Redmond, WA — As InfoWorld reported, Microsoft is dealing with more troubles surrounding Service Pack 4 (SP4) for Windows NT Server 4.0. Microsoft only recently scrambled to fix an SP4 installation problem that affects users with specific configurations. Microsoft support-line engineers compounded worries for at least some customers by characterizing the fix as a “major rerelease” of the service pack.
Officials at the company said the Y2ksetup.exe file in the “full download” and CD-ROM versions of SP4 causes Microsoft Message Queue Server (MSMQ) to be uninstalled on NT servers that have both Site Server Express 2.0 and the NT Option Pack version of MSMQ.
A Microsoft representative stated that no core SP4 components were affected, and that the problem does not affect users who installed MSMQ from NT Server 4.0, Enterprise Edition.
The company’s handling of the situation confused some customers.
One user, who was working to deploy SP4 over hundreds of NT servers worldwide, said Microsoft engineers told him to wait on the deployment until a “major rerelease” of the service pack was released. One Microsoft official, referring to an internal document, called the service pack refresh “SP4a.”
“In our particular case it throws off months of preplanning to hit 400-plus servers worldwide,” said the IT manager, who requested anonymity.
The company representative said Microsoft was not planning a rerelease of SP4, and said the reference to “SP4a” was a “typo.” However, the representative also said Microsoft would use the installation fix as a chance to update NT’s Java virtual machine.
Microsoft also recently posted to its Web site a fix for a security hole in SP4 that could allow a user to log on interactively and connect to network shares using a blank password.
The flaw primarily affects NT servers that serve as domain controllers in environments with DOS, Windows 3.1, Windows for Workgroups, OS/2, or Macintosh clients.
“In general, customers who have deployed only Windows NT, Windows 95, and Windows 98 client workstations are not at risk from this vulnerability,” the company stated.