steps. If you don't know how to uninstall, pplease Visit Here for detailed instructions.

2. Open Notepad, and enter the following

@echo off

reg delete HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\Curr entVersion\WindowsUpdate\VistaSp1 /f > NUL 2>&1
reg delete HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Wow6432Node\Microsoft\ Windows\CurrentVersion\WindowsUpdate\VistaSP1 /f > NUL 2>&1

reg add HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\Curr entVersion\WindowsUpdate\VistaSp1 /v Beta1 /t REG_SZ /d dcf99ef8-d784-414e-b411-81a910d2761d /f
IF NOT %errorlevel% == 0 ( goto ERROR)

:SUCCESS
@echo.
echo ================================================== =========
echo Windows Vista SP1 registry key has been set successfully.
echo Please check for updates in Windows Update.
echo ================================================== =========
@echo.
goto END

:ERROR
@echo.
echo ================================================== =========
echo FAILED to set Windows Vista SP1 registry keys.
echo Please run this script by right clicking and selecting
echo "Run as Administrator".
echo ================================================== =========
@echo.
goto END

:END
pause

3. Save it as a "Save As "sp1_rcr2rk.cmd" = 6001.18000"

4. Right click on the newly created ".cmd" or ".bat" file and click on "Run as administrator". If a UAC dialog came up, click "Continue".


instructions:
Install Windows Vista SP1 RC Refresh 2 from WU!

Windows Vista Service Pack 1 RC Refresh 2 is available to Beta testers through Windows Update. Experience the WU installation path for Windows Vista SP1 by following 4 simple steps and give us your feedback to improve our quality.

Systems running on Windows Vista RTM typically require two or three updates before SP1 can be installed. These updates are permanent on your Windows Vista systems. Windows Update will detect your system configuration and offer the prerequisite packages that are applicable to your system. Based on the state of your system, Windows Update will offer you all the applicable prerequisite packages and SP1 in a sequential order. For details, please see the instructions below.

If you already installed the Service Pack to your machine, you must uninstall the previous build before installing RC Refresh 2.

Here are 4 simple steps to get SP1 on your machine.

On Vista RTM…
1. Download the script to your machine and run it on elevated prompt after removing ".remove" from the filename.
• To run the script on elevated prompt, after you download the script, right click on the file and select "Run as administrator" option.
• The script sets a registry key on your system. The registry key is required for WU server to recognize your machine as a valid target for Vista SP1.
• After running the script, Windows Update automatic updates will automatically update your machine over the next several days with the appropriate prerequisites and then offer the Service Pack. If you would like to install SP1 quicker you can manually do the next few steps to speed up the process.

2. Install all pending "Important" updates and the pre-requisite updates for SP1. You may have to repeat this several times to get fully up to date.
• Check for updates on Windows Update. Go to Control Panel  System and Maintenance  Windows Update and check for updates by clicking on "Check for Updates" in the top left of the task pane.
• You will be offered all previously released Windows Vista updates that you may not have installed on your system. Install all applicable updates.
• If you have Windows Vista Ultimate, or Windows Vista Enterprise, Update for Windows (KB935509) should be in this list. If you have any other version, Update for Windows KB938371 should show up in this list. Reboot your machine when prompted. If you do not have Vista Ultimate or Enterprise, Update for Windows KB938371 should show up first and KB935509 is not required.
• If you reboot and rescan on Windows Update right away, sometimes times you may not see all updates. This may be caused by the installer service completing the install of the prior update. Please wait 5-10 minutes and scan again. (This delay should not be required for the final SP1 release.)

3. Install Update for Windows (KB937287).
• Update for Windows (KB937287) it does not require a reboot. This is the "installer" code for the service pack.

4. Install Windows Vista Service Pack 1 (KB936330).
• Wait for 10-15 minutes prior to checking for updates again, to enable the installer to complete it's self installation.
• Check for updates on Windows Update again. Windows Vista Service Pack 1 IKB936330) should be available.






Note - I've not tried this method.

[Dymetrie]

Gumph

Think I'll be waiting for the official rollout...

Any idea when that's due to be?

;)

[Daz]

Interesting note from one of the Vista blogs:

As we update our customers to SP1, we want everyone to have a great install experience. We are going to stage our rollout of SP1 for current Windows Vista users to be approximately concurrent with the availability of Windows Vista SP1 on new PCs and in stores. There are a couple of reasons for this. Our beta testing identified an issue with a small set of device drivers. These drivers do not follow our guidelines for driver installation and as a result, some beta participants who were using Windows Vista and updated to Service Pack 1 reported issues with these devices. Because the issue was with the way the drivers were installed and not the drivers themselves, the solution was simply to reinstall the drivers. While this worked fine for our more technical beta testers, we want to deliver a better experience for customers as we make the update broadly available.

While we know that most customers who update from Windows Vista to SP1 will NOT be affected, our approach is to improve the experience for all our customers. To do this, we will begin making SP1 available through Windows Update in mid-March, giving us time to work with some of our hardware partners to make adjustments to the installation process for the affected drivers. As SP1 gets delivered through Windows Update, we will only offer it to PCs that we detect don't have any of the affected device drivers installed. We're taking the next month or so to continue our work of identifying as many of these devices as possible.

Here's the timing for SP1 availability for current Windows Vista users:

* In mid-March, we will release Windows Vista SP1 to Windows Update (in English, French, Spanish, German and Japanese) and to the download center on microsoft.com. Customers who visit Windows Update can choose to install Service Pack 1. If Windows Update determines that the system has one of the drivers we know to be problematic, then Windows Update will not offer SP1. Since we know that some customers may want to update to SP1 anyhow, the download center will allow anyone who wants to install SP1 to do so.
* In mid-April, we will begin delivering Windows Vista SP1 to Windows Vista customers who have chosen to have updates downloaded automatically. That said, any system that Windows Update determines has a driver known to not update successfully will not get SP1 automatically. As updates for these drivers become available, they will be installed automatically by Windows Update, which will unblock these systems from getting Service Pack 1. The result is that more and more systems will automatically get SP1, but only when we are confident they will have a good experience.
* The remaining languages will RTM in April.
I'll try and find out what the devices are. I'm guessing that it wont be anything that'll stop the system booting if it's gone RTM but it'll be worth finding out what they are for anyone installing from the redist, I'd wager it doesn't warn you like Windows Update might.

[edit]
"“What happens is during the update, the sound and video components are disabled, and in the process the drivers are accidentally removed.”

Nice.

[edit2]
And for reference, SP1 was put up for MSDN and Technet subscribers yesterday. Before that, it was made available to anyone with a large VLA, and was first in the wild when it was given to people who participated in the closed beta around Feb 8th. So it's all legit torrent wise, basically :)

[Feek]

I, like Dym will [probably] wait for the official roll out which I think is in a couple of weeks.

I'm such a tart... Having found a method, I had to use it, I couldn't resist. If anyone wants that text above as a script, you can grab it here (http://www.feek.ukfsn.org/temp/sp1_rcr2rk.cmd) (right click, save as). Run it, wait a few minutes and then kick in a manual Windows Update. I know the torrent methods are good, but I feel much happier getting it directly via Windows Updates.

http://www.feek.ukfsn.org/temp/sp1.png

[Daz]

Looking around the blogosphere it seems there's definitely a problem with Realtek Audio, some ATI graphics chips and maybe some wireless cards. Could be more of course.

Not seen any disk controllers affected yet thank goodness, and indeed everyone seems happy that a driver re-install, if there's any problems, sorts everything out.

[Feek]

Frustratingly, I will need to be here while this happens because my PC is currently set to reboot into Linux..

http://www.feek.ukfsn.org/temp/install.jpg

See you on the other side....

[Dr. Z]

I have a realtek audio card and an ATI graphics chip - I had to reset my resolution when I got windows back, but other than that no issues :)

[Feek]

Didn't take an hour..

http://www.feek.ukfsn.org/temp/alldone.jpg

Only rebooted once and all seems good - I'll try some network speed testing because that's what's supposed to be noticeably quicker with this pack.

[Dr. Z]

\o/

I got SUCH a big speed increase, I was most pleased :D

I also get 8 more fps in the CS stress test. Still loads lower than I get on XP but still faster than the eye so all is good :)