On February 12, 2008, Microsoft made available its monthly release of security bulletins patching no less than 17 security vulnerabilities in a variety of products including Windows Vista, Office and Internet Explorer 7. And accompanying the security patches are three non-security updates aimed at preparing Windows Vista operating systems for the delivery of Service Pack 1. "These updates are just one more example of how we're continuing to actively invest in improving the Windows Vista experience through Windows Update," revealed Nick White, Windows Vista Program Manager.

Back in early January 2008, the Redmond company made available one of the three updates that act as pre-requisites for the deployment of Vista SP1. KB935509 was designed to integrate with the Vista Ultimate and Enterprise SKUs, namely the Vista editions featuring BitLocker encryption. The remaining two updates have started being delivered on February 12, 2008.

"Speaking of Windows Vista SP1, the final two of three prerequisite updates needed to install Windows Vista SP1 will also be hitting Windows Update. KB937287 which is the servicing stack update and KB938371 which is a multi-component update are both required before installing Windows Vista SP1. KB938371 will not be offered to Windows Vista Enterprise and Windows Vista Ultimate systems until KB935509, the first prerequisite in the series of three, has been installed. Both of the Windows Vista SP1 prerequisites are marked 'Important' and will install automatically if you have Window Updates set to the recommended configuration," White added.

In addition, Microsoft is also fixing some issues introduced by a previous update. The Cumulative Update for Windows Vista Media Center is available here. "We have a non-security update scheduled for distribution via Windows Update that you may find of some interest. The non-security update KB947172, a Cumulative Update for Media Center for Windows Vista, addresses an issue introduced by KB941229 where, when watching live digital TV on an Xbox 360, changing channels may freeze the UI. This update is included in Windows Vista SP1," White explained.