WINDOWS SERVICE PACK 1 VISTA INSTALL
WINDOWS SERVICE PACK 1 VISTA DRIVERS
WINDOWS SERVICE PACK 1 VISTA FULL

Microsoft recommends users fetch the service pack using Windows Update (a 65 megabyte file for most users), but anyone who needs to install the update on multiple computers can download a standalone installer (>450 mb). Here's what you should know before you install SP1.

WINDOWS SERVICE PACK 1 VISTA FULL

A full list of the hundreds of hotfixes, drivers, etc.

Other changes include new protections to help prevent data loss while ejecting certain types of removable media, and more stable and reliable networking in Vista. The company said SP1 also addresses the most commonly reported causes of operating system failures or program crashes. Microsoft says SP1 provides for faster file copying (25-50 percent faster, Microsoft claims) and decompression, as well as better handling of large files. 'SP1 includes Secure Development Lifecycle process updates, where Microsoft identifies the root cause of each security bulletin and improves our internal tools to eliminate code patterns that could lead to future vulnerabilities,' Microsoft stated in a paper documenting the Vista changes introduced via SP1. Microsoft says that in addition to offering a rollup of all security patches released thus far for Vista, SP1 includes security improvements that came from taking a second look at areas of the operating system that have been found to be the source of vulnerabilities so far. Many of the security features of SP1 are designed specifically to enhance the security of Vista installations in a corporate environment, but one portion from Microsoft's description of what's included in the service pack bears highlighting. While this service pack does include other security enhancements, it seems oriented more toward fixing problems that users have most frequently reported about system crashes, slowness or other buggy system behaviors. Strictly speaking, Vista users who are staying up-to-date with security patches from Redmond don't have to install this update, as Service Pack 1 includes all of the security patches Microsoft has released for Vista since first shipping the operating system more than 14 months ago. As a result, it's likely that a large portion of Vista users simply won't bother with this service pack, at least for now.

WINDOWS SERVICE PACK 1 VISTA DRIVERS

Following all of Microsoft's instructions for prepping a system to receive SP1 can be extremely time-consuming, and even more so for a subset of Vista users who have certain incompatible hardware drivers installed on their systems. One reason I haven't heard of any problems with SP1 may be that few people have yet to install it. Most Vista systems probably will be better off - security- and stability-wise - with this rollup than without it, for the reasons I describe below. While some peoples' experience with Service Pack 2 for Windows XP may have left them feeling wary about installing this package, I haven't heard about SP1 causing any major problems for Vista users. What follows is a long-overdue primer on this package of goodies from Redmond known as Service Pack 1. Microsoft has released a bundle of security and stability updates for Windows Vista users.

Windows service pack 1 vista