https://archive.org/details/WinXPHomeEditionSP3x86
Is it real?
i have only heard of Windows XP Home Edition SP2.

Yes of course it is real.

You can get a boxed set off eBay.

More hi-res image: https://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/KXcAAOSw ... -l1600.jpg

SP3 was RTM April 2008, and subsequently embedded in install media. It’s just a little less common than disks with sp2, since most customers had already switched to XP, and many manufacturers were transitioning to Vista.

What about Starter SP3?

Starter Edition was only released in SP2. Stop asking and do the research yourself.

They're just asking a genuine question. Some people can't easily find things like this online.

Okay no need to be rude. Although MC you shouldn't use this site as google.
Sorry for backseat moderating but I want to express my opinion.

Asking is one method of doing research. Besides, I couldn't quickly find an answer to his Starter question using Google or the forum search engine...

Don't be rude.

A google search shows multiple Starter SP3 ISOs, and that it was distributed well after the release date of SP3, but no information on whether it was actually released or not or if those ISOs are authentic. This website is dedicated to cataloging & preserving software, and is one of the best places to ask obscure questions with hard to find answers like this one because of its amazing community.

As one once told me "You never know till you ask".And i know i ask a lot of questions that others may think foolish but i stay determined.

It's sort of hard to find answers to questions like this one, that's why you would ask them on a forum like this one. That's what forums are pretty much for. Also, I'm sure if Windows XP Starter Edition SP3 exists, to quote ComputerHunter's statement about Starter Edition coming with SP2 only, but I'm sure a couple copies of Starter Edition SP3 exist somewhere.

Really? Find a copy with scan to proof they are real. Check the STARTOC.CAB in all SP3 copies and you will find they are identical to SP2...

AFAIK Windows XP Starter was released in SP2.
Windows XP Starter MAY have been released in SP3 but IMO it's very unlikely.

Look, it's simply an inference. JonathonWyble wasn't fully sure whether the Starter edition with SP3 built-in was ever shipped in CDs. Besides, the main point is that those types of questions are meant to be asked here in the first place as Microsoft doesn't even support any releases of Windows XP, including the POSReady version.

He just said he is sure. I didn't meant to be mean to anyone but please accept the fact the SP3 doesn't exist or prove to me it does. I've dome extensive research on Starter Edition and the last version of Starter Edition is SP2b.

The reason for 99% of people using the online "SP3" is that nobody have a key and I am quite happy to share a a working key. The SP3 is just a normal Home Edition with StartOC (Windows XP Starter Edition Optional Component) from SP2 integrated.

Open any SP3 ISO images and go to \CMPNENTS\STARTER\I386\STARTOC.CAB, check the version info of ediskeer.dll (the most important Starter Edition library that does all the check). It is impossible to edit that file to make it display another version number because winlogon has a check for it.

I am sorry if I am being rude.

IDK, I've looked pretty hard and wasn't able to find anything. Starter was a special localized version of XP for low end hardware in developing regions. It's very likely MS just didn't release it since they didn't see a need.

Besides, users could simply install SP3 on their own. You simply download a file, execute it and restart Windows afterwards. I've done if multiple times myself. If any editions came with SP3 already, it's either Home or Professional.

What about archive.org? They have a lot of useful goodies there.


True, almost everyone knows how to install most versions of Windows. However, not everyone...

https://archive.org/search.php?query=wi ... rter%20sp3

The only relevant result is fanmade. You can check using the method that ComputerHunter outlined above. You can even download STARTOC.cab on it's own (https://ia800101.us.archive.org/isoview ... OEM_EN.iso)

There is no actual evidence that any releases of Starter SP3 ever existed.

Then we guess Windows XP Starter Edition SP3 never existed at all, and it's just something that someone who is not Microsoft made. Or maybe not, because that disc image on archive.org seems like it's real.