Office XP Update Failure - version sensing

[Ian]

I have Office XP standard installed, displaying 'SP-1' in
Help/About from each product. The product is activated,
but forms part of a Volume Licence arrangement from the
retailer I used (Ramesys in UK).
On attempting Office update from
http://office.microsoft.com/officeupdate/default.aspx,
the 'Check for updates' suggests that I need SP-1 and a
security update for MS Project (KB822211), 6Mb total. All
other updates are greyed out (dependent on SP-1). On
starting the installation, after EULA, confirmation
and 'have your product CD ready' screens, the download
screen appears but then closes very quickly
with 'installation unsuccessful'.
Of the three reasons suggested by the troubleshooter, I
have tried the update with AV (Trend) switched off; I
have oodles of free space on my HDD; and I have tried the
download both connected via my home network and via a
direct ISP connection. All permutations give the same
result. The problem is repeatable.
Anyone else seen this, please? It sounds similar to the
several posts here of the 'Unable to check for updates'
syndrome - fix for which was posted on 11 Nov. at 3:33.
However, the difference here is that the check completes
OK but the detection is obviously wrong! Should I just
uninstall and try again?

Regards,
Ian

 

[AnthonyM]

-----Original Message-----
I have Office XP standard installed, displaying 'SP-1' in
Help/About from each product. The product is activated,
but forms part of a Volume Licence arrangement from the
retailer I used (Ramesys in UK).
On attempting Office update from
http://office.microsoft.com/officeupdate/default.aspx,
the 'Check for updates' suggests that I need SP-1 and a
security update for MS Project (KB822211), 6Mb total. All
other updates are greyed out (dependent on SP-1). On
starting the installation, after EULA, confirmation
and 'have your product CD ready' screens, the download
screen appears but then closes very quickly
with 'installation unsuccessful'.
Of the three reasons suggested by the troubleshooter, I
have tried the update with AV (Trend) switched off; I
have oodles of free space on my HDD; and I have tried the
download both connected via my home network and via a
direct ISP connection. All permutations give the same
result. The problem is repeatable.
Anyone else seen this, please? It sounds similar to the
several posts here of the 'Unable to check for updates'
syndrome - fix for which was posted on 11 Nov. at 3:33.
However, the difference here is that the check completes
OK but the detection is obviously wrong! Should I just
uninstall and try again?

Regards,
Ian

.
Yes I am having the same problem with my Office 2003

installation? Maybe someone from Microsoft can help us
with our problem? I'm sure other clients are having this
issue too.

 

[Ian]

I have had a response from Microsoft on this topic, which
may be of interest to others who have experienced similar
problems. The response, and my experience in trying out
the suggestions (in CAPS), are below. Net result: I am
now fully up-to-date with a working SP-2 version of
Office XP!

"First, I would like you to visit Microsoft Update
Website and automatically apply the updates. We can go to
the following link to run the automatic detection. That
will lead us to install the correct updates for our
Office:

http://office.microsoft.com/ProductUpdates/default.aspx

1. Click the "Scan my computer to find Office updates I
need." hyperlink.

2. After detection, click to select the first checkbox in
the updates list and click Start Installation.

3. Repeat the Steps 1 and 2 to install all the required
updates for your Office.

MY UPDATES NEVER GET AS FAR AS INSTALLING - THE DOWNLOADS
STOP VERY SOON AFTER STARTING, AND WHETHER I CHOOSE 1 OR
MORE, IT'S THE SAME EFFECT.

If the problem only occurs in the Office Product Updates
Web site, please go on the following steps to see whether
they are helpful:

Step 1: Disable anti-virus or firewall programs

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

Please temporarily disable all the anti-virus or firewall
programs and other third-party applications that are
running in the background. Test the issue again and let
me know the results.

TRIED THIS (SEE ORIGINAL REPORT). NO DIFFERENCE !

Step 2: Start Windows in Clean Boot mode

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

Considering that this problem may be due some other
programs, please try to start Windows in Clean Boot mode
and perform a test. Please follow the steps below to do
this:

310353 How to Perform a Clean Boot in Windows XP

http://support.microsoft.com/?id=310353

TRIED THIS WITH SOME SUCCESS. SERVICE PACK 1 AND THE MS
PROJECT FIX DOWNLOADED FINE USING THIS ROUTE. TRIED THEN
DOWNLOADING SP2 (44Mb), BUT MY CONNECTION KEPT BREAKING.
LOOKED AT THE 'MORE INFORMATION' AGAINST IT, THEN
DOWNLOADED IT DIRECTLY RATHER THAN OFFICE UPDATE, AND THE
MUCH SMALLER FILE (14Mb) DOWNLOADED AND INSTALLED OK -
HELP/ABOUT NOW SHOWING SP-2. THEN DOWNLOADED THE
SECURITY PATCHES USING OFFICE UPDATE.

STOPPED AT THIS POINT WHILE I WAS AHEAD AND WENT BACK TO
NORMAL STARTUP!

Step 3: Unregister and Reregister the Windows Installer

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

(a) Quit all programs that are running in the background.

(b) Click the Start menu-> Run,
type "msiexec /unregister" (Quotation marks are not
included and there is a space between msiexec
and /unregister) in the Open box and press Enter.

Note: Nothing will seem to happen.

(c) Click Start menu-> Run, type "msiexec /regserver"
(without the quotation marks) in the Open box and press
Enter.

Note: The hour glass might flash for a second.

(d) Restart your computer and then test the issue again.

Step 4: Install the Windows Installer 2.0

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

Download and install the latest version of the Windows
Installer 2.0 from the following link:

Instmsiw.exe for Windows NT, Windows 2000 or Windows XP:

http://download.microsoft.com/download/WindowsInstaller/In
stall/2.0/NT45/EN-US/InstMsiW.exe

Note: You may receive the "Wrong OS or OS version for
application" warning dialog box. This means the Windows
Installer is already Version 2.0. If so, please directly
go to step #3 to repair Office.

Restart your computer and test the issue again. Does the
problem still exist?

If the problem still exists, please help me collect more
information so that I can accurately troubleshoot it:

1. Have you installed the lasted Office Service Packs for
Office XP on your computer? You can open one of the
Office programs, select About Microsoft <Program_Name>
from the Help menu and obtain the information at the top
of the dialog box. Please let me know detailed
information about the versions you have.

If you have not installed the updates, you can also
browse the following link to download the desired updates
to your local hard disk and install it.

http://www.officeupdate.com/downloads/

Please let me know whether you can install the downloaded
updates.

2. Please capture a screenshot of the error message you
received when scanning for the Office updates and send it
to me. Please follow the steps below:

- Press the Print Screen key on the upper right Corner of
the keyboard.

- Open Paint from Start -> All Programs -> Accessories->
Paint.

- Click Paste on the Edit menu in the Paint program.

- Save it and send it to me as an attachment (if it is
possible, please save it as *.gif or *.jpg file).

Note: Repeat the steps to create more screenshots if
necessary.

3. Please double-check whether there are some redundant
or old Office products traces on your computer. To do
this, click Start menu-> Control Panel. If Control Panel
is not in Classic View, click Switch to Classic View, and
then double-click the "Add or Remove Programs" icon. If
you find some suspicious Office products entries shown in
the "Currently installed programs" section, please remove
them and test the issue again.
"