Planet Lowyat

Microsoft will add Windows XP Service Pack 3 to Windows Update on Thursday at 10 a.m. Pacific time.

A Microsoft spokeswoman confirmed that July 10 is, in fact, XP SP3’s automatic update debut, but cautioned that not all users would see it immediately. “As with all service pack releases, Microsoft will carefully monitor the release to ensure that all customers have a good experience,” she said in an instant message reply to queries. “Once Windows XP SP3 is posted to AU Automatic Updates, some users may see it right away; others may not see it for awhile.”

The announcement that Microsoft would release XP SP3 to Automatic Updates came just a week after the company started Windows XP on its road to retirement by halting sales of the operating system to retail outlets and barring major computer makers from installing it on most new PCs.

People who want to block the automatic deployment of Windows XP SP3 can either modify the Windows Update settings or download and use the Windows Service Pack Blocker Tool Kit, which provides several tools for stopping the service pack from reaching client PCs until at least April 2009.

Source: ComputerWorld