Windows Vista Service Pack 1

Written on December 10, 2007  |  by RP Mickler  |  Leave a Comment  | 

Today, Microsoft released a 17-page white paper on the upcoming Service Pack 1 for Vista, due to be released in January 2008. Highlights:

1. Microsoft promises that local file copies in Vista will be 25-percent faster. File redirects to domain file shares is also supposed to be faster in this version, correcting a major problem.

2. Windows Genuine Advantage (WGA) in Vista will be discontinued. Prior to SP1, after 30-days, Vista has a kill-switch that prevents the use of the operating system. Customers have complained to Microsoft about the impracticality of registering multiple o/s images, so in the future, Vista will annoy the user with hourly reminders to complete the registration process without crippling functionality.

3. SP1 will read large images faster and process Javascript faster.

4. SP1 will be compliant with upcoming changes in Longhorn (Windows Server 2008).

5. The 64-bit version now includes API access to the kernel, making good on a promise to antivirus vendors without weakening API safeguards.

6. Bitlocker is apparently improved allowing for a pin-based startup using a USB thumb drive. It can also now backup other volumes aside from the C: volume.

7. Microsoft promises new “reliability” and “compatability” fixes for laptops and for desktop drivers.

8. exFAT file system introduced for removable storage devices.

By the looks of it, there will be three methods of service pack delivery:

1. Express. A 50mb download through Windowsupdate.

2. Stand-Alone. An MSI pack.

3. Slipstream. New distribution format for specific Microsoft customers and volume licensing customers.

Small businesses are likley advised to hold off on SP1 installation at least until Q2 2008 to see how its response is taken in the industry. Small business will also likely encounter challenges associated with deployment, user permissions, Windows registration/licensing, and device driver conflicts. Hopefully the speed and reliability and compatability improvements would make the trouble worthwhile for the small business, but that remains to be foreseen. And the WGA program being discontinued is a boon for any technician trying to work around the finicky registration requirements introduced in Vista.

I really don’t think it’s going to cause a lot of Mac users to ditch their Leopard skin and come running back to Microsoft. In fact, SP1 sounds like a pathetic response from Microsoft to quickly address some of the shortcomings of Vista highlighted in Apple’s recent TV ads. Too bad Microsoft couldn’t have gotten these pieces right the first time before disappointing their user community with execuses a year later.

R