I usually reformat / reinstall everything on my desktop rig each 2 years. I have not done this latest box. I now see it has only Service Pack 2 on XP Pro. I have the SP 3 disc from Micro. Is it better to install SP3 over the current info, or do a reformat and clean install of everything? I have a lot of Adobe graphics software, no games, 2 scanners etc. Nothing too major. All boxes get cluttered with junk over two years as we all know. Thanks for any advice. Rotab

On Thu, 13 Jan 2011 21:36:32 +0000, Rotab wrote:I usually reformat / reinstall everything on my desktop rig each 2 years. I have not done this latest box.Good. It's almost always a mistake to do that.I now see it has only Service Pack 2 on XP Pro. I have the SP 3 disc from Micro. Is it better to install SP3 over the current info, or do a reformat and clean install of everything?Install SP3. Reformatting and clean reinstalling is, as I said, almostalways a bad mistake.I have a lot of Adobe graphics software, no games, 2 scanners etc. Nothing too major. All boxes get cluttered with junk over two years as we all know. Thanks for any advice.   RotabKen Blake (MS MVP)

If this PC with Windows XP at the SP2 level has been used a bit, there's a decent chance some malware got through one of the many security holes at some point. Before installing SP3, be sure to perform a thorough check for malware. If you need guidance, let us know.Also, I'd like to echo what Ken said. It is seldom necessary to perform a Clean Install. Junk is very easy to declutter. Again, if you need guidance, let us know.

I have been using latest Norton Anti Virus from Comcast and it seems to work very well.Then I use Ad-Aware weekly and CCleaner daily. I have had no major issues. I never knewit was a bad thing to reformat/reinstall everything. Just a habit from the old days maybe.

It's not that it's bad to do this. It is just very time-consuming and unnecessary. Also, a number of people have performed a Clean Install without first backing up their data (so in that case, it's bad).

On Sat, 15 Jan 2011 16:41:07 +0000, Daavee wrote:It's not that it's bad to do this. It is just very time-consuming and unnecessary.Yes, mostly true, but it can also be bad. See below.Also, a number of people have performed a Clean Install without first backing up their data (so in that case, it's bad).Yes, and also note that you have to locate and install all the neededdrivers for your system, you have to recustomize Windows and all yourapps to work the way you're comfortable with.Besides all those things being time-consuming and troublesome, you mayhave trouble with some of them: can you find all your application CDs?Can you find all the needed installation codes? Do you have databackups to restore? Do you even remember all the customizations andtweaks you may have installed to make everything work the way youlike? If you can't find something you need, or can't remember something youdid, it can be very bad.Ken Blake (MS MVP)