Order of Installation after a REFORMAT, and a new twist brought into this whole thing

[erikiksaz]

I just read Sohcrates post in the softare forum, where he states:

<i always install sp2 second-to-last and the 4-in-1's last. it's good to get all your hardware / major software installed and updated first and THEN to install all your patches last>

i've always been hearing about installing SP2 right after installing win2k, then via4in1's, dx8a, video drivers, etc... with Sohcrate's new twist to this, it makes me think. isn't it a better idea to do as he says up there instead of doing it the &quot;traditional&quot; way? i only disagree with one part though. Shouldnt SP2 always be installed first? I thought it updates the whole OS, so that seems more of an OS-level patch, than anything concerning hardware. so what do you guys think?

 

[dkozloski]

The order of installing patches and service packs is of no matter unless there are DLL's or other files in them with the same name but different contents, either by accident or differing version levels. At one time there was a perplexing problem with joystick ports and gaming devices because of just such a name conflict between Creative labs and Microsoft; two programs with the same name but totally different function would mutually sabotage the other. Microsoft says the only way to be safe is to reinstall the service packs after every software installation episode just to be sure that the sevice pack DLL's and files prevail. In other words if you install a new program reinstall the service pack just to be sure that the pack didn't get stepped on. There are also registry changes that may conflict with one another. There are no set rules but the knowledge that one program or patch can do serious mischief with another adds a whole host of variables that must be dealt with.