Microsoft is in the process of testing service packs for both Vista(SP1) and Windows XP(SP3). There has been a lot of talk about how Windows XP may be the biggest competitor for Vista. I’ll never forget Bill Gates showing the Blue Screen of Death on Windows 98 as the reason to upgrade to Windows XP. Many of us are satisfied with what Windows XP offers and I’m pleased with the continued support from Microsoft.
While reports of Vista’s service pack have been mixed, many folks testing Windows XP SP3 report a more robust operating system. While I don’t typically upgrade immediately, as a developer I need to keep up with new versions of Windows. I wasn’t included on Microsofts’ beta list but I was able to check out SP3 on a friends laptop.
You won’t find a lot of visible changes to SP3. In fact, I was very surprised that it didn’t force an to upgrade to IE7.
Using WinPatrol’s date “First Detected” feature, I did find a few new services that weren’t there before. This list could vary depending on your configuration.
- EAPSVC.DLL – Provides windows clients Extensible Authentication Protocol Service Click for more info
- KMSVC.DLL – Manages health certificates and keys (used by NAP) This relates to managing keys for volume licenses and their health, not medical information.
- QAGENTRT.DLL – Allows windows clients to participate in Network Access Protection. This includes some of the new security features of Vista minus UAC.
- DOT3SVC.DLL – This service performs IEEE 802.1X authentication on Ethernet interfaces. Improves detection and connection to wireless networks
Luckily, I was able to run some benchmarks on the system before SP3 was installed. I’ll write more if I find a difference in performance or other issues as I continue to perform tests.
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