14 DAY TRIAL // Should you hold your breath for a new version of Windows XP SP3? Currently, Microsoft has opened up the testing process of the third and final service pack for Windows XP, and, now, all users of the operating system have access to the first Release Candidate of the refresh, as of late 2007. The fact that XP SP3 has hit RC stage is an indication not only of the rapid progress of the development process, but also of the proximity of its release. And in this context, XP SP3 is long overdue, having already went through repeated delays, only to be postponed into 2008.
On January 9, 2008, the Redmond company served some 15,000 testers a new build of Vista SP1 via Microsoft Connect. Windows Vista Service Pack1 Release Candidate (RC) Refresh - Build 17128 follows at one month after the public Release Candidate of the refresh dropped in December. With Build 17128, Microsoft has closed the Vista SP1 testing program and went private again. Of course, the question now is if users should wait for a Windows XP SP3 RC refresh as well?
Microsoft has not given any indication to support such a scenario, nor has it provided official confirmation of a new testing milestone for XP SP3. But, the fact of the matter is that the company has also not given out any indication of the Vista SP1 Refresh. And one thing that has become traditional with Microsoft is the synchronization of Vista SP1 and XP SP3. An illustrative example in this context is represented by the close December releases of the release candidates for the two service packs.
It is possible that Microsoft has incorporated the feedback received from the public release candidates of Vista SP1 and XP SP3, into new builds, and is gearing up for the final stages before RTM. Although the deadline for XP SP3 continues to be set sometime by the first half of 2008, while for Vista SP1 is by the first quarter, the current development rate for the service packs points more realistically to earlier this year for general availability. And since Vista SP1 and XP SP3 have literally been joined at the hip, since they were initially introduced in 2007, do not scratch the possibility of a XP SP3 refresh just yet.