Running XP, can you still get Windows Updates?

[Muse]

My midtower HDTV machine (I use it for some other stuff, but that's its most important function), is running XP. It's Gigabyte GA-K8n Pro motherboard won't even run Vista, IIRC. Yes, I mean to upgrade the machine with almost all new components and run Win7 or later. But meantime it's an XP machine.

The machine is setup right now as a multiboot, all in XP (it will boot from any of 3 XP partitions). The XP install I've been using for several years, it has come to my attention, has a serious problem. It runs at close to 100% CPU utilization even when nothing's going on. The HDTV card has it's own processor, so almost no CPU utilization comes from that card at any time.

SVCHOST.EXE is implicated in the high CPU utilization, I can't tell what app/service is running amok. I can maybe fix that, or I'm thinking of reinstalling XP.

If I do reinstall XP, will I be able to download and install all the Windows Updates for it?

Right now, I've changed the C:\boot.ini file to boot from one of my other XP installs, but I haven't run that in a number of years. Can I successfully run Windows Update on that?

 

[JackMDS]

What Update??

I really feel that Enthusiasts have a psychological issue being possessed. with Updates as thought they are some sort of Magic and it make the User very Special.

Putting aside security (I don't mess with security) I have two Old computers, one Run XP and the Other Win 7.

Both were Updated last time few months after the release Win7 SP1 (2009) (I do it deliberately as an experiment).
They work perfectly OK as they should.

That said Win XP native security was never something to right home about. So Use a current 3rd party Firewall AntiVirus/Malware that get updated by the 3rd party.

Please note that above are home computers, I would not such an experiment with Business computer.

By the way the Majority of Updates of all Computers' software are currently used mainly as a tool by the products' producers to let them examine and get useful info through the Internet while Updating.

 

[vailr]

AFAIK, you can still get all available updates (after a fresh re-install) for Windows 95, NT 4.0, Win98, Win2000, XP, etc.
However, that doesn't mean that there will be updates past the point in time when each O.S. was officially left abandoned for any kind of post-dated malware attack.
There is a sort of work-around (via some registry edits) making WinXP to be perceived by Windows Update as being a "Point of Sale" system, which has been offered some security updates since the date that "regular" XP was left abandoned. Still not a good idea to be using an internet connected XP machine of any kind, even though a considerable percentage of the world's PC's are still running XP.

A fresh install of XP would more than likely become immediately infected with malware during the Windows Update process itself, if done online. There are downloadable Windows Update disk .iso's that would be a safer method of updating an XP machine without the risk of being online.

 

[VirtualLarry]

Just stop the "Windows Update service" (set it to "disabled"), and see if the CPU usage goes away.

 

[tidy]

.

 

[VirtualLarry]

I think that's a little melodramatic.

Not necessarily. You can't just update XP SP2 or SP3 using the update feature anymore. You have to manually do a bunch of web-searching / downloading for the Windows Update Update and the IE8 update, among others that I recall you need, before you can use the built-in auto-update.

 

[xgsound]

I don't know how to address the multi boot, multi- partition situation.
A lot of malware pegs out svchost.exe. I would run an AdwCleaner scan only to see if any named malware is present on the affected partition. Then I would try to clean that partition manually if necessary.

 

[Muse]

I don't know how to address the multi boot, multi- partition situation.
A lot of malware pegs out svchost.exe. I would run an AdwCleaner scan only to see if any named malware is present on the affected partition. Then I would try to clean that partition manually if necessary.

Thank you, I will try this before resorting to an attempt to get a clean install of XP over the partition. Right now I have 3 XP partitions:

C -- This one, when booted to, is complaining that I might have a counterfeit installation.
D -- This is the one I'm using currently, as of ~1 day ago. Last time I used it was probably more than 5 years ago. It's got Avira AV installed, and it's annoying me by repeatedly asking me to reboot the machine. This machine's principle usage (the important one) is HDTV and I don't want to be bothered with messages like that on a continual basis. I could uninstall Avira and install AVG or something else
G -- This is the one I was using for years and came to realize the other day that the CPU usage is pegged at 100% or close to it all the time by some SVCHOST.EXE using process.

 

[Muse]

Just stop the "Windows Update service" (set it to "disabled"), and see if the CPU usage goes away.

I'll try that. Thanks. What will it tell me?

 

[Muse]

AFAIK, you can still get all available updates (after a fresh re-install) for Windows 95, NT 4.0, Win98, Win2000, XP, etc.
However, that doesn't mean that there will be updates past the point in time when each O.S. was officially left abandoned for any kind of post-dated malware attack.
There is a sort of work-around (via some registry edits) making WinXP to be perceived by Windows Update as being a "Point of Sale" system, which has been offered some security updates since the date that "regular" XP was left abandoned. Still not a good idea to be using an internet connected XP machine of any kind, even though a considerable percentage of the world's PC's are still running XP.

A fresh install of XP would more than likely become immediately infected with malware during the Windows Update process itself, if done online. There are downloadable Windows Update disk .iso's that would be a safer method of updating an XP machine without the risk of being online.

Where can I get an ISO of XP with required updates baked in? That I can trust! Thanks!

 

[Dahak]

Where can I get an ISO of XP with required updates baked in? That I can trust! Thanks!

Unfortunately you cannot, as the last iso that ms release for xp is with SP3 baked in, you would have do make one yourself

 

[bruceb]

You can use this:

http://www.majorgeeks.com/files/details/windows_xp_service_pack_4_unofficial.html

 

[vailr]

Where can I get an ISO of XP with required updates baked in? That I can trust! Thanks!

Search for a bittorrent file titled "Black Edition 2015.9.12".

 

[nemesismk2]

yes there is a way to get microsoft updates for windows xp until 2019 but using this method might not work with your computer. just removed the link because it has been mentioned earlier.