Update Rollup For Windows 2000 Reissued

Update Rollup 1 for Windows 2000 SP4 -- v2 was posted Tuesday for downloading from Microsoft's Download Center for multiple machines, or via the Windows Update service for individual PCs.

The second edition of Update Rollup 1 -- the final major update Microsoft intends for the aging but still popular Windows 2000 operating system -- was necessary because of problems some users encountered with third-party software after installing version 1.

Among the headaches that Microsoft confirmed in early August were compatibility issues with several prominent vendors' applications, including ones from Citrix, Sophos, Internet Security Systems, and even Microsoft itself. The latter's Microsoft Office, for example, wouldn't save files directly to floppy disks after the rollup had been installed.

Some of the specific problems could be fixed, said Microsoft, without downloading the entire v2 of Update Rollup 1. Instead, the company said in an online support document, hotfixes will be available at a later date.

Even as it pushed out the new edition, Microsoft continued to downplay the return of Update Rollup 1.

"We are re-releasing the Update Rollup 1 for Windows 2000 SP4 to address installation issues experienced by a small subset of customers," said a Microsoft spokesperson Tuesday in an e-mail to TechWeb.

"After the initial release of Update Rollup 1 for Windows 2000 SP4, Microsoft identified several issues that may occur when you install this update rollup," the support document read. "These issues are isolated and affect few customers."

Microsoft retired Windows 2000 from mainstream support June 30, 2005, the move that prompted the original Update Rollup 1.