Hey all,
I have decided to make a service pack for ME. It will be like any unofficial update at MDGx's site, meaning you have to disable sr/sfp. I have a couple of questions:

1. Would anyone be able to have a look at it to test it out?
2. How would I make a silent installer for au like Gape made for the roots update?

This pack is already made, awaiting uploading at rapidshare (to be hopefully uploaded at softpedia and/or majorgeeks). It includes the updates MDGx posted this morning as well.

Comments are appreciated/wanted

Changelog for latest version:
-Included patched shdoclc.dll (buggy .htm files)
-Included patched vgx.dll (VML flaw from MS06-055)
-Rolled back jscript.dll, vbscript.dll and wshom.ocx to version 5.6.0.8832
-fixed qfecheck.exe and 918047un.inf bugs
-Removed metapad. Added unofficial notepad fix.
-Added 920213. Replaces 890046. Does work on Windows ME.
-Added fixes for dialing rules
-Added Q931836
-Added shell32.dll from unofficial shell32.dll fix
-Added 827078/926047. Replaces 314147. Does work on Windows ME.
-Added strmdll.dll from 925398. Replaces wmp 6.4 version.
-Updated rootsupd.exe to unofficial version
-Updated msasn1.dll to version included in 891861 (replaces 835732 version)
-Added riched20.dll from 920816. Replaces 872978 version
-Removed Q329128 (for MDAC 2.5 SP3)

Download links are here (English, Not yet uploaded), here (French, B5v2) - Thanks WebMatze and here (Italian, B7) - Thanks Max_04.

the_guy

UPDATE 23/07/2006: Might as well put a link into the first post, that way people aren't digging for it. Also added link to french version (thanks WebMatze)
UPDATE 15/08/2006: Added download link for b6 in English.
UPDATE 11/03/2007: Added links/changelog for b8.

Give a link and I'll test that in a QEMU WinME virtual PC. Try to upload on Megaupload or Yousendit instead of RapidShare as it's less of a pain to download from those. Maybe it's a bit early for MajorGeeks and Softpedia, don't you think ?

Please post a link and details. I recommend that you should release the first version as beta.

To make a silent installation, you can easily call a Microsoft update/hotfix like: UPDATE.EXE /Q:A /R:N. Also, you can make your own EXE by a ZIP-to-EXE/CAB-to-EXE program.

Hi the_guy,

just two days ago I've started work on the list of fixes for Win ME.

I can compare your files with my file list.

Do you have any of these updates?

Q252208 Arp1394.sys 4.90.3001.1
Q260710 Smbdpmi.exe
Q268356 D3dim700.dll 4.7.0.723
Q269244 Marscore.dll 4.90.0.3001
Q271233 Hsflop.pdr 4.90.3001
Q271277 Diskvsd.vxd 4.90.0.3001
Q271376-v2 Hidserv.exe 4.90.3002.0 (or Q277784-v2)
Q274175 Cdfs.vxd 4.90.3001
Q274594 Dosmgr.vxd 4.90.0.3001
Q276602 Pci.vxd 4.90.3004
Q278368 Atmuni.sys 4.90.3001
Q281138 shell32.dll 5.0.3103.1000
Q281190 Netdi.dll 4.90.0.3001
Q281921 Configmg.vxd 4.90.3002
Q284837 Ohci1394.sys 4.90.3004
Q285118 61883.sys 4.90.3003.0
Q288800 System.drv 4.90.3001
Q289635 Gdi.exe 4.90.3001
Q289635 Gdi32.dll 4.90.3001
Q291236 Wiaservc.dll 4.90.3002
Q296883 Acpi.sys 4.90.0.3003
Q297527 Dialmgr.js
Q297527 Migrate.js
Q297527 Msobshel.htm
Q300568 Pccard.vxd 4.90.3002
Q300889 Vkd.vxd 4.90.3001
Q301540 Ifsmgr.vxd 4.90.3003
Q304082 Mofd.dll 1.50.1164.9
Q304708 Cdvsd.vxd 4.90.3003
Q305360 Rasapi32.dll 4.90.0.3001
Q307908 Mmsys.cpl 4.90.3001
Q309081 Irenum.vxd 4.90.0.3001
Q311430 Sbp2port.sys 4.90.3002.0
Q314417 Vredir.vxd 4.90.3007
Q321635 Vpowerd.vxd probably 4.90.3007

For other than English languages:
Q279469 Msdos.ilf DAN, DUT, FIN, FRN, ITN, NOR, BRZ, POR, SPA, SWE
Q281103 W0tshelp.hlp KOR
Q299850 Pchsign.cab TRK
Q299850 Pss.cab N/A TRK
Q312586 Kbdsp.kbd SPA
Q321607 Jkeyb.sys JPN

Petr

@Petr: I only have one of the files you said. I have the same version of cdfs.vxd. All of the others I do not have. If you have them, please email them to me. (pm me for it)

@all: I have the file. It is at YouSendIt.

Please test it as vividly as possible.

the_guy

Hi the_guy,

I have not tested the pack yet but I have had a quick look at the files. Seems very well done.

I have noted that three updates I have might be missing :

Q263816 RPCLTSCM.DLL 4.71.3400.0
Q269874 RPCRT4.DLL 4.71.3336.0
Q282132 FP4AWEC.DLL 4.0.2.4715

Also an updated WINBOOT.EBD is apparently missing.

Hi the_guy,

I have reviewed shortly your service pack, it looks good, here are my first observations.
I don't use Windows Me so just compared files in sp2 and supp cabs for now.

SP2.CAB:

Some files that are in sesp202 are missing in mesp202 what is the reason?

Q263816 - Direct download
Rpcltscm.dll 4.71.3400.0

Q269874
Rpcrt4.dll 4.71.3336.0

ie55sp2
Sens.dll 5.50.4807.2300

ie60sp1
Rsaenh.dll 5.00.1877.8

xpsp2
RICHED20.DLL 5.30.23.1221
USP10.DLL 1.420.2600.2180

vcredist:
Atl.dll 3.0.9782.0

New updates:

Q270615
Usbmon.dll 4.90.0.3001

Q892211:
Fp4autl.dll 4.0.2.7523
Fp4awec.dll 4.0.2.4715 (the same as in Q282132)
Fpext.msg
Msdaipp.dll 11.0.6715.15
Msdapml.dll 11.0.5510.0

What about Winboot.ebd from Q311561?

Maybe also the following fixes for Windows 98 SE will work on ME:
Q258680
Deskw95.cpl 4.72.3717.300
Powercfg.cpl 5.00.3103.1000

Q245272
EnhTrig.dll 4.10.2224

Q240896
Opengl32.dll 4.1.1381.7035


These files are already on the Windows Me CD-ROM, why to add them to mesp too?
MSJET35.DLL 3.51.3328.0
MSREPL35.DLL 3.51.3225.0
GRPCONV.EXE 5.0.2136.1

What is the reason for not adding the OLE update 4522?
ASYCFILT.DLL 2.40.4522.0
OLEAUT32.DLL 2.40.4522.0
OLEPRO32.DLL 5.0.4522.0
STDOLE2.TLB 2.40.4522.0

I don't know how it is with version 4526 (KB886765), this version has big problems on Windows 98 SE (some IE plugns do not work) but maybe on WinME it could be OK?

Text converters could be probably used from KB887616 (o2k3sp2):
Office 2003 Service Pack 2 (SP2)
Html32.cnv 2003.1100.6551
Msconv97.dll 2003.1100.6551
Mswrd832.cnv 2003.1100.6551
and from Security Update for Windows 2000 (KB885836):
Mswrd632.wpc 2004.10.21
Graphics filter can be used from Office File Converter Pack:
Jpegim32.flt 2003.1100.5531

Windows Script 5.6 for Windows 98, Windows Millennium Edition, and Windows NT 4.0
contains different version of dispex.dll

I'm not sure what is the best way how to handle MSVCRT.DLL and MSVCIRT.DLL. Windows ME CD-ROM contains version 6.1.8637.0, the same as Windows 2000. Is it good idea to downgrade from 6.1 to 6.0, i.e. to version 6.0.9782.0? Or would be better just to replace MSVCRT.DLL with 6.1.9844.0 version from W2Ksp4?


SUPP.CAB:

Systray.exe - I think it should be in SP2.CAB, in sesp it is in SUPP.CAB because it is part of Q242975 update that contains also hotplug.dll file that is not present on the Windows 98 SE CD-ROM.

Verinst.exe - I think you could use the smaller and newer one from (3072 bytes, 23-Nov-1998)

Maybe files from VisualBasic6-KB896559-v1-ENU.exe could be added:
Microsoft Visual Basic 6.0 Common Controls
Comctl32.ocx 6.00.8106
Mscomctl.ocx 6.01.9786

And also there are some new versions of basic system fonts:
KB835935 (Windows XP SP2)
COMIC.TTF 2.20.0.0
TAHOMA.TTF 3.14.0.0
TAHOMABD.TTF 3.14.0.0
KB889101 (Windows Server 2003 SP1)
ARIAL.TTF 3.0.0.0
ARIALBD.TTF 3.0.0.0
ARIALBI.TTF 2.90.0.0
ARIALI.TTF 2.90.0.0
COUR.TTF 2.90.0.0
COURBD.TTF 2.90.0.0
COURBI.TTF 2.90.0.0
COURI.TTF 2.90.0.0
TIMES.TTF 3.0.0.0
TIMESBD.TTF 3.0.0.0
TIMESBI.TTF 2.90.0.0
TIMESI.TTF 2.90.0.0
VERDANA.TTF 2.43.0.0
VERDANAB.TTF 2.40.0.0
VERDANAI.TTF 2.40.0.0
VERDANAZ.TTF 2.40.0.0

Petr

Hi, the_guy,

Another suggestion : You could replace q329414 by MDAC 2.80 or even 2.81. Of course it would make the pack quite a little bit bigger.

Hi Petr,

I use a more recent Riched20.dll : 5.31.23.1218, Rich Text Edit Control, v3.1

I also think MSVCRT.DLL should be updated to version 6.1.9844.0. That's what I am using on my ME system.

Do you know anything about riched32.dll ? Why the size shrinks so much in newer versions :
5.0.1461.82 from the WinME CD is 212,992 bytes with six dependencies and 5.0.2134.1 is only 3,856 bytes with only two dependencies.

I also have MSVCP60.DLL 6.2.3104.0 (2 different ones). (I have four different MSVCP60.DLL 6.0.8972.0)

Does someone know what the best shfolder.dll is ? It's a file I have found to create problems.


No it's not. I can't remember what broke but I did post reports somewhere here. One of the 4526 files only was wrongly behaved for many of us, so MDGx removed that one and replaced it by a 4522 one and then erpdude reported that it was still breaking PC Health (which is removed from my ME system). To the best of my memory. 4522 is OK on ME.

Hi again,

I have tried the installer in a virtual PC. It does crash rundll32 in setupx.dll. There could be a problem in SPUPDATE.INF. Have you tested on a real machine ?

I had similar problem when I was creating fesp201 - it was caused by too long CopyFiles line in [DefaultInstall] section. But SPUPDATE.INF should be handled by advpack.dll and not by setupx.dll, or not?

Petr

If you want to use version 3.1 - what about 5.31.23.1224 version from WS2003SP1? And what about Usp10.dll 1.0422.3790.1830 then?

Petr.

Has anybody tested OLE components from WS2003SP1?
asycfilt.dll 5.2.3790.1830
oleaut32.dll 5.2.3790.1830
olepro32.dll 5.2.3790.1830
stdole2.tlb 5.2.3790.1830
There seems to be no unresolved dependencies.
Just regsvr32.exe 5.2.3790.1830 has unresolved dependencies in kernel32.dll.

SESP contains also upgrade of crypto functions from KB835732 - NT4 version. Windows ME contains some files with higher numbers, so probably KB835732 for Windows 2000 should be used, but...
Windows ME files:
CRYPT32.DLL 5.131.2133.3
CRYPTDLG.DLL 5.0.1557.1
CRYPTUI.DLL 5.131.2133.2
MSASN1.DLL 4.4.0.3420
MSCAT32.DLL 5.131.2133.2
MSSIP32.DLL 5.131.2133.2
SCHANNEL.DLL 4.89.1962.2133/5.00.2133.2
SOFTPUB.DLL 5.131.2133.2
WINTRUST.DLL 5.131.2133.2

Q329115 for Windows ME
Crypt32.dll 5.131.2133.6
Cryptdlg.dll 5.0.1558.6072

Q329115 for Windows 98 SE
CRYPT32.DLL 5.131.1878.12
CRYPTDLG.DLL 5.00.1558.6072
SCHANNEL.DLL 4.87.1964.1878/5.00.1878.13
SOFTPUB.DLL 5.131.1877.9

KB835732 for Windows NT used in SESP:
CRYPT32.DLL 5.131.1880.14
CRYPTDLG.DLL 5.0.1558.6072
CRYPTUI.DLL 5.131.1878.14
MSASN1.DLL 5.0.2195.6905
MSCAT32.DLL 5.131.1880.14
MSSIP32.DLL 5.131.1878.13
SCHANNEL.DLL 4.87.1964.1880/5.00.1880.14
SOFTPUB.DLL 5.131.1880.14
WINTRUST.DLL 5.131.1880.14

How it is with Windows 2000:
Original CD-ROM without any SP:
CRYPT32.DLL 5.131.2173.1
CRYPTDLG.DLL 5.00.1557.1
CRYPTUI.DLL 5.131.2181.1
MSASN1.DLL 5.00.2134.1
MSCAT32.DLL 5.131.2134.1
MSSIP32.DLL 5.131.2134.1
SCHANNEL.DLL 5.00.2170.1 - many unresolved dependencies
SOFTPUB.DLL 5.131.2134.1
WINTRUST.DLL 5.131.2143.1

Q265381 - SP1 for Windows 2000 and Q289907 - SP2 for Windows 2000
CRYPT32.DLL 5.131.2195.2833
SCHANNEL.DLL 5.00.2195.2922 - many unresolved dependencies
WINTRUST.DLL 5.131.2195.2779

Q321295 - SP3 for Windows 2000
CRYPT32.DLL 5.131.2195.4558 unresolved SystemFunction041 in ADVAPI32.DLL
CRYPTDLG.DLL 5.00.1558.4434
CRYPTUI.DLL 5.131.2195.5432
MSASN1.DLL 5.00.2195.4067
SCHANNEL.DLL 5.00.2195.5284 - many unresolved dependencies
WINTRUST.DLL 5.131.2195.3775

KB813432 - SP4 for Windows 2000
CRYPT32.DLL 5.131.2195.6661 unresolved SystemFunction041 in ADVAPI32.DLL
CRYPTDLG.DLL 5.00.1558.6608
CRYPTUI.DLL 5.131.2195.6628 unresolved GetComputerNameExW in KERNEL32.DLL and functions in NETAPI32.DLL
MSASN1.DLL 5.00.2195.6666
WINTRUST.DLL 5.131.2195.6624

KB835732 for Windows 2000
CRYPT32.DLL 5.131.2195.6824 unresolved SystemFunction041 in ADVAPI32.DLL
MSASN1.DLL 5.00.2195.6905
SCHANNEL.DLL 5.1.2195.6899/5.00.2195.6899 - many unresolved dependencies
WINTRUST.DLL 5.131.2195.6824

KB891861 - Update Rollup 1 for Windows 2000 SP4
CRYPT32.DLL 5.131.2195.6926 unresolved SystemFunction041 in ADVAPI32.DLL
CRYPTDLG.DLL 5.00.1558.6608
CRYPTUI.DLL 5.131.2195.6824 unresolved GetComputerNameExW in KERNEL32.DLL and functions in NETAPI32.DLL
MSASN1.DLL 5.00.2195.6905
SCHANNEL.DLL 5.1.2195.6960 /5.00.2195.6960 - many unresolved dependencies
WINTRUST.DLL 5.131.2195.6824

So it looks like just only
CRYPT32.DLL 5.131.2195.2833 (from SP1)
CRYPTDLG.DLL 5.00.1558.6608 (from Rollup 1)
CRYPTUI.DLL 5.131.2195.5432 (from SP3)
MSASN1.DLL 5.00.2195.6905 (from Rollup 1)
WINTRUST.DLL 5.131.2195.6824 (from Rollup 1)
have fully resolved dependencies. But will they work?

And for completeness IE 6.0SP1
CRYPTDLG.DLL 5.00.1558.4434
SCHANNEL.DLL 4.87.1959.1877/5.00.1877.6


Petr

Newest RICHED20.DLL that works with 9x/ME I'm aware of is 5.31.23.1224 from Win2003 SP1:
http://www.mdgx.com/ws3toy.htm#SP1
Available as unofficial RTF (RichEdit) fix for 95/98/ME:
http://www.mdgx.com/add.htm#RTF
File:
http://www.mdgx.com/files/RICHED9X.EXE
RICHED9X.EXE installs newest versions of:

RICHED.DLL
RICHED20.DLL
RICHED32.DLL
USP10.DLL
RICHTX32.OCX

Newest CRYPT*.DLL files that work with 9x/ME I'm aware of [unofficial]:
http://www.mdgx.com/web.htm#CPT
File:
http://www.mdgx.com/files/CRYPT9X.EXE
CRYPT9X.EXE installs newest versions of:

CRYPT32.DLL
CRYPTDLG.DLL
ENHSIG.DLL
RSAENH.DLL
SCHANNEL.DLL
SOFTPUB.DLL
XENROLL.DLL

Newest TTF Fonts that work with 9x/ME [unofficial]:
http://www.mdgx.com/add.htm#TTF
File [3.75 MB]:
http://www.mdgx.com/files/TTFPAK.EXE
TTFPACK.EXE installs newest versions of:

ANDALEMO.TTF
ARIAL.TTF
ARIALBD.TTF
ARIALBI.TTF
ARIALI.TTF
ARIBLK.TTF
COMIC.TTF
COMICBD.TTF
COUR.TTF
COURBD.TTF
COURBI.TTF
COURI.TTF
GEORGIA.TTF
GEORGIAB.TTF
GEORGIAI.TTF
GEORGIAZ.TTF
GOTHIC.TTF
GOTHICB.TTF
GOTHICBI.TTF
GOTHICI.TTF
IMPACT.TTF
LSANS.TTF
LSANSD.TTF
LSANSDI.TTF
LSANSI.TTF
LUCON.TTF
MICROSS.TTF
OCRAEXT.TTF
TAHOMA.TTF
TAHOMABD.TTF
TIMES.TTF
TIMESBD.TTF
TIMESBI.TTF
TIMESI.TTF
TREBUC.TTF
TREBUCBD.TTF
TREBUCBI.TTF
TREBUCIT.TTF
VERDANA.TTF
VERDANAB.TTF
VERDANAI.TTF
VERDANAZ.TTF
WEBDINGS.TTF

BTW:
OLE files build 2.40.4526 from Win2000 hotfix Q886765:
http://www.mdgx.com/files/Q886765.EXE
can be used successfully with 98/ME only if using these 3 files:

ASYCFILT.DLL 2.40.4526
OLEPRO32.DLL 5.0.4526
STDOLE2.TLB 2.40.4526

together with older OLEAUT32.DLL build 2.40.4522 from Win2000 SP4.
OLE 2.40.4526 [as listed above] for 98/ME is here:
http://www.mdgx.com/add.htm#OLE
File:
http://www.mdgx.com/files/OLEUP.EXE
If ones wishes to install all 4 older 2.40.4522 files:
http://www.mdgx.com/files/OLEUPME.EXE

A bit later:
I tried OLE files from Win2003 SP1.
OLEAUT32.DLL, same as 2.40.4526 from Q886765, does *not* work properly.
Older OLEAUT32.DLL 2.40.4522 *must* be used.
The other 3 files seem to work ok.
I put together an installer for this [448 KB]:
http://www.mdgx.com/files/OLEUP2.EXE
Please try it out, and post here any bugs/errors.

Hope this helps.

Hi MDGX,

why not to use Q835732 files? They are used in SE SP at least from 1.6.2 version with no problem - AFAIK. Plus CRYPTUI.DLL.

And the package has TargetWin9xVersion=4.0.0-4.10.9999, so it is not suitable for WinME, what would you suggest here?

Petr

Riched32.dll

Version 5.0.1461.82 : Size = 212,992 bytes. Windows 95 Rich Text Edit Control. Dependencies are Advapi32.dll, GDI32.dll, Kernel32.dll, Ole32.dll, Shell32.dll and User32.dll.

Version : 5.0.2008.1 : Size = 3,856 bytes. Wrapper Dll for Richedit. Dependencies are Riched20.dll and User32.dll.

Version 5.0.2134.1 : Size = 3,856 bytes. Wrapper Dll for Richedit. Dependencies are Riched20.dll and User32.dll.

Version 5.1.2600.0 (xpclient.010817-1148) : Size = 3,584 bytes. Wrapper Dll for Richedit. Dependencies are Riched20.dll and User32.dll.

There is also a version 5.2.3790.0 ((srv03_rtm.030324-2048) that I haven't got.

Is there a reason not to use the later versions ? It seems to me when looking at the sizes and dependencies that what Riched32 was doing could now be handled by Riched20 so that if there is a newer Riched20, there should also be a newer Riched32. Or am I wrong ?

Hi again the_guy,

It appears that the Win2000 color scheme is the same as the default WinME color scheme so there is no point including it.

OK, so the origin is
Form Windows Server 2003 SP1:
RICHED20.DLL 5.31.23.1224 Rich Text Edit Control, v3.1, Microsoft RichEdit Control, version 3.1
USP10.DLL 1.422.3790.1830 Uniscribe Unicode script processor
From Windows Me:
RICHED.DLL 4.0.834.839 Windows 95 Rich Text Edit Control, Microsoft® Windows™ Operating System 4.0
RICHED32.DLL 5.0.1461.82 Windows 95 Rich Text Edit Control, Microsoft Exchange 5.0 Service Pack 4
From Microsoft Visual Studio 6.0 Service Pack 6:
RICHTX32.OCX 6.1.97.82

RICHTX32.OCX is not present in Windows 98 SE nor in Windows Me - do you know what programs use it?

Both Windows 98 Gold and Windows 98 SE contains binary identical file:
RICHED.DLL 4.0.834.839
so it is not needed for these OSes.

SESP 2.1 contains exactly the same version:
RICHED32.DLL 5.0.1461.82 Windows 95 Rich Text Edit Control, Microsoft Exchange 5.0 Service Pack 4
that comes from Q249973. But the file size differs:
RICHED32.DLL from WindowsMe: 212992 bytes, internal date 06/09/2000 02:35:49
RICHED32.DLL from Q249973: 203024 bytes, internal date 12/13/1999 21:04:55

Anyway, in WinME it already exist and for Win98 the Q249973 version should be OK.

So the result is that for Windows 98 Service Pack just the following files are necessary:
RICHED20.DLL 5.31.23.1224
USP10.DLL 1.422.3790.1830
RICHED32.DLL 5.0.1461.82

and for Windows Millennium Service Pack just:
RICHED20.DLL 5.31.23.1224
USP10.DLL 1.422.3790.1830

Right?

Petr



Maybe the reason is that none of these files is available in any Service Pack or update. This file only can be bought with Windows NT 4.0 or Windows 2000 or Windows XP or Windows Server 2003.

Petr

I haven't gotten those files from any of those OSes. They all came bundled with one software installer or another and got written in the system directory. I actually install quite a lot of software so I can't remember which ones.

Well I have just googled a bit and I come up with SpecsIntact for 98 / NT/ 2000 / XP SP 1, a free software from NASA. It does install Riched32.dll version 5.0.2134.1 along with Riched20.dll 5.30.23.1203 and Richtx.ocx 6.00.8804.

Considering this, there shouldn't be a legal problem with redistributing Riched32.dll 5.0.2134.1.

http://specsintact.ksc.nasa.gov/software/software.htm
http://specsintact.ksc.nasa.gov/software/S...systemreq32.htm
http://si.ksc.nasa.gov/specsintact/pdf/files.pdf

PS : I have downloaded the installer. It is a self-extracting Install Shield installer. Files can easily be extracted from data1.cab by using a nice freeware GUI tool : Winpack : http://snoopy81.ifrance.com/snoopy81/dl_en/WinPack300b.zip

Maybe, but the versions of RICHED32.DLL you have mentioned are from the folowing OSes:

4.0.410.59 is part of Windows 95 Gold and OSR2
4.0.834.839 is part of Windows 98 and Windows 98 SE
4.0.835.1374 is part of Windows NT 4.0
4.0.993.4 is part of Visual Studio 6.0
5.0.1461.82 is part of Q249973
5.0.1461.82 is part of Windows Millennium
5.0.2008.1 is part of Windows 2000 Beta 3
5.0.2134.1 is part of Windows 2000
5.1.2600.0 (xpclient.010817-1148) is part of Windows XP
5.2.3790.0 (srv03_rtm.030324-2048) is part of Windows Server 2003

Only 5.0.1461.82 (part of Q249973) seems to be freely available.

Petr

You guys have waaay too much time...

In order to test all these different builds on all 9x OSes takes some time, especially because I would need to reinstall Win95 retail, 95B OSR2, 98 FE, 98 SP1 + ME all over again. And I'm afraid I don't have that kind of free time at the moment.
Maybe sometime in the near future...

BTW:
This link is invalid outside Ifrance.com servers:
http://snoopy81.ifrance.com/snoopy81/dl_en/WinPack300b.zip
WinPack home [English]:
http://snoopy81.ifrance.com/snoopy81/en/winpack.htm
D/l page:
http://snoopy81.ifrance.com/snoopy81/download.htm
WinPack300b.zip must be downloaded from within that server [page above].
I guess Ifrance servers have anti-leech protection.

note that these "crypto" system files require IE 5.x/6.x as they BREAK earlier versions of IE (such as IE 4.x & earlier).

The OLE components from Win2003 SP1 should be for Win2003 systems only. They're incompatible with Win9x/ME systems and can break 9xME OSes.



NO PETR! OLE update 4526 (KB886765) is NOT OK under WinME. It broke the Help and Support Center program included in ME. Q240896 opengl32.dll NOT necessary under WinME. original opengl32.dll file in ME is fine and has copyright years from 1981-1997, while the copyright years from opengl32.dll file from Q240896 is from 1981-1996. WinME's opengl32.dll file does NOT have the problem in MS article Q240896.

as for Q258680, Deskw95.cpl ver. 4.72.3717.300 can be used under WinME. Powercfg.cpl ver. 5.00.3103.1000 is NOT compatible under WinME. Original powercfg.cpl file in ME is 4.90.3000.1.

Q245272 EnhTrig.dll ver. 4.10.2224 might be safe to use. WinME originally included v4.10.2223 of that file.



Hi, the_guy, sorry to say this but the WinME pack is no longer available at the YouSendIt site [link or download has expired]. any other site you are aware of where I can download the ME service pack?

I'm considering the crypt files. I don't have all of the files, but that shouldn't be too hard.

I will add the deskw95.cpl and the enhtrig.dll files in the next version (coming in the next week). There are also some other things I will be changing:

-Removal of metapad.exe
-Updating Adaptec ASPI to 4.71a2
-Updating 891711 to U891711
-Removal of 2000 theme
-Addition of Unofficial updates-????
-Switching to the .bat file Petr suggested to Gape (to use for cab files)

Anyway, here is the first version reposted (yousendit ran out) mesp202-a1.exe.html

the_guy

nah, I think those crypt files from Win2000 SPs and W2k updates can break WinME & probably any third party apps used under WinME. just use the crypt files from WinME's Q329115 patch for stability for now.

since that link you gave is a Rapidshare site, I wont download it with my dialup connection. I'll hold off until a beta (rather than an alpha) is posted other than at the Rapidshare site.

I couldnt agree more with eidenk. post the WinME SP at a site other than just Rapidshare, the_guy.
alpha versions shouldnt be posted at Majorgeeks & Softpedia yet. beta versions of the winme SP, maybe.

see the "New 98 FE + 98 SE + ME patches available" topic for any new ME patches received by MDGx.

I think the WinME pack should first show a dialog box to clearly warn users to disable WinME's SFP feature first, otherwise the SFP feature will reject many of the updated files from the ME pack and the pack will be worthless. alpha 1 of the unofficial WinME service pack did NOT prompt users to disable the winme system file protection feature before running the WinME pack.

To disable SFP in ME, open the MSConfig tool and uncheck the *StateMgr entry and reboot. I would also disable the PCHealth [PchSchd.exe -s] entry for a little faster startup and less interruptions while using ME.

I have also found a typo in the opening WinME service pack dialog box.

---------------------
UNOFFICIAL WindowsME Service Pack 2.0.2

This update is only for *ENGLISH* version of Windows98 SECOND EDITION (4.90.3000). This update is NOT from Microsoft. It is a unofficial compilation of Microsoft's update files and more.
---------------------

The next alpha or beta release of the winme SP should be corrected to say:

"This update is only for *ENGLISH* version of Windows Millennium Edition (4.90.3000). This update is NOT from Microsoft. It is a unofficial compilation of Microsoft's update files and more."

I first thought that I couldnt get the winme pack from the Rapidshare site but I did. I was lucky my dialup connection was a little faster and stable enough to get it, even though it took about an hour to fully download the pack.

BTW, Microsoft uses often also "Microsoft Windows Millenium Edition" spelling, with one "n" only, especially in the MS Knowledgebase it is confusing.

Petr


BTW, what is the magic in MS Windows Me hotfixes that they don't require to switch file protection off?

I'm not very familar with Windows Me.

Petr

For those whose files are in use and are replaced after reboot there shouldn't be any particular magic as SFP monitors only file access not size or checksum AFAIK. For the others I don't know as 1) I don't use SFP at all, 2) Inf syntax is way beyond me.

The single "n" spelling is wrong [as you well know], therefore MS developers need sometimes to check their spelling.

WinME hotfixes contain CAT files which are digital signatures [MDSum or MD5Sum probably ??] of newly installed files, and because of that System Restore always updates its database accordingly.
The INF file usually contain a postsetup command to run [generic example]:

%windir%\SYSTEM\SUCATREG /D:Qxxxxxx.CAT

after respective CAT file was copied to %windir%\INF\CATALOG folder.

I have never tried to find out how CAT files are created by MS.

Hope this helps.

I supposed something like that. In fact, I never seen any use of .CAT files in Windows 98 SE, is this different in Windows Me?

I just looked at some Q310695 fix and the sequence (in the form of .SED file lines) is:
AppLaunched=QFEREG.INF
PostInstallCmd=310695UP.INF

QFEREG.INF contains lines:


So at first tha .CAT file is copied to

So at first the catalog file is copied to Windir\inf\catalog directory and then it is registered.

And after this, 310695UP.INF copies file to three locations: (unneeded lines removd)


So this is the official way.

But what is the meaning of "Options" and "Install" directories?

Can we do the same in the servicepack? For all official updates/hotfixes for sure, the procedure would be:
1. To copy all .CAT files from MS fixes
2. To register them by SUCATREG
3. To copy all files as it is done at present, maybe also into "Options" and "Install" directories.

The question - how it is with unofficial, patched files? They never have correct .CAT file. I suppose this file has to be signed by Microsoft to be valid.

If it is possible to switch SFP off, copy any updated files (with no .CAT files), reboot and switch SFP on, what are these .CAT files meaningful at all?

I also suppose that could be possible to switch off the SFP by the installator, or not?

I don't have Windows ME experience but I believe there should be a way how to handle everything by the Service Pack installator.

Petr

During a fresh install of WinMe, all the setup files are copied by setup into windir/options/install. When installing a hotfix, updated files are also copied into this directory and into a sibling directory windir/options/cabs. AFAIK runing setup again should use the updated files copied in those directories instead of the original ones in the cabs.

Why would you do this ? Everyone says (me included) that 4.60 performs better.

the word "millennium" is commonly misspelled the first time, Petr. I looked at most of the MS KB articles and MS does spell it with two n's instead of one. I think they made the corrections.

Not really important but the checksum algorithm used is SHA1 apparently.

uh yeah, everyone except me. The Adaptec ASPI v4.71 drivers worked fine on my WinME system. I even installed them on my brother's XP laptop machine and they worked fine. and the v4.71 drivers are more
compatible with ME/XP/2k3 systems than the v4.60 drivers. go for it, the_guy.

other inclusions for the WinME pack I like to see:

-unofficial winme krnl386.exe 4.90.3001 patch [fixes a bug that microsoft forgot to patch]

-unofficial winme update.sys 4.90.3001 patch

-Metapad 3.51 [new release]

BTW - Win2000, XP & 2003 hotfixes also use .CAT files. some but not all Win98se hotfixes also contain .CAT files to digitally sign updated files.

BTW, does anybody know good worldwide list of used operating systems? Here it is for Czech Republic: http://www.toplist.cz/global.html and Windows 98 has about 10% but Windows Me below 0.1%, 100 times less. Is it similar in USA or in UK?

Petr

Actually in the UK there is only one user of Windows ME and that's me. (Joke) Seriously it must as low or almost as low as in the Czech Republic I believe which bears the question whether a service pack is really worth the effort. Rhelic from the US posted a stat of hits on a website in the form of a graphic the other day. Windows ME did not even appear on it.

I have decided not to update the adaptec aspi to 4.71a2. It will stay as 4.6. As for Metapad, I will probably include 3.51.

As for the unofficial updates, I will add them (as an option)

the_guy

good thing I had tested the ME service pack on two ME machines (one slow and one fast).

alpha 1 of the ME pack is a DUD! after I clicked on OK to install the Main hotfixes from the ME pack,
the pack crashed with a RUNDLL32 error message. and many of the updated files did NOT install.
what a bummer! It kept on crashing each time it tried to install the fixes, even when ME's SFP feature
was disabled completely [on BOTH computers].

I noticed the ME pack was created with version 5.0.2920.0000 of the Wextract. Try creating the ME pack
with version 6.0.2800.1106 of Wextract instead. The 98FE and 98SE packs were created from version
6.00.2800.1106 of Wextract.

Ok, I will use that version for alpha2. I am using a 2000 computer to make the service pack.

Expect a new version this weekend.

the_guy

Hey guys.

I have updated metapad.exe to 3.51. I have also added U891711. It is uploaded to filefactory.com. I will not update the ASPI layer until enough people want it. I have also added numerous updates. They are:

260710
268356
268452
277784
278368
289635
300889
301540
304082
304708
307908
309081
311430
321635

and some other updates that mdgx has posted. I have also added some other files that people have suggested. I was asked to add rpclt4.dll version 4.71.3336.0. Does ME include a newer version? I have removed the 2000 color scheme.

The download link is here.

This version is alpha 2.

the_guy

You certainly mean rpcrt4.dll. WinMe version is 4.71.3335.0. Q269874 installs 4.71.3336.0.

Sorry. I will update that file in the next version.

Please test this version out as much as possible.

the_guy

I have just tried the service pack in a virtual machine. It still does crash rundll32 in setupX when trying to install the main update like the previous one did.

You could also try to use Gape's new Infex O.3 in alpha3.

I think I'll reduce the size of the copyfiles line if that is the problems. I hope this will be fixed in the next version.

the_guy

About the OPKFIX.CAT file from Q271434. Remove it from the ME pack. that file requires ME's sytem file protection feature to be enabled in order for it to be registered and to have any effect. having that file installed [and SFP disabled] will not have any effect on ME [and will be worthless] unless SFP is on. plus most OEMs might have already have it pre-installed on many OEM versions of Windows ME (like with my HP Pavilion computer I got back in early 2001 with pre-installed Winme).

I'll try out alpha 2 as soon as I can. next alpha release should exclude the opkfix.cat file.

never mind. I'm not going to download MESP alpha 2 as eidenk said the pack crashed like the alpha 1 version.
and the link to get alpha 2 of the me pack is no longer working.

the_guy should check very carefully the stuff written in ALL the .INF files included in the ME sevice pack. there could be a problem or problems found in the .INF files and he should make the necessary corrections to any of the .inf files. that could also be the reason why the ME pack keeps on crashing.

and I should also suggest to the_guy to post the next release of the me pack to at least two sites, instead of one. if he also needs more ME fixes, get them from Petr as I recently sent most of the ones I have to him.

the ME fixes I sent to Petr have been sent from him to MDGx. see "New 98 FE + 98 SE + ME patches available" topic:
http://www.msfn.org/board/index.php?showtopic=46581

the Q271434 opkfix.cat fix is for some OEM versions of ME only and does not apply to retail versions of ME.
The retail (upgrade & full) editions of Windows ME [ones that come from the ME product boxes] dont have the problem and the fix is worthless under those editions.

furthermore, the opkfix.cat file actually requires WinME's SFP feature to be loaded at startup and left on. simply registering the opkfix.cat file with the SUCATREG.EXE file w/out SFP enabled wont properly register the .cat file. a good reason to leave out the Q271434 opkfix.cat fix.

a choice between the inclusion of either Q276602 pci.vxd 4.90.3004 fix or Q285882 pci.vxd 4.90.3003 fix. It's safe to include Q285882, which has no side effects. Q276602 for ME has a known problem documented in MS article 810447.

so far, the MESP has been a disappointment. it has long ways to go before an actual beta can be produced.

...and i'm still waiting for alpha 3 of ME service pack. guess it will take even more time to flush out the crucial problems found in previous alpha releases.