Win XP Repair

[Compass Call]

Yesterday I did a repair to Win XP Home on my desk top computer, following the instructions on the M$oft website. All appears to have gone well.

When trying to install SP2 from the disk supplied by M$oft it stops installing after about 10 minutes and gives the error message "Access Denied". It then proceeds to uninstall the files it has updated and reinstall the old ones.

As far as I can see I am the administrator on the system and cannot work out why the access is denied.

Anybody have any ideas how to get round this problem?

Thanks in advance.

CC

[hellsbrink]

Have you tried windows update?

Did the SP2 disk work before or is this the first time you've used it?

[timmcat]

Just a thought - was SP2 installed prior to the repair? If so, the repair may have left SP2 intact, and you are trying to install it again.

Try a right click / properties on 'my computer'. If the windows version shows 'SP2' then you've already got it.

Alternatively, take a look at this. (http://support.microsoft.com/kb/873148)

[Saab Dastard]

timmcat, good point, that rings a bell!

IIRC , I had to uninstall SP2 and re-install it, with some additional complications that I have now forgotten!

I subsequently built a slipstreamed XP SP2 install disk to get around that problem. Will be doing the same after SP3...

SD

[Compass Call]

hellsbrink

The SP2 disk has always worked before. The M$oft instrucions of doing an XP repair says that the SP2 and other updates have to be reinstalled after the repair.

timmcat

Thanks for the reference. I will try it.

SAAb Dastard

Excuse my ignorance, but what is a slipstreamed disk? Is it easy to create? Could you tell me how to make one bearing in mind that I am not keen on fiddling with the registry!!! or anything else that might have serious consequences with the OS.

Many thanks for the response.

CC

[Saab Dastard]

A slipstreamed disk is effectively a copy of the original installation disk with subsequent service packs applied to it, such that any installation using the new disk will be at the SP level incorporated.

Slipstreaming isn't limited to service packs either - you can also slipstream in various product updates, including hot-fixes.

The best How-to information is to be had from the internet - google "slipstream XP SP2" for instructions.

You will need to download the SP itself, plus some utilities to extract the bootable files from the installation CD (e.g. isobuster) and to create / write ISO image files.

And of course you need the original, bootable installation CD with appropriate license!

SD

[twiggs]

Excuse my ignorance, but what is a slipstreamed disk? Is it easy to create? Could you tell me how to make one bearing in mind that I am not keen on fiddling with the registry!!! or anything else that might have serious consequences with the OS.


A very good app that integrates service packs but also allows addition/removal of many features and updates for XP is nLite (http://www.nliteos.com/index.html).