XP SPe stalls at "backing up files"

[Bob]

I'm attempting to install SP3 on a XP Home computer. It failed through
Windows Update site, progress stops at "backing up files" screen about 1/2
way through the process according to the blue progress bar. Downloaded the
SP3 update and tried to install that from the hard drive and get the same
response. I get an error message about 2 hours in during the install that
says failed to install catalog files and the installation will be undone and
that the computer may not work properly. After a reboot everything works as
it did before the SP3 attempted install. I've also tried to install in Safe
Mode and I get the same results. Any suggestions out there?
Thanks,
Bob

[PA Bear [MS MVP]]

How to troubleshoot an unsuccessful installation of WinXP SP3
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/950718

Error message when you try to install WinXP SP3: "Access is denied" or
“Service Pack installation did not complete”
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/949377
[http://www.winhelponline.com/blog/reset-the-registry-and-the-file-permissions-in-windows-xp/]

Error messages when you try to install Windows XP Service Pack 3: "Service
Pack 3 installation did not complete" and "An internal error occurred":
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/949384

WinXP SP3 - Read all prerequisites for a successful installation
http://msmvps.com/blogs/harrywaldron/archive/2008/05/08/windows-xp-sp3-read-all-prerequisites-for-a-successful-installation.aspx

Steps to take before you install WinXP SP3
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/950717

============================================

Free unlimited installation and compatibility support is available for
Windows XP, but only for Service Pack 3 (SP3), until 14 Apr-09. Chat and
e-mail support is available only in the United States and Canada.

• US:
http://support.microsoft.com/oas/default.aspx?ln=en-us&prid=11273&gprid=522131

• CA:
http://support.microsoft.com/oas/default.aspx?ln=en-ca&prid=11273&gprid=522131

• UK:
http://support.microsoft.com/oas/default.aspx?ln=en-gb&prid=11273&gprid=522131

• AU:
http://support.microsoft.com/oas/default.aspx?ln=en-au&prid=11273&gprid=522131

• Other: http://support.microsoft.com/oas/default.aspx?gprid=1173 | select
Windows XP | select Windows XP Service Pack 3
--
~Robear Dyer (PA Bear)
MS MVP-IE, Mail, Security, Windows Desktop Experience - since 2002
AumHa VSOP & Admin http://aumha.net
DTS-L http://dts-l.net/

[Bob]

None of the KB articles appear to apply to my problem so I have emailed MS
support.
Thanks for the suggestions,
Bob

"PA Bear [MS MVP]" <PABe...@gmail.com> wrote in message
news:ubEdzPo5...@TK2MSFTNGP03.phx.gbl...

[PA Bear [MS MVP]]

YW & thanks for your feedback. Please let us know how you make out, Bob.

Bob wrote:
> None of the KB articles appear to apply to my problem so I have emailed MS
> support.
> Thanks for the suggestions,
>

[yurgenwolfgang]

Hey Bob,

I have the same problem when I attempt to install SP3. Were you able to contact MS, and did they shed any light on the problem?

Thanks,

James

[PA Bear [MS MVP]]

[dimenoc.com strikes again!]

[Bob]

"Yurgen Wolfgang" wrote in message
news:200871822344y...@gmail.com...

Got a reply that asked for a couple of log files which I attached and
sent...that was 2 days ago and have not heard back yet.
Bob

[Bob]

I received a reply from MS support and am happy to report that following the
instructions sent to me I have finally successfully installed SP3 on my XP
Home computer. Here is the response and the instructions that resolved the
problem for me:

Dear Bob,

Thank you for taking time to reply.

From your email, I understand we are still unable to install SP3.

From the svcpack.log, we found that the installation still failed to
retrieve the information from some cat files. Based on the current
situation, most likely, the issue is caused by the corrupted cat files. Let
us refer to the steps below to troubleshoot our issue:

1. Restart the computer.

2. Keep pressing the F8 key until the Windows Startup menu appears.

3. Choose Safe Mode, and press Enter.

Note: In Safe Mode, your system display and Desktop will look and perform
differently than in Normal Mode. This is only temporary. To return the
system back to Normal Mode, we can simply restart the computer.

4. Browse to
C:\WINDOWS\system32\CatRoot\{F750E6C3-38EE-11D1-85E5-00C04FC295EE} folder.

5. Right click in the folder and click New Folder. Name the new folder as
Backup.

6. Move all the files whose name begins with Tmp (For example,
Tmp.0.msn7.cat) to Backup folder.

7. Move all the files whose name begins with KB (For example, KB942763.cat)
to Backup folder.

8. Move SP3.cat to Backup folder.

9. Browse to C:\WINDOWS folder, delete all the files begin with Tmp (For
example, Tmp.0.msn7.cat).

Then, please check if we can install SP3 now.

Thank you for your time. I look forward to hearing from you.

Best regards,

maybe this will help someone else,

Bob

"PA Bear [MS MVP]" <PABe...@gmail.com> wrote in message

news:umELUDq5...@TK2MSFTNGP02.phx.gbl...

[PA Bear [MS MVP]]

Interesting. Thank you very much for this feedback!