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Microsoft Kills Support For XP SP2

Posted by timothy on from the too-soon? dept.

Trailrunner7 writes "Microsoft's announcement this week that it is preparing to end support for machines running Windows XP SP2 not only represents a challenge for the thousands of businesses still running SP2, but also is the end of an era for both Microsoft and its customers. It wasn't until 2004 that the final release of XP SP2 hit the streets, but when it did, it represented a huge step forward in security for Windows users. It wasn't necessarily the feature set that mattered as much as the fact that the protections were enabled by default and taken out of the users' hands."

25 of 315 comments (clear)

  1. So what? by SanityInAnarchy · · Score: 5, Insightful

    What's wrong with SP3?

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    1. Re:So what? by Andorin · · Score: 4, Informative

      Way back when I had XP SP2, installing SP3 borked my machine. Had to do a System Restore.

      Just sayin'.

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      That Anonymous Coward guy is pretty annoying. Can we have the government censor him or something?
    2. Re:So what? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Nothing wrong with SP3. Just another "security columnist" trying to make headlines by exaggerating a minor event. Title of his article? "End of Support for XP SP2 is End of an Era", give me a break.

    3. Re:So what? by Mashiki · · Score: 4, Interesting

      MS never released it for XP64, this kinda leaves XP64 w/sp2 users going wtf.

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      Om, nomnomnom...
    4. Re:So what? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

      Way back when I had XP SP1, installing SP2 borked *my* machine. Had to do a full reinstall.

      Just sayin'.

    5. Re:So what? by spidercoz · · Score: 3, Funny

      all 3 of them

      --
      "I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it." - Evelyn Beatrice Hall, re Voltaire
    6. Re:So what? by BitZtream · · Score: 5, Funny

      Anyone using XP 64bit has pretty much been doing that since the day they installed the OS anyway.

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      Persistent Volume manager for Kubernetes - https://github.com/dwimsey/openshift-pvmanager
    7. Re:So what? by westlake · · Score: 4, Insightful

      Way back when I had XP SP2, installing SP3 borked my machine. Had to do a System Restore.

      The plural of anecdote is not data. How many upgrades to SP3 were successful on the first attempt?

    8. Re:So what? by sakdoctor · · Score: 5, Funny

      Way back when I had 2k, installing XP borked my machine. So I switched to Linux.

      Just sayin'.

    9. Re:So what? by Hijacked+Public · · Score: 3, Insightful

      I'd do that, but my XP disc is stamped "DO NOT MAKE ILLEGAL COPIES OF THIS DISC" and I haven't yet finished reading USC Title 17 to determine whether your recommendation would be illegal.

      --
      "Sacrifice for the good of The State" - The State
    10. Re:So what? by enjerth · · Score: 4, Funny

      Everyone said I was daft to install Windows 3.1 (before WFW 3.11) on a 286, but I installed it anyways.

      At first, it borked my machine. So I did a reinstall which burned down and then borked my machine. The third install burned down, fell over and then borked my machine... but the fourth one stayed up!

      And that's what you'll get, lad.

    11. Re:So what? by Shakrai · · Score: 3, Informative

      I'd do that, but my XP disc is stamped "DO NOT MAKE ILLEGAL COPIES OF THIS DISC" and I haven't yet finished reading USC Title 17 to determine whether your recommendation would be illegal.

      I know you are going for sarcasm, but Microsoft actually tells you how to do this. Also, it says "illegal copies", Microsoft has never much cared if you make copies for your own personal use. Hell, they don't even distribute media by default for their bulk licensed products. You have to download them or pay extra for the media.

      --
      I want peace on earth and goodwill toward man.
      We are the United States Government! We don't do that sort of thing.
    12. Re:So what? by pjfontillas · · Score: 5, Funny

      Way back when I had a typewriter, installing IBMDOS borked my machine. I couldn't figure out how to use the floppy disk. I put it in just like paper, right? The disk just jammed and I had to trash everything. I should have given up then.

      --
      Life. Is. Good.
    13. Re:So what? by ImprovOmega · · Score: 3, Informative

      XP64 SP2 is the same as Windows Server 2003 SP2. When there's an SP3 for Server 2003 there'll be an SP3 for XP-64. Further, any updates for Server 2003 SP2 x64 edition will patch directly into XP-64, so in actuality you'll probably have support for that long after XP-32 is dead and buried. Microsoft's support for Server OS's far outlasts their support for consumer OS's (generally).

    14. Re:So what? by zmollusc · · Score: 4, Funny

      Back when I was using Vista, I .. Oh, wait, this is the wrong end of the thread.

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      They whose government reduces their essential liberties for temporary security, receive neither liberty nor security.
  2. Too late, Redmond by Dystopian+Rebel · · Score: 5, Funny

    I ended support for Microsoft products a few years ago.

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    Rich And Stupid is not so bad as Working For Rich And Stupid.
  3. Re:"Kills" by Beelzebud · · Score: 4, Funny

    MS bludgeons XPSP2 to death like a small defenseless kitten.

  4. Re:XPSP2? by spidercoz · · Score: 3, Insightful

    I know you tried to make the OP look foolish but is it really that hard to write Microsoft Windows XP Service Pack 2?

    --
    "I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it." - Evelyn Beatrice Hall, re Voltaire
  5. News? by toleraen · · Score: 5, Interesting

    Microsoft has had their end of life policy available on the web for ages now. Sp2 has been well known to be going EOL. If this threw any sysadmins off-guard...then wow.

    The only reason I can see sticking with SP2 is that SP3 hasn't gotten an EAL rating.

    1. Re:News? by MobyDisk · · Score: 3, Informative

      FYI: EAL ratings I had never heard of this before.

  6. So, does that make it Abandonware, Legal to Crack? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Interesting

    "..the Library of Congress yesterday approved six exemptions to US copyright. The one most pertinent to gamers is that, for archival purposes, copy protection on software no longer being sold or supported by its copyright holder can be cracked.."

    - http://www.joystiq.com/2006/11/23/us-copyright-office-grants-abandonware-rights/

    if not, why not? Seriously, interested..

  7. Re:Typical MS forcing their customers to be slaves by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Maybe they should contact the company that supports their multi-million dollar financial software to get off their asses and fix their software.

    Microsoft, for all their faults, maintains their OS API quite well. You do not see this sort of API stability from almost any other vendor. API that worked in Windows 95 still works, more or less.

  8. Re:Rediculous by Dog-Cow · · Score: 3, Interesting

    Ford Motor is still running SP2.

  9. Re:XP did NOT replace 2000 by Kalriath · · Score: 3, Informative

    The successor to Windows 2000 Professional was Windows XP. Not Windows Server 2003.

    Millenium was also a consolidation release, designed to make the consumer line look more like the business line so they could merge them. There are three tracks:

    3.x -> 95 -> 98 -> Me -> (Line ends. Continue from XP below)
    NT 4 Workstation -> 2000 Professional -> XP -> Vista -> 7
    NT 3.51 -> NT 4 Server -> 2000 Server -> 2003 -> 2008 -> 2008R2

    --
    For a site about things like basic rights, Slashdot users sure do like to censor "dissent".
  10. Re:Wow, Slashdot has changed a little. by harryjohnston · · Score: 3, Informative

    Be aware that the end-of-support for SP2 isn't actually news. The date has been known ever since SP3 was released.