Microsoft Pulls Broken XP Update

Cally writes "Yahoo! reports that Microsoft have pulled a Windows XP update from the Windows Update servers after it killed network access for some users of the claimed 600,000 who installed it. (Does this mean only 600,000 XP users trust Windows Update?) The story hints that the problem was something to do with VPN or IPSec drivers clashing with Symantec software - however I haven't found anything about this on the Microsoft KnowledgeBase (the link Yahoo provide goes to the generic support home page.) Anyone got more info?"

Comments

windows update

[satanicat]

windows mustive been getting too stable. .

Do they have any sort of quality control?=)

Re:windows update

[Anonymous Coward]

No shit. As the CEO, CTO and CIO of Standard Oil Co. I can confirm that when we replaced our Firewall with a Tandy TRS80 colour computer running TRSDOS our hacking attempts were reduced by 105%. Our revenue streams have also increased 97% and the junior messenger in block 3E has gotten laid. I uncovered the Ark of the Covonent after an epic battle of good and evil with 4th Reich Nazis in the Nirobi desert, and my ex-wife has taken a vow of silence as a Bhuddist Nun.

Without the Tandy Color Computer none of this would have been possible. You just cant equal that with Debian or Gentoo!

Re:windows update

[Sazarac]

As an IT professional/developer with 130 wintel boxes in my charge, I just want to say thanks to Microsoft for giving me something to fill up the otherwise boring hours of my employment with endless regression testing to make sure everything works with everything else. It's not as if I'm AT ALL busy with keeping everything running anyway. Not to mention writing new code that compiles and runs fine on Win2K but randomly throws exceptions on NT.

!= ("Not!")

Sheesh... I'm gonna quit my job and start a new thrash band called Rage Against The Butterfly

Re:windows update

[El]

Do they have any sort of quality control?

Yes, they've got a huge installed user base that reports problems very quickly... why should that pay people to find bugs, when there are 600,000 people willing to pay them for the priviledge of beta-testing their software?

If only they had apt-get

[Debian Troll]

I am currently porting apt-get to Windows. This will mean that these types of embarassing security breaches never happen again. apt-get is the answer to all of today's problems.

Re:If only they had apt-get

[Debian Troll]

I got tired of apt-get blowing up my unstable Debian, so I wrote this to make it transactional:

Your code looks very interesting, and would make a fine addition to the new Windows version of apt-get which I have almost finished writing. It is crafted in MMX/SSE accelerated x86 assembler, so it runs really fast! You will, however, need to port your nice Java program to assembler. I am also looking for people to help out with the GUI front-end to win-apt-get, which is based around a helpful paper clip character called 'Klecker'. When the user requires an update, they 'Klick' on 'Klecker', and he helpfully tells the user to "Fuck off and read the manual you filthy Windoze luser", or to "Take a fucking number and wait for win-apt-get stable to be released in 2017".

Re:If only they had apt-get

[subreality]

Hah, you BSD people are so behind the times.

subreality@underminer:~$ apt-get cure-world-hunger

Your ports tree can't do that. No wonder BSD is dying.

:-)

Re:If only they had apt-get

[tres]

Yeah, but try this with apt-get

• /home/tres:$ sudo pkg_delete osama_bin_laden-1.2

  pkg_delete: couldn`t entirely delete package (perhaps the packing list is incorrectly specified?)

oops...
well then, we have:

• /home/tres:$ sudo pkg_delete saddam_hussein-1.4_4

  pkg_delete: couldn`t entirely delete package (perhaps the packing list is incorrectly specified?)

hmm... well we couldn't get those done right, but we can fix some other things:

• /home/tres:$ cd /usr/ports/us/liberty

  /usr/ports/us/liberty: $ make install clean

  ...

  can't find dependency: bill_of_rights.so

I know it was there just a little while ago. grr...

Ha! I know how to fix it!

• /home/tres:$ sudo portupgrade president-43_b

Oh yeah! Try that with apt-get :-)

Re:Maybe its not on KB because nobody is at work?

[BabyDave]

It is 5am in the morning.

Which is different to 5am in the afternoon ...

In Tomorrow's News

[AndroidCat]

A new worm has begun infecting XP systems that didn't install the latest patch. "It's their own fault, they should have kept up to date" said BG.

Re:Before you all complain about auto update...

[Timesprout]

What the hell are you doing !! Get a hold of yourself man and stop trying to point out the facts in this story. Most posters so far have already managed to increase MS's few reported cases to 600,000 broken updates. Let them have their fun.

Microsoft KnowledgeBase

[leeroybrown]

It's moments like this that prove that the phrase "Microsoft KnowledgeBase" may in fact be the ultimate oxymoron.

DRM

[Root Down]

It's not a bug, it's digital rights management preventing illegal file sharing!

Obligatory Matrix reference

[Zog The Undeniable]

What good is a Knowledge Base article, Mr Anderson? If you're unable to surf?

Re:Microsoft Security

[zm]

See, there's this new technology called "the telephone".... :)

Re:Automatic Updates

[clonebarkins]

This is at least the 2nd or 3rd time that I've read a story on /. about a Windows XP/2000 patch that was no good.

Only 2nd or 3rd? Don't visit /. much, do ya?

Re:That's the problem with automatic patching

[Helmut Kool]

"Security improvement"? I guess it improves security dramatically if it kills the network access. Thanks, Microsoft!

Re:Old news

[Blue Stone]

"I don't know where you're from, but no one uses that term in North America"

and

"Don't be so arrogant."

Let me introduce you to the concept of irony.