I'm nervous about continually installing all the secuity patches which Microsoft recommend. Can these cause problems, or is it always best to do what they recommend? Anyone had any problems with these patches?

R. P., August 2003

Get your updates for sure. To uninstall a service pack you must have the files archived when downloading. You will be presented with the option at download takes up a bit more space but do it if your worried. Personally I have all updates from microsoft and all is well. But thats not the question u asked. You asked is it safe? Well there has been trouble in the past. the best thing is not to check the " alway trust downloads from microsoft" box and set up ur updates to prompt you before downloasing ans installing.

Mk, October 2004

I think that there is a case for leaving well alone. If your PC works, don't touch it. I've had problems with updates. Sometimes my PC freezes. This started to happen after I had used the Windows Update feature. I wish I hadn't.

In addition you'd imagine that XP's Restore Point feature would be ideal in this situation. (Something is wrong, so I'd like to retore to a point before I used the Windows Update feature.) I've found that you can't. When I select a Restore Point it attempts to restore to this point and then I get a message saying it was not possible to restore to the selected point. Gotta love Windows!

Mark Silverstone, November 2003

I always take an image of my system before installing anything like this. It takes time, but I have had to revert to an image I had made once. (The trouble with these sorts of upgrades is that, unlike installing software, you really don't know what you're going to get. If an upgrade/patch/fix were to cause a problem they are not easy to uninstall.)

Arnold, October 2003

Microsoft always certificate their updates and ensure they are virus free, so they are safe to download via the Update page for your software version. Whilst other sites may offer downloads directly, the action of installation from a non-MS site will not update your history installation file (MS read this when deciding on updates you require when connected to update page). I run XP Home and all critical updates have been installed with no problems. It is worthwhile considering backup software to make an image of your C Drive in the event of a bad system crash. This way, you can restore your system (that you have regularly updated!) without having to reinstall the basic OS and update everything again. I recommend (and use) Norton Ghost 2003.

Randolph Carter, August 2003

normally yes it is fine but if u instal regulally this is much better practice, as if a problem does occur then then the update can be removed in add remove programs
this is based on my xp experince i would imagine its simlar on other op systems but am no expert myself

johnj, August 2003

R.P.
I would recommend installing the security updates as and when they occur from the microsoft website (this often can save you from hassle from hackers/virus' the recent Blaster Virus can be blocked by a security update from the website).
The only thing I would be wary about installing straight away is that sometimes when they develop a new service pack it can be a bit of a problem. For instance I downloaded the test version Service Pack 3 for Windows 2K several times and it used to mess my PC up no end. However I've tested the latest 2K and XP service packs and not had any problems with them so far.

So basically go ahead and do it it'll be fine!

Neal Plews, August 2003