Service Pack 3 is merely a stage in the evolution of Windows XP and by no means a fresh start for the operating system. Illustrative of this situation are the problems dating all the way back to SP2, released at the end of 2004, that have survived into the third and final service pack for XP. And the perfect example of the SP2 sins that made it into the latest service pack release for Windows XP are the infinite reboot loops affecting users that deploy SP3 on some AMD-based OEM computers. Microsoft has identified the problem as early as May 6, as far as XP SP3 is concerned, although endless reboot loops are nothing new.

"The continual reboot issue was first discovered with the release of Windows XP SP2, and we determined the problem to be a modified registry entry incorrectly set as a result of the imaging process discussed above. During Windows XP SP3 beta testing, we inserted special code into the Windows XP SP3 installation software logic that preserved this registry setting so that customers would not experience this reboot problem again. However, after the release, we received reports of customers experiencing the same problem when upgrading to Windows XP SP3. After investigating those reports, we discovered additional OEM workarounds to the original issue that are causing the same problem to occur", revealed Shashank Bansal, Microsoft TechNet representative.

Upgrading AMD-bases systems to XP SP3 and throwing the computer in a continuous reboot loop is a scenario remnant of the transition from SP1 to SP2. Microsoft explained that the issue was in no way connected with the AMD processors themselves, but with OEM XP SP2 images created with the System Preparation (Sysprep) tool on Intel-based computers and then deployed on PCs with AMD processors. XP SP2 images built on machines powered by Intel processors feature a registry value calling a driver dubbed intelppm.sys to load during boot. The problem is obviously the fact that loading the Intel specific intelppm.sys on an AMD machine automatically generates a blue screen and throws the computer in an endless reboot loop. Microsoft revealed that it was working to provide a resolve to the issue by the end of the month.

"We are working on a filter for Windows Update to detect the specifically affected AMD systems (not all AMD systems are affected, it appears to only be those with an image created on an Intel system and the missing registry key or file), and temporarily prevent these machines from installing Windows XP SP3. Implementation of the filter is currently slated for the end of May. Automatic distribution (AU) for XP SP3 is scheduled for implementation later this summer. We are also investigating a hotfix that can be deployed over Windows Update", Bansal added.

Windows XP Service Pack 3 (SP3) Final is available for download here.