infoTECH Feature

March 02, 2011

Service Pack 1 Debuts for Windows 7

Last week Microsoft (News - Alert) officially launched its first service pack for Windows 7. In beta testing since last year, Windows 7 SP1 is now available for everyone to install.

What enhancements does Windows 7 SP1 offer? Not that many, at least not for those of you who’ve already been keeping your PCs updated with the latest security patches. For the most part, SP1 is a collection of all the hotfixes and other updates that Microsoft has deployed since Windows 7 debuted in late 2009. So if the Windows 7 PCs within your organization are already as up to date as possible, there’s no immediate rush to roll out SP1, though you’ll still want to deploy it at some point.

Beyond the many updates included, Win 7 SP1 does offer a few minor enhancements. Microsoft says that SP1 will improve reliability if you connect your PC to an HDMI audio device, print using Microsoft’s own XPS Viewer, and restore previous folders in Windows Explorer after rebooting.

But Windows 7 SP1’s lack of any major new fixes can be seen as a good thing in many ways. It shows that Microsoft has been able to keep Windows 7 relatively secure with the usual regular hotfixes. And the lack of any big new features in the service pack points to signs that the company is treading cautiously and saving its next big guns for Windows 8.

Windows 7 SP1 is now available through Windows Update. Installing it this way is the preferred method for a single machine as it downloads just the bits that are needed rather than the entire package. But IT professionals looking to try out SP1 and deploy it throughout their organizations should grab it from its own dedicated page at Microsoft’s Download Center. The file windows6.1-KB976932-X86.exe is meant for 32-bit versions of Windows 7, while the file windows6.1-KB976932-X64.exe is directed for 64-bit versions.

I installed SP1 on my laptop via Windows Update, and the process went quite smoothly. The initial installation took around 20 minutes after which I was prompted to reboot the PC. Configuring the service pack took another few minutes before the PC restarted. After logging into Windows post SP1, I didn’t notice anything different, but that’s exactly what I was hoping for.

IT professionals looking to deploy SP1 for Windows 7 should check out the healthy array of documents at Microsoft’s Download Center. You’ll find some thorough deployment and installation guides and a list of all the fixes included in SP1. I also recommend checking out Microsoft’s Support Page on steps to take before downloading SP1 from the Download Center.


Lance Whitney is a journalist, IT consultant, and Web Developer with almost 20 years of experience in the IT world. To read more of Lance's articles, please visit his columnist page

Edited by Tammy Wolf
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