Windows Vista SP1 x64 Upgrade, What you Need to Know

I finally bit the bullet and installed Windows Vista SP1 on my system.  The thing that put me off most about it was the size.  Updates of that size tend to take a long, long time to install.  I was dead right.  Microsoft were not lying with the disclaimer that it might take over one hour to install.  It took over two hours and possibly more than three.  It was as slow and syrupy as some sticky molasses.  The thing was that I actually had a lot of work to do, which made things decidedly inconvenient.

I have a 100MBPS FTTH Internet connection, the 700+ MB of x64 SP1 screamed home in about three minutes.  I was impressed, as I am assuming that there would have been a lot of people downloading it at the same time as I did.  I actually had the upgrade on my system about a month and a half ago.  I didn't install it and somewhere along the way it disappeared.  It did not appear again in automatic updates, so I opted to download it from the downloads page at Microsoft.

Link for the 64-bit version:

Windows Vista Service Pack 1 Five Language Standalone for x64-based Systems (KB936330)

Link for the 32-Bit version:

Windows Vista Service Pack 1 Five Language Standalone (KB936330)

While the update process was remarkably slow, it can be installed unattended.  Rather than install when you need to use your computer, you would do better to set it up to run overnight.

Was it worth it? After my system rebooted for the final time in the installation process, I noticed a marked performance increase.  My system ran as it would have been if it were running Windows XP albeit with a little less RAM available for use.  Programs loaded very quickly and it handled multi-tasking much better.  I updated my NVidia Drivers to the latest Beta, but have yet to game-test my system.  It was a much needed update and while I am not terribly happy with the look and feel of Vista, I am not terribly unhappy either.

What to Watch out For

In an article yesterday we already detailed that SP1 would kill the activation hacks that some people are using.  Paradox and Grace Timer have been disabled.  You will have no joy there.  We have heard that Vista Loader is still operational (for now) and that the slipstreamed Permanently Activated versions that went out over the BitTorrent ether are still functional.  Whilst we don't recommend or condone using pirated software, it is our duty to inform.