Recipe 2.13. Installing a Hotfix

Problem

You need to install a hotfix to update your Windows XP installation.

Solution

Using a graphical user interface

The easiest way to get and install hotfixes is through Windows Update. Open Internet Explorer, and browse to http://www.windowsupdate.com. Choose the Express Install option on the page that comes up (you may need to wait a few seconds as the dynamic parts of the page initialize), and then select the updates you'd like. Click Install, confirm your selections, and click Install Now. You'll receive a dialog box informing you of how the patching is doing, and you may be prompted to restart when the patch has been successfully applied.

If you have a standalone copy of a patch, there are a couple of ways to open it. From a GUI:

1. Double-click on the hotfix to execute it.

2. Select whether to backup files or not, and then click Next.

3. Click Next to install the hotfix.

Depending on the type and depth of the patch, you may be required to restart your computer for the hotfix to take effect.

Using a command-line interface

If you have a standalone copy of a patch, the way to open it from the command line is simply to type the name of the patch and press Enter. Command-line patch execution is useful for scripting, so if you have an emergency patch to deploy to several computers at once, you can put the patch command in a login script and so the patch will deploy the next time a user logs on.

Discussion

In early 2004, Microsoft standardized the names for hotfixes. A typical hotfix name is in the format Q987654_wxp_sp3_x86_en.exe, where:

• 987654 is the knowledge base article that describes the problem

• wxp is the operating system for which the fix is applicable

• sp3 is the next service pack version of which the fix will be a part

• x86 is the processor type for the fix

• en is the language of the fix

See Also

Recipe 2.16 for configuring Automatic Updates