Windows XP Battens Down Hatches with XP Service Pack SP2

If you wish to download Service Pack 2 you can get it driectly from Microsoft here, or turn on your windows update service and it should download in the next few days.

With the latest update to Microsoft Corp.'s Windows XP operating system, personal computers will soon join parents, bosses, teachers and spouses as a source of nagging in your life. But as mom always said, it's for your own good.

You'll get nagged at startup if you're not running an antivirus program or it's out of date. You'll get a warning if a firewall isn't turned on. Other messages pop up when you try to download, install or run software from that sea of malware called the Internet.

The nagging is among the more obvious changes made by Service Pack 2. There are others - ranging from an Internet browser popup blocker to components that will no longer interact with strangers - that will make computing more secure and, despite the warnings, less annoying.

For a company that managed to create both the most widely used operating system and No. 1 hacker target, Microsoft has done remarkably well with SP2. Unlike previous patches, this update doesn't just fix a glitch or two but boosts security overall.

Something had to be done. For years, Windows users have been attacked because the software was designed to be open, simple and feature-rich. Then came always-on Internet connections and evildoing hackers looking for easy prey.

They found it in Windows. Not only is it on nearly every personal computer, but it's got a deadly combination of openness, sometimes buggy code and more than a few users who think they hold a privileged place in the universe and don't need to run antivirus software.

Service Pack 2 doesn't include antivirus software, but it makes managing such programs easier. It also includes numerous under-the-hood improvements that plug vulnerabilities, making computing safer and more reliable.

What SP2 doesn't do is go overboard and turn your computer into a micro police state. There are still plenty of choices to make, including bad ones. Users, provided they bother to read the warnings, can now make more informed decisions before they click.

If you're running Windows XP, you can get SP2 simply by turning on automatic updates. Anyone who has automatic updates enabled already will be getting the download directly. Microsoft also is giving away free update CDs at no charge to anyone who asks.

This upgrade's importance can't be overstated.

Though corporations will want to test it with their custom programs before distributing the upgrade to workers, home users shouldn't hesitate to install SP2.

I've been trying out early versions for months and recently installed a final release candidate. It's big, but not huge: the full version is about 265 megabytes. But the amount that's downloaded will vary depending on the version of XP you have.

Excluding download time, installation took about 45 minutes, though Microsoft warns it can be up to two hours. I didn't notice any performance slowdown, and all my programs continued to work, though some that use the Internet needed my OK before doing so.

Before the desktop appears after installation, a screen asks if you want to enable automatic updates. Unlike previous versions that provided a balloon-message above the system tray, I got a sense of urgency this time.

The prominent space given to the automatic update is itself significant. Microsoft knows that the OS is not unbreakable and this update won't be the last. Now, more users will get critical updates without having to take any special action.

Once the desktop launched, I started getting nagged about my system's antivirus protection. A balloon appeared directing me to one of the most important additions in SP2: Windows Security Center.

It's a one-stop shop for information on a system's security status. It's got three areas of focus: antivirus software, Windows firewall and automatic updates. If any of these aren't up to snuff, the user gets nagged.

I was surprised to see the message, and jumped over to the Security Center. It recognized that I had Symantec Corp.'s Norton Antivirus installed, but it wasn't getting any more information from the program.

Turns out Symantec needs to update its software to communicate with SP2. (In fact, its products are designed, as a security feature, not to communicate their status to unknown programs. An exception for SP2 is expected shortly.)

For anyone who isn't running antivirus software, the Security Center has a link to major vendors, all of which offer free trials.

Besides the antivirus warnings, I also got several popup messages as I launched programs that communicate through the Internet. That's the new Windows firewall in action.

In most cases, it's clear whether the communication should be blocked or permitted passage. A few programs did not properly identify themselves, however, making the decision difficult. Program developers will quickly learn to include this important information.

The new firewall, however, isn't perfect. If you've still managed to contract a virus that creates a spam-producing engine, the firewall won't warn you about the outgoing messages. Third-party firewalls do offer this protection.

Besides Security Center, the firewall and the warnings, you'll also notice a difference in Internet Explorer. Finally, it blocks pop-up ads. It gives us greater control over what Web sites try to run on our systems. And it prevents browser windows from obscuring the operating system's security messages.

Microsoft also has ratcheted up security in some of its messaging programs. Users of Outlook Express and Windows Messenger can no longer easily execute programs that arrive as message attachments. That alone should help fight e-mail worms and deter a lot of mindless double-clicking.

SP2 offers other improvements as well: It will update Windows Media Player, improves support for Bluetooth, the short-range wireless standard, and it simplifies setting up wireless Internet connections.

But it's clear that security is the main focus, and it goes a long way toward making Windows users appear less like sitting ducks and more like, um, eagles with shields and spears.

Too bad anyone running older versions of Windows - 95, 98, ME and 2000 - will remain easy prey, which means the Internet won't be as safe as it could be.