Another step forward for Microsoft XP SP3

Microsoft has released a refresh of the latest beta code for the last service pack (SP) of its Windows XP operating system (OS).

The release issued late yesterday follows another release in Febraury, when Microsoft went public with the second release candidate (RC2) of XP SP3.

Chris Keroack of the Windows Serviceability Team said in a Microsoft TechNet blog that the refresh had been issued to validate improvements to Windows Update for delivering XP SP3, as opposed to putting out a new RC version.

The XP SP3 RC2 originally included new networking, security and set-up functionality. While the refresh does not make any major, further changes to the candidate, it also contains support for high definition (HD) audio. And, the refresh has only been made available in English, German and Japanese via Windows Update.

But users will also have to run additional scripting to initiate a download of the XP SP3 RC2 refresh. The new script demands users first uninstall their existing RC1 and RC2 versions of the pack, before setting a registry key that allows Windows Update to recognise a PC as a target for the refreshed pack.

Late last year, Microsoft extended the availability of XP to 30 June, even though it had been slated to drop off its supported products list to make way for new OS Vista at the end of January. Some industry watchers have since speculated that this was in response to poor take-up of the latest OS.

Although XP SP3 runs on X86 machines only and includes all the previously released updates for Windows XP, it will also be supported as a guest OS on Microsoft's Hyper-V virtualisation technology expected out later this year.

The company announced the first Hyper-V release candidate last week.

Microsoft also confirmed the refresh release put it on target to release the final version of XP SP3 sometime "in the first half of 2008". But it refused to be drawn upon reports widely circulated yesterday that the pack would be ready next month.

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