You can get Windows XP SP3 through Windows Update. The entire process of updating a fresh installation of Windows XP SP2, including downloading via a high-bandwidth cable mode, took less than 45 minutes and only required a single reboot.
Note that Microsoft has stated that you can't pop SP3 onto a pure installation of non-updated Windows XP; you'll need to install, at the very least, SP1 before you pull the trigger on the latest service pack. After installation, I didn't notice any performance improvement or increased responsiveness, but one effect it definitely had is a speedier boot time, which I clocked with a stopwatch. Pre-SP3, Windows booted from a cold PC in 56.12 seconds; after the update, it booted in 42.56 seconds.
The experience of browsing a network with Windows Vista machines scattered about on it was also improved. Shares on Vista machines showed right up on the XP SP3 testbed.
Testing Methodology
When it comes to gaming, Windows Vista has a distinct advantage over XP: DirectX 10. SP3 doesn't change that simple fact, but does it have any bearing on game performance at all? And how does a PC equipped with XP SP3 compare to a Vista box upgraded to SP1?
I threw together a testbed, deliberately built as an average PC as opposed to the ET Killer Gaming Rig. The specs are as follows:
I installed Windows XP Professional onto one hard drive, and Vista Home Premium onto a second, identical one. The two operating systems never touched each other; I physically switched the cable when moving from one to the other.
I tested two synthetics and three games. Each game underwent tests under low preset details at 1024x768, and then again at high preset details plus 4X antialiasing at a res of 1920x1200.
Note that since I couldn't use DirectX 10 on XP (duh), I only ran the games in DirectX 9—and rather than using the new Vantage versions of the 3DMark and PCMark synthetic tests I used older, DX9 compliant versions.
The performance tests are:
- PCMark05—Like a good cheese, PCMark05 has aged nicely and still remains a decent, probing benchmark that puts each of a PC's subsystems through paces.
- 3DMark06—The DirectX 9 graphics benchmark extraordinaire uses gamelike environments to gauge a PC's graphics system.
- Supreme Commander—This robotic RTS beats on both the CPU, with ballistics calculations and other tough number crunching, and also, of course, tests the GPU.
- Crysis—The mother of all graphical tests, period.
- World in Conflict—A terrific and strenuous RTS with an extremely scalable engine.
I tested each OS both before and after the installation of the latest service pack: Vista in its vanilla form, and XP using SP2.
To be comtinued...
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