Seems Microsoft has removed download pages for XP SP's

[Cire]

I know Microsoft has had a habit of removing Windows XP related downloads pages lately, but now they've even removed Service Pack 2 and 3 it seems. I know they don't want people to use XP, but this kinda sucks I think. I still think you can get the downloads if you know the direct download links, but that's pretty inconvenient. Windows Update doesn't work either, at least not without SP3.

[sagem]

I have found the same problem with windows 7 updates.
I left my 3 sony laptops on windows update all night and it did jack but it did ask me to update the windows update after 7hrs of trying to get updates I gave up and stuck 10 in them

[sdfox7]

As per my post on another forum,

I encourage you all to use and take advantage of the Internet Archive (WayBack Machine) to download Microsoft software.

The IA is a 501©(3) non profit organization in the United States, and has been archiving the web since 1996. It became officially recognized as a library by the State of California in 2007.

This ensures that we are using links that will NOT "mysteriously disappear" in the future. Also, questionable sources could lead to disastrous results.

ENJOY! Let me know if you need anything else!

Windows 2000 Service Pack 1 (SP1): https://web.archive.org/web/20001018165 ... etwork.exe

Windows 2000 Service Pack 2 (SP2): https://web.archive.org/web/20030918215 ... w2ksp2.exe

Windows 2000 Service Pack 3 (SP3): https://web.archive.org/web/20050813104 ... w2ksp3.exe

Windows 2000 Service Pack 4 (SP4): https://web.archive.org/web/20051022095 ... sp4_en.exe

Windows 2000 Service Pack 4 Security Roll up (SRP): https://web.archive.org/web/20060320020 ... 86-ENU.EXE

Windows XP Service Pack 1 (SP1): https://web.archive.org/web/20020911143 ... en_x86.exe

Windows XP Service Pack 2 (SP2): https://web.archive.org/web/20050618161 ... P2-ENU.exe

Archived: Windows XP Service Pack 3 Network Installation Package for IT Professionals and Developers

Direct Download: https://web.archive.org/web/20140119014 ... 86-ENU.exe

Internet Explorer 7 if you need it: Internet Explorer 7 for Windows XP 32-bit

Direct Download: https://web.archive.org/web/20130509183 ... 86-enu.exe

Internet Explorer 8 if you need it: Internet Explorer 8 for Windows XP 32-bit

Direct Download: https://web.archive.org/web/20130510043 ... 86-ENU.exe

[marcoguy]

While we're talking about reliable sources for SPs, I feel compelled to mention Stephen's own site, as it's been where I go for NT 3.x and 4.x service packs for years. Another great resource for your bookmarks if you're in to that sort of thing imho.
http://sdfox7.com/winntsp.htm

[3155ffGd]

I wonder if there's any interest in archiving these on the FTP. I know we already have some Service Packs, it might be worthwhile to grab those updates by Microsoft that are still available (like the NT4 SP6 Update Rollup both for vanilla NT4 and Terminal Server) before they disappear.

[mrpijey]

If we can properly categorise these updates and service packs then yes, we could archive them on the FTP.

[Battler]

- sdfox7: Do you happen to have any of those service packs in any other language?

[sdfox7]

You can get German SP5, SP6, the rollup, and post-SP6 hotfixes here:

ftp://ftp.uni-rostock.de/pub/tools/micr ... 40/de/sp5/
ftp://ftp.uni-rostock.de/pub/tools/micr ... 0/de/sp6a/
ftp://ftp.uni-rostock.de/pub/tools/micr ... stSP6_SRP/
ftp://ftp.uni-rostock.de/pub/tools/micr ... s-PostSP6/

The US resources are also available here:

ftp://ftp.uni-rostock.de/pub/tools/micr ... s/NT40/us/

The problem with FTP sites is that the Internet Archive generally does not archive them. The links I posted above have been online since 2002, but there is no way to know how long it will remain online.

Offtopic Comment

The cost for me to have an ad-free server is next to nothing, so the fact they are removing the files is more likely to discourage people from running older but still useful software, namely Windows XP. I can't imagine it is due to cost or lack of space.

[Cire]

I'm especially looking for Swedish versions of the software that you posted links for. I found a site that has a link to Windows XP SP3 Swedish that miraculousely still worked when I downloaded it a couple of days ago: http://www.sweclockers.com/nyhet/7653-s ... edladdning

[sdfox7]

I'm especially looking for Swedish versions of the software that you posted links for. I found a site that has a link to Windows XP SP3 Swedish that miraculousely still worked when I downloaded it a couple of days ago: http://www.sweclockers.com/nyhet/7653-s ... edladdning

The links are the same, you simply have to replace "en-us" with "sv-se" within the link.

The answer is at the bottom of this post, but I want you to understand the methodology and how I arrived at the answer.

Also, with the service pack name, you have to replace "ENU" with "SVE"

So, WindowsXP-KB835935-SP2-ENU.exe becomes WindowsXP-KB835935-SP2-SVE.exe

The link for XP SP2 Swedish is https://web.archive.org/web/20100831175 ... P2-SVE.exe

The link for Swedish SP3 details is https://web.archive.org/web/20130129005 ... aspx?id=24

Once I arrived at the archived page, I searched the page source (right-click inside the page and left-click "View Source") to find the direct link. Since you are using the Wayback Machine, these downloads are archived and will continue to function.

The direct download for SP3 is https://web.archive.org/web/20130129005 ... 86-SVE.exe

[sdfox7]

- sdfox7: Do you happen to have any of those service packs in any other language?

Give me the languages you need and I'll find them in the archive.

It's generally simply a matter of finding the respective Microsoft.com website for a particular language and then replacing the American "EN-US" part of the hyperlink with the respective one.

Microsoft's convention is to duplicate web pages but only changing the language code-country code abbreviations.

In this thread, I alluded to the fact that American Microsoft is http://www.microsoft.com/en-us while Swedish is http://www.microsoft.com/sv-se

Spanish is a little different, if you visit this page you will see the options along the left side of the page: https://www.microsoft.com/spanish/

However, the default Spanish page follows the ??-?? format with es-es:

https://www.microsoft.com/es-es

It appears they follow the ??-?? format for every language, here is "Paquete de instalación en red de Windows XP Service Pack 3 para profesionales de TI y desarrolladores".

Same link, but I substituted es-es for en-us:

XP Service Pack 3 Spanish details: https://web.archive.org/web/20120610181 ... aspx?id=24

Again, I replace en-us with es-es and then change the extension of the service pack from ENU to ES:

https://web.archive.org/web/20120610181 ... 86-ESN.exe

Searching the page source is the best way to locate the link; I never would have thought the extension was ESN, I would have guessed just ES and then never found the link.

[sdfox7]

People are going to start looking for the original page and then not find it. Because of this, I created a page and programmed it in FrontPage, with a Custom System Variable to redirect to the archived version in 3 seconds.

Offtopic Comment

You have got to love loopholes!

If you'd like to try it out, it's here. It took me all of 5 minutes to do this, and I plan to do this with all the other Windows 2000 and XP service packs.

http://sdfox7.com/xpsp2.htm

and

http://sdfox7.com/xpsp3.htm

I titled it to resemble the title of the original page, so that when someone web searches for Windows 2000 and XP SP2 or SP3, mine will be one of the first to appear:

Download Details: Windows XP Service Pack 2 Network Installation Package for IT Professionals and Developers

Download Details: Windows XP Service Pack 3 Network Installation Package for IT Professionals and Developers

EDIT 4:07PM: Since I already started it, I figured I might as well complete it. Here you go:

Download Windows 2000 Service Pack 1 Network Installation Package for IT Professionals and Developers from Official Microsoft Download Center: http://sdfox7.com/2000sp1.htm

Download Windows 2000 Service Pack 2 Network Installation Package for IT Professionals and Developers from Official Microsoft Download Center: http://sdfox7.com/2000sp2.htm

Download Windows 2000 Service Pack 3 Network Installation Package for IT Professionals and Developers from Official Microsoft Download Center: http://sdfox7.com/2000sp3.htm

Download Windows 2000 Service Pack 4 Network Installation Package for IT Professionals and Developers from Official Microsoft Download Center: http://sdfox7.com/2000sp4.htm

Download Windows 2000 Service Pack 4 Security Roll Up Network Installation Package for IT Professionals and Developers from Official Microsoft Download Center: http://sdfox7.com/2000srp.htm

Download Windows XP Service Pack 1 Network Installation Package for IT Professionals and Developers from Official Microsoft Download Center: http://sdfox7.com/xpsp1.htm

Download Windows XP Service Pack 2 Network Installation Package for IT Professionals and Developers from Official Microsoft Download Center: http://sdfox7.com/xpsp2.htm

Download Windows XP Service Pack 3 Network Installation Package for IT Professionals and Developers from Official Microsoft Download Center: http://sdfox7.com/xpsp3.htm

Download Internet Explorer 7 Network Installation Package for IT Professionals and Developers from Official Microsoft Download Center: http://sdfox7.com/ie7.htm

Download Internet Explorer 8 Network Installation Package for IT Professionals and Developers from Official Microsoft Download Center: http://sdfox7.com/ie8.htm

[PivotGuy246]

But not all. There's still SP2 for x64 PCs and SP3 for x86 PCs.

EDIT: Seems like the SP3 TechNet link gives out an error, try removing the useless text before the /en-us part.

EDIT2: Microsoft did remove the links for the TechNet SP3 downloads, but nonetheless you could still access the page using the Wayback Machine.

[badmoon]

If we can properly categorise these updates and service packs then yes, we could archive them on the FTP.

A few days after the official EOL of Windows XP, I installed a fresh copy into a virtual machine and downloaded all of the KB packages that Windows Update found for it. There were over a hundred, and it took several reboots before new updates stopped appearing! I did this for both x86 and x86-64 versions of the OS, using the MSDN SP3/SP2 VL disc image for the install.

I've still got all those KB files, if anyone is interested.

(Unfortunately, because the service packs were integrated into the disc images, I didn't download them.)

EDIT: it was the US English version of XP in both cases.

[sagem]

ok I have just found that I had thought it had bean closed by ms that the site is still working
https://catalog.update.microsoft.com/v7

u can get updates and more on that site.
this site will come in very handy for me for my systems when I do them.
as windows 7 windows update no longer works for any of the systems I do.
ether they killed it or there is a block on my end

[badmoon]

ok I have just found that I had thought it had bean closed by ms that the site is still working
https://catalog.update.microsoft.com/v7

u can get updates and more on that site.

Although that site is still up, a lot of the packages have gone into the ether. Most of them are still listed in the catalogue, but—rather frustratingly—the actual download links lead nowhere. A similar thing happened to Win2k a few years after it was EOL'd.

(Just to be clear, I'm not trying to say that all the packages are gone, but a fair number of them are.)

[sdfox7]

ok I have just found that I had thought it had bean closed by ms that the site is still working
https://catalog.update.microsoft.com/v7

u can get updates and more on that site.

Although that site is still up, a lot of the packages have gone into the ether. Most of them are still listed in the catalogue, but—rather frustratingly—the actual download links lead nowhere. A similar thing happened to Win2k a few years after it was EOL'd.

(Just to be clear, I'm not trying to say that all the packages are gone, but a fair number of them are.)

You may be able to use the archived link https://web.archive.org/web/*/http://ca ... ft.com/v7/



Using the non-archived version requires Internet Explorer. Unfortunately, I cannot confirm this as I do not use Internet Explorer except on my vintage systems. Which can no longer open https:// SSL sites!

[Procta]

sounds like they are really trying to push everyone on to windows 10 and bin off everything before windows 10. Which is wrong, if people still want to use their old stuff, microsoft should really leave things up for those who want to keep these systems going.

[mrpijey]

Considering Microsoft owns Windows I think it's in their own right to decide what they want to do with their product and what they want to make available to the public... If they don't want to provide access to old stuff then they are in their full right to remove it. And from a business point of view I understand them.

[Battler]

- mrpijey: Have the right to do something does not automatically make it appropriate. And certainly, forcing people to upgrade by backporting the most disliked features of the new OS to the old ones (think the telemetry backport to Windows 7/8/8.1), removal of service packs, and "Get Windows 10" nagging is only going to get people to be less willing to upgrade, not more. They own the product but not the market, so if the market is refusing to adopt their latest product, they should change the latest product to fit the needs of the market, not rig the market so that previous, better versions are either crippled or have disappeared.

[mrpijey]

Maybe not appropriate, but they have every right. It's their product, they change whatever they want and if the general userbase complains they change it (Windows 8 lack of start menu for example). And you are wrong, they do indeed own the market as well since the absolute majority uses Windows, and everything depends on Windows. For Microsoft to change there has to be a major dislike of certain features (again, no Start in Windows 8), but so far most people don't bother with complaining about Windows 10. And other than tech forums where they whine about Windows 10 being collecting user info and lack of certain support for older stuff the general userbase has not complained in the same manner.

And of course Microsoft are promoting Windows 10, the support for Windows 7 is running out and MS wants to get on with the new OS model and ditch the old. Just as any company promoting their next better, safer, faster, tastier, healther, more trendy product so are Microsoft. Nothing new there.

And really, the telemetry stuff isn't that bad. And it can easily be disabled or blocked anyway. Personally I don't even bother, neither does the mass that doesn't even know it exists. And frankly if you're worried about information gathering you got far greater threats than Microsoft collecting statistical data. How well do you keep track of what all your other applications and websites are sharing about you?

My main point is that the so called "information collecting threat" in Windows is by far overexaggerated. And if you're worried that Big Brother is watching you so they can send Gestapo for you because you don't follow the general opinion then pull the plug, move into a cottage far into the forest, hunt your own food and live safe and happy. And Microsoft aren't forcefully stopping you from using older products anyway. They may stop supporting them, but that's entirely alright as they can't support every product and version they got for all eternity... Microsoft may be big and rich, but not that rich.

[xelloss]

"Get Windows 10" nagging is only going to get people to be less willing to upgrade

I'm all for "soft power", but in this case reality proves you wrong. If you want users to follow you, forcing them out of their laziness is the most effective strategy.

[mrpijey]

Topic cleaned up

Check your attitudes and watch the language people... affected users has been informed.

[xelloss]

Topic cleaned up

Check your attitudes and watch the language people... affected users has been informed.

I also want to apologize. My language was a bit too colourful perhaps, but wasn't meant to offend anybody, especially in this community.

[Battler]

Maybe not appropriate, but they have every right. It's their product, they change whatever they want and if the general userbase complains they change it (Windows 8 lack of start menu for example). And you are wrong, they do indeed own the market as well since the absolute majority uses Windows, and everything depends on Windows. For Microsoft to change there has to be a major dislike of certain features (again, no Start in Windows 8), but so far most people don't bother with complaining about Windows 10. And other than tech forums where they whine about Windows 10 being collecting user info and lack of certain support for older stuff the general userbase has not complained in the same manner.

They have the majority of the market but they do not own the people. At most, they have the right to politely ask the users if they can please upgrade to Windows 10. And if a user says no, that's it, they need to accept that. Not keep installing the GWX update under new KB ID numbers to get around the fact the user marked the previous iterations to be blocked. Considering Microsoft do not accept "No" for the answer and keep re-releasing the same nagging update under ID's to get around user blocks, that's very invasive.
And at least my problem is not the telemetry per se - I disabled it (I have been on Windows 10 10586 for some months now), but there's people that refuse to upgrade to Windows 10 because of it, it's their choice, and Microsoft is disrespecting that choice by not only nagging them to upgrade to Windows 10, but even backporting the telemetry stuff to older Windows versions.

And of course Microsoft are promoting Windows 10, the support for Windows 7 is running out and MS wants to get on with the new OS model and ditch the old. Just as any company promoting their next better, safer, faster, tastier, healther, more trendy product so are Microsoft. Nothing new there.

Yes, that's true, however there's a line between promoting your new product, and nagging every user of your previous product to get the new one, including after they have already told Microsoft they do not desire to be nagged anymore. There's even been cases of the GWX nagware automatically upgrading people to Windows 10, against their express desires. I'm sorry but I own the hardware, so it is me who gets to decide what gets installed on it, not Microsoft.

And really, the telemetry stuff isn't that bad. And it can easily be disabled or blocked anyway. Personally I don't even bother, neither does the mass that doesn't even know it exists. And frankly if you're worried about information gathering you got far greater threats than Microsoft collecting statistical data. How well do you keep track of what all your other applications and websites are sharing about you?

That's absolutely true, however that's not the problem, at least not my problem. My problem is that Microsoft has backported that stuff to Windows 7, 8, and 8.1, even though plenty of people were already avoiding Windows 10 to avoid the telemetry. If someone hasn't upgraded because they don't like a feature of the OS, the best solution should be to give a way to completely disable that feature from the new OS, not backport it to the old OS.

My main point is that the so called "information collecting threat" in Windows is by far overexaggerated. And if you're worried that Big Brother is watching you so they can send Gestapo for you because you don't follow the general opinion then pull the plug, move into a cottage far into the forest, hunt your own food and live safe and happy. And Microsoft aren't forcefully stopping you from using older products anyway. They may stop supporting them, but that's entirely alright as they can't support every product and version they got for all eternity... Microsoft may be big and rich, but not that rich.

And they are free to stop supporting older products. However, they have no right to nag people to get the new product, at least if the people have told them "no" already, because then it becomes potentially illegal, much like the postman leaving adverts in a mailbox with a clear "no adverts" sticker on it. And they have no right to forcibly upgrade people's computers to the new product, something they have been doing, and which is compared to Renault sending in a guy to forcibly drive away my old Renault and replace it with a new one.