any valid reason not to install XP SP2?

I realize this question may make me seem like an idiot, but bear with me.

Is there any legitimate reason not to install XP Service Pack 2? Does it introduce any tracking or spyware-like behavior not already present in XP Pro?

I've been running XP Pro with SP1 and a few hotfixes for about three years now. I guess I was kind of put off by all the SP2 complaints when it first came out, so I never installed it.

I've run Firefox for a couple of years now. While I only recently switched from Outlook to Thunderbird, I was always very stingy about giving out my non-web-mail addresses, so I've not been hit by any e-mail borne viruses or worms. I've also been running NOD32 for over two years, and have been well-protected by it. I never did much P-2-P file sharing or warez downloading, so I've managed to avoid the most commonly malicious sites.

Despite what I feel are good practices, I think I've by and large gotten off lucky. The latest exploits border on the ridiculous, and one of the legitimate program I use that uses IE components is bound to get me sometime soon. Not to mention most of Microsoft's .Net development tools (which I need to pick up on soon) won't even install without SP2. I can't see any obvious reason why I shouldn't install it, but I border on the oblivious at times.

 

One can never make any guarantees since every system is different, but I've not had any issues with SP2 on any machine I've installed it on. From what I've heard, most (but certainly not all) problems were either related to software/drivers that weren't compatible with SP2 or trying to install it on an infected system. Compatibility really shouldn't be an issue at this point. If you have some extra time, the safest and most reliable way to do it is to make a slipstreamed XP CD and format/reinstall with it. AutoStreamer makes that easier to do. With any large operation such as this, though, you should make backups just in case because you never know, the power could go out in the middle of installing it (or other such unforseeable event).

 

You may wish to read the following thread which discussed such concerns:

Why are people not using SP2?

 

IMHO, it makes no sense at at all to still be running SP1 with and XP workstation. Go ahead and install it and follow the advice Notok gave you.

 

Hi - I too have not installed SP2 but will be within the next month or so. Why? Because Microsoft does not plan on providing anymore updates for SP2 as of September 2006. It is sort of forcing us folks to instal SP2 whether we want to or not.

Some issues, I recall, seemed to surround a 64 bit AMD processor and some software such as ZoneAlarm [can't remember the other programs]. My old computer is a 32 bit AMD Duron and I think I am okay from what I have read.

In the end, the decision is up to the user to instal SP2 or not to instal it. Good luck. Janet