Experienced users know that by no means all operating systems are debugged thoroughly and do not have so-called “holes”. That is why over time, developers release add-ons and service packs for their products, which should fix all errors found over time and make life easier for users. This article will tell you how to update windows - one of the most popular operating systems in the world - to the latest, and, therefore, the most developed version.
Depending on the version of the operating system, a certain number of updates issued by developers are installed on it. For example, until now, widely used Windows XP received three official service packs, and its predecessor, Windows 2000 - four. As a rule, after the release of a new version of the operating system, developers from Microsoft offer users to update Windows automatically or manually. For novice users and those who are not too computer savvy, experts recommend that this procedure be performed automatically. But it should be remembered that such a system update is available only if the PC is connected to the Internet.
On the official website, the latest service packs remain available for download by users even after the release of new OS. For example, you can download and install the latest updates for Windows XP on the Microsoft website despite the fact that after this operating system, the company has already presented “OSes” called Windows Vista and Windows 7, and very soon Windows 8 is preparing to launch The methods of installing the latest service pack for the still popular Windows XP are described in detail not only on the official website, but also on many other resources on the network. That is why updating windows is quite simple. You can do this in one of the ways described below:
· Update windows using automatic download from the official site. By turning on automatic updating (you can do this from the control panel), you don’t have to worry about the future fate of the installed operating system - the OS itself will communicate with the official site via an Internet connection and check for new versions of software. All that is required in this case from the user is to ensure that the computer is connected to the network.
· Manual installation. If the computer is not connected to the Internet, then you can install the latest update for Windows XP yourself. To do this, the user needs to download a software package called Service Pack 3 from the official website (you can do this from a number of other sources, but there is no guarantee that such an update will be licensed), copy all its files to your PC’s hard drive and run the installation file (it is called Setup.exe). Before installing, you should make sure that the version of the operating system includes two previous service packs, since updating Windows to the latest version is possible only for previous updates. It should also be borne in mind that this service pack is not available for the 64-bit version of the "pig" beloved by many users (this is the nickname received by the people of Windows XP). “Sixty-four bits” will work only with the second service pack until at least April 2014, the developers assure.
If your computer was purchased relatively recently, you should consider upgrading Windows to the seventh version, since many software developers currently no longer release versions of their products for Windows XP and have completely focused on releasing software for Windows 7.
To check whether your operating system is updated to the latest version, you need to go to the "Properties" of the computer and pay attention to the "System" section. If it already contains the subscription “Service Pack 3”, then the OS has already been updated, and you have nothing to worry about.