Waiting for the next Windows Service Packs has become a way of life for Windows users, especially professional ones. Microsoft's irregular barrages of bug fixes, new features and changes to the institution that Windows has become are viewed with a mixture of expectation and trepidation by home users (and with outright fear by business IT departments). The Windows operating system is a delicate balance of systems and functions, and new additions have been known to hopelessly break older ones.

Microsoft's newly released Service Pack 2 for Windows XP is a big event for the XP user community. Far from the catalog of bug fixes and anti-piracy measures that made up the first Windows XP service pack, the new offering makes fundamental changes to the way Windows XP operates, mostly in the name of security.

In this article, we will look at the new features Windows XP Service Pack 2 offers, as well as why the average user should bother with it. Following that, we'll run step-by-step through the installation process and new features of this significant upgrade to Windows XP. If you are installing a new PC with Windows XP, and would like to know how to Slipstream WinXP and SP2 onto on install CD, see our guide here.

What's new with Windows?

To put it simply, a lot. There are a couple of reasons why this service pack was delayed so long, and we're willing to bet that the main reason was the number of new additions that were added.

The main area of change is security, especially Internet security. As we have stated before, Windows XP and its sister operating systems Windows 2000 and 2003 Server are well secured as far as protecting data and passwords goes, but are full of holes when connected directly to the Internet.

The change that users will notice right off the bat is the addition of the Windows XP security Center. This thoughtful addition to the control panel is designed to give users easy, centralized access to the security features of XP such as the firewall.

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