Vista Service Pack update is junk

I have come across two computers in my family that fail to update to Vista
SP2 with totally different error codes, and leading to different discussions
on the community forums. One is a desktop and the other is a new Dell
laptop. The latter gets error code 80070490.

Wow this Microsoft quality control reminds me of the constant bugs I had
when I was using Windows 3.0 back in the early 1990s, or the first Windows
95 release.

I hope it's better in Windows 7!

 

"scorpionleather" <scorpionleather@nospam.noemail.com> wrote in message
news:575E3941-9E8D-4DAE-9302-9ADA5AD01DF3@microsoft.com...<!--coloro:blue--><span style="color:blue <!--/coloro-->
> I have come across two computers in my family that fail to update to Vista
> SP2 with totally different error codes, and leading to different
> discussions on the community forums. One is a desktop and the other is a
> new Dell laptop. The latter gets error code 80070490.
>
> Wow this Microsoft quality control reminds me of the constant bugs I had
> when I was using Windows 3.0 back in the early 1990s, or the first Windows
> 95 release.
>
> I hope it's better in Windows 7!<!--colorc--><!--/colorc-->

It is probably you, doing something wrong. All my Vistas take SP2
effortlessly.
--
John the West Ham fan

housetrained@hotmail.com
<><

 

So because it worked for you then everyone else who it didn't work for must
be doing something wrong?
I couldn't get the piece of junk to install either.
Just an error code that leads me nowhere.


"housetrained" <housetrained@hotmail.com> wrote in message
news:00cc36ca$0$24176$c3e8da3@news.astraweb.com...<!--coloro:blue--><span style="color:blue <!--/coloro-->
> "scorpionleather" <scorpionleather@nospam.noemail.com> wrote in message
> news:575E3941-9E8D-4DAE-9302-9ADA5AD01DF3@microsoft.com...<!--coloro:green--><span style="color:green <!--/coloro-->
>> I have come across two computers in my family that fail to update to
>> Vista SP2 with totally different error codes, and leading to different
>> discussions on the community forums. One is a desktop and the other is a
>> new Dell laptop. The latter gets error code 80070490.
>>
>> Wow this Microsoft quality control reminds me of the constant bugs I had
>> when I was using Windows 3.0 back in the early 1990s, or the first
>> Windows 95 release.
>>
>> I hope it's better in Windows 7!<!--colorc--><!--/colorc-->
>
> It is probably you, doing something wrong. All my Vistas take SP2
> effortlessly.
> --
> John the West Ham fan
>
> housetrained@hotmail.com
> <><
>
>
>
> <!--colorc--><!--/colorc-->

 

Have you got other problems with your computer or is it JUST sp2?
--
John the West Ham fan

housetrained@hotmail.com
<><


"paula" <nospam@nospam.com> wrote in message
news:#psfKEDHKHA.4608@TK2MSFTNGP02.phx.gbl...<!--coloro:blue--><span style="color:blue <!--/coloro-->
>
> So because it worked for you then everyone else who it didn't work for
> must be doing something wrong?
> I couldn't get the piece of junk to install either.
> Just an error code that leads me nowhere.
>
>
> "housetrained" <housetrained@hotmail.com> wrote in message
> news:00cc36ca$0$24176$c3e8da3@news.astraweb.com...<!--coloro:green--><span style="color:green <!--/coloro-->
>> "scorpionleather" <scorpionleather@nospam.noemail.com> wrote in message
>> news:575E3941-9E8D-4DAE-9302-9ADA5AD01DF3@microsoft.com...<!--coloro:darkred--><span style="color:darkred <!--/coloro-->
>>> I have come across two computers in my family that fail to update to
>>> Vista SP2 with totally different error codes, and leading to different
>>> discussions on the community forums. One is a desktop and the other is
>>> a new Dell laptop. The latter gets error code 80070490.
>>>
>>> Wow this Microsoft quality control reminds me of the constant bugs I had
>>> when I was using Windows 3.0 back in the early 1990s, or the first
>>> Windows 95 release.
>>>
>>> I hope it's better in Windows 7!<!--colorc--><!--/colorc-->
>>
>> It is probably you, doing something wrong. All my Vistas take SP2
>> effortlessly.
>> --
>> John the West Ham fan
>>
>> housetrained@hotmail.com
>> <><
>>
>>
>>
>> <!--colorc--><!--/colorc--><!--colorc--><!--/colorc-->

 

Before you blame anything else try disabling your anti-virus for the
duration of the installation and subsequent reboot,

Download the standalone SP2 and save it to the desktop (or wherever),
right-click ..Properties and unblock. Then try installing it from there.

'Download details: Windows Server 2008 Service Pack 2 and Windows Vista
Service Pack 2 - Five Language Standalone (KB948465)'
()

Change the Country if you are elsewhere. (Upper right-hand corner).

By the way, Microsoft gives free online help for all updates and
service packs.


--
Ex_Brit

::*-Peter-*::
-Toronto, Canada-
-x64 Vista Ultimate SP2 & Windows 7 Ultimate-
'[image: ' ([url=https://mvp.support.microso...ofile/Peter.McNicol[url]) -Consumer Security-

 

"paula" <nospam@nospam.com> wrote in message
news:#psfKEDHKHA.4608@TK2MSFTNGP02.phx.gbl...<!--coloro:blue--><span style="color:blue <!--/coloro-->
> So because it worked for you then everyone else who it didn't work for
> must be doing something wrong?<!--colorc--><!--/colorc-->

Exactly! <H>.
<!--coloro:blue--><span style="color:blue <!--/coloro-->
> I couldn't get the piece of junk to install either.
> Just an error code that leads me nowhere.<!--colorc--><!--/colorc-->

<!--coloro:blue--><span style="color:blue <!--/coloro-->
>
>
> "housetrained" <housetrained@hotmail.com> wrote in message
> news:00cc36ca$0$24176$c3e8da3@news.astraweb.com...<!--coloro:green--><span style="color:green <!--/coloro-->
>> "scorpionleather" <scorpionleather@nospam.noemail.com> wrote in message
>> news:575E3941-9E8D-4DAE-9302-9ADA5AD01DF3@microsoft.com...<!--coloro:darkred--><span style="color:darkred <!--/coloro-->
>>> I have come across two computers in my family that fail to update to
>>> Vista SP2 with totally different error codes, and leading to different
>>> discussions on the community forums. One is a desktop and the other is
>>> a new Dell laptop. The latter gets error code 80070490.
>>>
>>> Wow this Microsoft quality control reminds me of the constant bugs I had
>>> when I was using Windows 3.0 back in the early 1990s, or the first
>>> Windows 95 release.
>>>
>>> I hope it's better in Windows 7!<!--colorc--><!--/colorc-->
>>
>> It is probably you, doing something wrong. All my Vistas take SP2
>> effortlessly.
>> --
>> John the West Ham fan
>>
>> housetrained@hotmail.com
>> <><
>>
>>
>>
>> <!--colorc--><!--/colorc--><!--colorc--><!--/colorc-->

 

housetrained;1111760 Wrote: <!--coloro:blue--><span style="color:blue <!--/coloro-->
> "scorpionleather" <scorpionleather@xxxxxx> wrote in message
> news:575E3941-9E8D-4DAE-9302-9ADA5AD01DF3@xxxxxx> > > <!--coloro:green--><span style="color:green <!--/coloro--><!--coloro:darkred--><span style="color:darkred <!--/coloro-->
> > > I have come across two computers in my family that fail to update to<!--colorc--><!--/colorc-->
> > Vista<!--coloro:darkred--><span style="color:darkred <!--/coloro-->
> > > SP2 with totally different error codes, and leading to different
> > > discussions on the community forums. One is a desktop and the other<!--colorc--><!--/colorc-->
> > is a<!--coloro:darkred--><span style="color:darkred <!--/coloro-->
> > > new Dell laptop. The latter gets error code 80070490.
> > >
> > > Wow this Microsoft quality control reminds me of the constant bugs I<!--colorc--><!--/colorc-->
> > had<!--coloro:darkred--><span style="color:darkred <!--/coloro-->
> > > when I was using Windows 3.0 back in the early 1990s, or the first<!--colorc--><!--/colorc-->
> > Windows<!--coloro:darkred--><span style="color:darkred <!--/coloro-->
> > > 95 release.
> > >
> > > I hope it's better in Windows 7! > > <!--colorc--><!--/colorc--><!--colorc--><!--/colorc-->
>
> It is probably you, doing something wrong. All my Vistas take SP2
> effortlessly.
> --
> John the West Ham fan
>
> housetrained@xxxxxx
> <><<!--colorc--><!--/colorc-->


I have to agree with John. I installed SP2 on 4 different systems
without any problems. I suspect that you have a piece of software on
your systems that is interfering with the SP2 installation. I suggest
you try the installation in safe mode to make sure that there are no
other running processes.


--
whs

 

I just tried to install Vista SP2 on another machine, this one belonging to
my father, and this is the THIRD machine (out of around 5 or 6 total) that
has a problem installing Vista SP2. The error code is 80072F78.

Wow there is a serious problem with the Vista SP2 installer.

On the discussion forums I noticed the only solution is to put in the CD and
to do a Vista Restore.

Why doesn't Microsoft release a high priority patch through Windows Update
that can fix the underlying issue and allow the SP2 installer to proceed
without error? A LOT of computers seem to be affected.

 

Stop blaming Microsoft as it should install easily so obviously
something in your setup there is strange.

What country are you in and how do you connect to the internet?


--
Ex_Brit

::*-Peter-*::
-Toronto, Canada-
-x64 Vista Ultimate SP2 & Windows 7 Ultimate-
'[image: ' ([url=https://mvp.support.microso...ofile/Peter.McNicol[url]) -Consumer Security-

 

Brit, did you read my message? I said that there are -three- different
computers that belong to different people in my family, that all have
problems with Vista SP2. I have applied SP2 to a total of around 5-6
computers so almost 50% of the computers I updated have problems installing
the service pack. Therefore, it is not because of anything unusual. In
fact all three of these computers have very standard, out-of-the-box setups.

One is my brother's new Dell laptop in the US. The other is my mother's
desktop computer also in the US. And the third computer is my father's Dell
laptop in Europe (I connected remotely to his machine).

You cannot possibly claim that 50% of the computers I updated have problems
because of unusual configuration. I don't touch these computers other than
making sure that my brother and parents do their regular Microsoft security
updates. They tend to keep their desktops very simple, with very little 3rd
party software installed.

I blame Microsoft for not issuing a patch or a product alert to deal with
this SP2 installer problem. They realled messed up on the Vista SP2
installer.

 

OK I stand corrected. I did mention earlier that Microsoft provide free
support for update problems and expecially service packs..have you tried
them?


--
Ex_Brit

::*-Peter-*::
-Toronto, Canada-
-x64 Vista Ultimate SP2 & Windows 7 Ultimate-
'[image: ' ([url=https://mvp.support.microso...ofile/Peter.McNicol[url]) -Consumer Security-

 

I haven't tried Microsoft support myself, but I read a number of messages
written by Microsoft employees responding to other people having the same
problem. Typically the response is to run a system file check utility and a
number of other steps such as downloading old KB article updates (that were
already applied!), that in my opinion, are simply desiged to keep the user
busy without having any impact. The reason I say this is because these
"busy-work" steps do not solve the SP2 install problem. Then in these
discussions, after the user has spent hours running various diagnostics,
Microsoft finally suggests to put in the Vista CD and use the Restore
option. That's almost like re-installing Windows.. not a real solution but
it's the only thing that works for users. Someone at Microsoft knows about
this SP2 problem but they are keeping quiet about it and haven't issued a
patch for it.

 

Well I wish you luck and hope that someone comes along with some ideas.
All I know is that long ago I learned to turn off all protection
software before attempting service pack installations and louckily (I
suppose) I had no problems.


--
Ex_Brit

::*-Peter-*::
-Toronto, Canada-
-x64 Vista Ultimate SP2 & Windows 7 Ultimate-
'[image: ' ([url=https://mvp.support.microso...ofile/Peter.McNicol[url]) -Consumer Security-

 

Ex_Brit <guest@unknown-email.com> wrote:
<!--coloro:blue--><span style="color:blue <!--/coloro-->
>
>Well I wish you luck and hope that someone comes along with some ideas.
>All I know is that long ago I learned to turn off all protection
>software before attempting service pack installations and louckily (I
>suppose) I had no problems.<!--colorc--><!--/colorc-->

I've had zero problems with everything running as normal.

 

That's what I observed. -Some- of the SP2 installs go smoothly, in my case
on 50% of the computers I tried. The other 3 computers fail with different
error codes. When I search each of these error codes, I find many many
discussion posts on the web from people who ran into the exact same problem.
So this is very widespread. If your install of Vista SP2 went smoothly then
wonderful. But for those affected.. not so great.

 

This discussion belongs in microsoft.public.windowsupdate.

I'm sending it there via crosspost.

"scorpionleather" <scorpionleather@nospam.noemail.com> wrote:
<!--coloro:blue--><span style="color:blue <!--/coloro-->
>Brit, did you read my message? I said that there are -three- different
>computers that belong to different people in my family, that all have
>problems with Vista SP2. I have applied SP2 to a total of around 5-6
>computers so almost 50% of the computers I updated have problems installing
>the service pack. Therefore, it is not because of anything unusual. In
>fact all three of these computers have very standard, out-of-the-box setups.
>
>One is my brother's new Dell laptop in the US. The other is my mother's
>desktop computer also in the US. And the third computer is my father's Dell
>laptop in Europe (I connected remotely to his machine).
>
>You cannot possibly claim that 50% of the computers I updated have problems
>because of unusual configuration. I don't touch these computers other than
>making sure that my brother and parents do their regular Microsoft security
>updates. They tend to keep their desktops very simple, with very little 3rd
>party software installed.
>
>I blame Microsoft for not issuing a patch or a product alert to deal with
>this SP2 installer problem. They realled messed up on the Vista SP2
>installer. <!--colorc--><!--/colorc-->

 

See this:

scorpionleather wrote:<!--coloro:blue--><span style="color:blue <!--/coloro-->
> That's what I observed. -Some- of the SP2 installs go smoothly, in my
> case on 50% of the computers I tried. The other 3 computers fail with
> different error codes. When I search each of these error codes, I find
> many many discussion posts on the web from people who ran into the exact
> same problem. So this is very widespread. If your install of Vista SP2
> went smoothly then wonderful. But for those affected.. not so great.<!--colorc--><!--/colorc-->

 

If you cannot install any updates, Windows Update is an appropriate
newsgroup. If you're having problems installing Vista SP2 only...

Free unlimited installation and compatibility support is available for
Windows Vista, but only for Service Pack 2 (SP2). This support for Windows
Vista Service Pack 2 (SP2) is valid until November 26, 2009. Availability of
chat or e-mail support differs depending on your geographic location. Go to
&
select appropriate category (i.e., Download issue; Installation issue;
Issues after you install a service pack).

You'll find additional support for Vista SP2 issues in
microsoft.public.windows.vista.general newsgroup and in these forums:

.

.

.

How to troubleshoot Windows Vista and Windows Server 2008 service pack
installation issues


Windows Vista and Windows Server 2008 service pack installation fails with
error 0x80004005:


Error message when you try to install Windows Vista Service Pack 2 or
Windows Server 2008 Service Pack 2: "An internal error occurred while
installing the service pack":

<!--coloro:blue--><span style="color:blue <!--/coloro--><!--coloro:green--><span style="color:green <!--/coloro-->
>> I blame Microsoft for not issuing a patch... to deal with
>> this SP2 installer problem.<!--colorc--><!--/colorc--><!--colorc--><!--/colorc-->

Description of the Windows Vista and Windows Server 2008 installation
software feature update released April 28, 2009:
[Has KB955430 been installed yet?]

The update is not installed successfully, you receive a message, and the
computer restarts when you try to install an update in Windows Vista (3
Resolution Methods)


============

Vista SP2 Installation Tips:

.. Your computer will restart several times during the installation process:
Make certain you've saved your work and closed all open applications before
beginning the install.

.. Disable (1) your anti-virus application, (2) any real-time system
protections afforded by any anti-spyware applications (except Defender), &
(3) your third-party firewall (if any) and then (4) enable the Windows
Firewall _before installing or uninstalling_ Vista SP2.

.. The installation process can take an hour or more: If you're installing
SP2 on a portable computer, make sure that you plug-in the power cord and
have the battery inserted into its bay.

.. Vista SP1 is a prerequisite for installing SP2. If you use Windows Update
or the Automatic Update feature in Windows Vista, you will not be offered
the option to install SP2 until you first install SP1.

=============================

HOW TO install Vista SP2 manually

<QP>
Generally, these errors can occur if the system files are corrupted.

To make clear the current situation, I recommend downloading Windows Vista
Service Pack 2] in Normal Mode and installing it in Clean Boot Mode. Please
follow the steps below.

Note: This SP2 installation can be affected by certain third party programs
running in the background. If you are running any third party applications
such as Spyblocker, Internet or web accelerators (programs designed to boost
the speed of the Internet connection), security or anti-virus programs
(McAfee, Norton, etc.), I recommend we temporarily disable or shut them down
during our troubleshooting process. Please be sure to enable them again when
the update process has been completed.

Step 1: Download Windows Vista Service Pack 2 Standalone Installer
===================================================
1. Download Windows Vista SP2 from the link below according to your System
Type:

....Windows Vista Service Pack 2 - Five Language Standalone for x32-based
systems (Size: 348.3 MB)


....Windows Vista Service Pack 2 - Five Language Standalone for x64-based
systems (Size: 577.4MB)


2. Save the download to your desktop, do not Run it!

Step 2: Install Windows Vista SP2 in Clean Boot mode
========================================
Please disable all startup items and third party services when booting to
avoid conflict when installing Vista SP1:

1. Click "Start", type: MSCONFIG in the search box and press Enter.

Note: Please click "Continue" if the "User Account Control" window pops up.

2. Click "Services", check the "Hide All Microsoft Services" box and click
"Disable All" (if it is not gray).
3. Click "Startup", click "Disable All" and click "OK".

Note: Temporarily disabling the Startup Group only prevents the startup
programs from loading at startup. This shouldn't affect the system or other
programs. We can manually run these programs later. Go ahead and reboot your
system when prompted as you are exiting MsConfig.

4. After rebooting, right-click on the downloaded Windows Vista Service Pack
2 Standalone Installer, select "Run as Administrator" (if necessary) and
follow the instructions to install Windows Vista SP2.

To restore the computer to use a Normal Startup, repeat step 1 above. Then
click "Normal Startup" on the General tab, click "OK", and then restart the
computer.
</QP>
Modified from original MS Support source as quoted in

--
~Robear Dyer (PA Bear)
MS MVP-IE, Mail, Security, Windows Client - since 2002




Bill Daggett wrote:<!--coloro:blue--><span style="color:blue <!--/coloro-->
> This discussion belongs in microsoft.public.windowsupdate.
>
> I'm sending it there via crosspost.
>
> "scorpionleather" <scorpionleather@nospam.noemail.com> wrote:<!--coloro:green--><span style="color:green <!--/coloro-->
>> Brit, did you read my message? I said that there are -three- different
>> computers that belong to different people in my family, that all have
>> problems with Vista SP2. I have applied SP2 to a total of around 5-6
>> computers so almost 50% of the computers I updated have problems
>> installing
>> the service pack. Therefore, it is not because of anything unusual. In
>> fact all three of these computers have very standard, out-of-the-box
>> setups.
>>
>> One is my brother's new Dell laptop in the US. The other is my mother's
>> desktop computer also in the US. And the third computer is my father's
>> Dell laptop in Europe (I connected remotely to his machine).
>>
>> You cannot possibly claim that 50% of the computers I updated have
>> problems
>> because of unusual configuration. I don't touch these computers other
>> than
>> making sure that my brother and parents do their regular Microsoft
>> security
>> updates. They tend to keep their desktops very simple, with very little
>> 3rd party software installed.
>>
>> I blame Microsoft for not issuing a patch or a product alert to deal with
>> this SP2 installer problem. They realled messed up on the Vista SP2
>> installer. <!--colorc--><!--/colorc--><!--colorc--><!--/colorc-->

 

Let's face it - VISTA is junk!


--
thehawk71

 

"YoSeMitE_SaM" <not.available@this.org> wrote in message<!--coloro:blue--><span style="color:blue <!--/coloro-->
> See this: <!--colorc--><!--/colorc-->

Thanks but that's not the issue. The Internet connections were fine. In
fact I tried to install the standalone version of Vista SP2 (download the
huge file from the Microsoft website and then run it). That resulted also
in failed installation and an error code.