Hotfix

I have Windows XP Pro w/SP1, my computer is for personal/school use not
business. I have received several hotfix programs from Microsoft, is it
necessary for me to download these hotfix programs? The hotfixs are
accumulating in my add or remove file. Please help.

Renee LaGoy wrote:
I have Windows XP Pro w/SP1, my computer is for personal/school use
not business. I have received several hotfix programs from
Microsoft, is it necessary for me to download these hotfix programs?
The hotfixs are accumulating in my add or remove file. Please help.

"Received"? As in "received in your e-mail"? Delete them. The only
reliable place to get patches, fixes and updates is from
http://v4.windowsupdate.microsoft.com/en/default.asp Or do you mean
you received them via the Automatic Windows Update function? In that
case, you should install them. At least the Critical Updates.

Greetings --

What you received is either a very common, malicious hoax or the
output of a computer infected by one of several widely publicized,
wide-spread, mass emailing worms. The most widely-known a

W32.Swen.A_mm


W32.Dumaru_mm


W32.Gibe_mm


Microsoft never has, does not currently, and very probably never
will email unsolicited security patches. At the most, if, and only
if, you subscribe to their security notification newsletter, they will
send you an email informing you that a new patch is available for
downloading.

Microsoft Policies on Software Distribution
http://www.microsoft.com/technet/tre...icy/swdist.asp

Information on Bogus Microsoft Security Bulletin Emails
http://www.microsoft.com/technet/tre...patch_hoax.asp

How to Tell If a Microsoft Security-Related Message Is Genuine
http://www.microsoft.com/security/an...icate_mail.asp

Any and all legitimate patches and updates are readily available
at http://windowsupdate.microsoft.com/. (Notice that this is the true
URL, rather than the bogus one that may have been contained in the
email you received.) Any messages that point to any other source(s) or
claim to have the patch attached are bogus.

You're receiving these emails because your email address is in
the address book of someone infected with a worm, and/or because you
posted your real email address somewhere on-line, either in a forum
accessible to the public and spambots, such as Usenet, or on an
untrustworthy web site that subsequently sold your address as part of
a mailing list. One thing you can do is notify _everyone_ with whom
you've ever corresponded via email that one or more of them may be
infected with a mass emailing worm, and should take the appropriate
steps.

There's probably no way of blocking all of the bogus messages, but
you can greatly reduce the number you get by creating a rule, based
upon the most commonly used subject lines, to delete the emails from
the server without ever downloading them.


Bruce Chambers

--
Help us help you:
http://dts-l.org/goodpost.htm
http://www.catb.org/~esr/faqs/smart-questions.html

You can have peace. Or you can have freedom. Don't ever count on
having both at once. -- RAH


"Renee LaGoy" wrote in message
...
I have Windows XP Pro w/SP1, my computer is for personal/school use
not
business. I have received several hotfix programs from Microsoft,
is it
necessary for me to download these hotfix programs? The hotfixs are
accumulating in my add or remove file. Please help.

Renee;
If you received them by Email, they are a virus and NOT from Microsoft
regardless what they look like.

If you got them from Windows Update you need them.
If you remove them you also remove the fix.

However, you can safely delete the uninstall files.
Once you are sure you will keep Windows XP Service Pack 1.
The files may be hidden, to show the file:
Go to C:\WINDOWS
Click the top TOOLS, click FOLDER OPTIONS, click VIEW
Check the radio button. "Show hidden files and folders"
Click OK and you should now see more files.

Go to C:\WINDOWS and delete "$NTServicePackUinistall$" about 240 mb.
Then go to Add/Remove Programs.
Click Service Pack 1, there will be an error since you just deleted
the file.
Click YES to delete the shortcut.

Use similar procedure to delete similar files for the updates.

--
Jupiter Jones [MVP]
An easier way to read newsgroup messages:
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/p...oups/setup.asp
http://dts-l.org/index.html


"Renee LaGoy" wrote in message
...
I have Windows XP Pro w/SP1, my computer is for personal/school use
not
business. I have received several hotfix programs from Microsoft,
is it
necessary for me to download these hotfix programs? The hotfixs are
accumulating in my add or remove file. Please help.

On Sun, 2 Nov 2003 09:42:18 -0500, Renee LaGoy wrote:

I have Windows XP Pro w/SP1, my computer is for personal/school use not
business. I have received several hotfix programs from Microsoft, is it
necessary for me to download these hotfix programs? The hotfixs are
accumulating in my add or remove file. Please help.

Most of the hotfixes from Windows Update site are related to security. So I
would say that "yes" it is necessary to download and install at least those.
The other two categories are optional. Pick and choose those that apply to
you. I tend to stay away from the driver updates as I prefer to get those
directly from the hardware manufacturers.

The hotfixes that show up in Add/Remove Programs have an uninstall option
included. Useful if a particular update causes problems on your system.
Installing the "rollup" update eliminated many from the Add/Remove list.

If the presence of these items in Add/Remove programs really bugs you but
you want to keep the updates - remove the uninstall files from the Windows
folder. Then edit the registry to remove the entries from the Add/Remove
list.

If you prefer not to do this deleting and editing yourself, Doug Knox (MVP)
has a tool that can accomplish the same thing for you:

http://www.dougknox.com/xp/utils/xp_hotfix_backup.htm

--
Sharon F
MS MVP - Windows Shell/User

On Sun, 2 Nov 2003 09:42:18 -0500, Renee LaGoy wrote:

I have Windows XP Pro w/SP1, my computer is for personal/school use not
business. I have received several hotfix programs from Microsoft, is it
necessary for me to download these hotfix programs? The hotfixs are
accumulating in my add or remove file. Please help.

Renee, I assumed that you were receiving notice of updates available
directly from the Automatic Update tool that works in conjunction with the
Windows Update site. These are the only bonafide MS updates.

If you are getting emails with attached updates, these are not from MS as
others have mentioned! They are "spoofed" emails that only appear to be
from MS and have viruses attached to them. Please do NOT use those
attachments!

--
Sharon F
MS MVP - Windows Shell/User