How to avoid Windows Genuine Advantage for an XP update?

Posted by hlovdal on Super User See other posts from Super User or by hlovdal
Published on 2009-09-17T22:54:46Z Indexed on 2012/08/31 21:40 UTC
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I am about to apply updates to a windows xp installation I have not booted in a couple of years. When going to update.microsoft.com, it forced me first to accept an activex installation and now it wants me to install wga:

Windows Update

To use this latest version of Windows Update, you will need to upgrade some of its components. This version provides you with the following enhancements to our service:

<... useless list of "advantages" ...>

Details

Windows Genuine Advantage Validation Tool (KB892130) 1.1 MB , less than 1 minute The Windows Genuine Advantage Validation Tool enables you to verify that your copy of Microsoft Windows is genuine. The tool validates your Windows installation by checking Windows Product Identification and Product Activation status.

Update for Windows XP (KB898461) 477 KB , less than 1 minute This update installs a permanent copy of Package Installer for Windows to enable software updates to have a significantly smaller download size. The Package Installer facilitates the install of software updates for Microsoft Windows operating systems and other Microsoft products. After you install this update, you may have to restart your system.

Total: 1.5 MB , less than 1 minute

I have heard nothing but bad things about wga, and I absolutely do not want it installed on my system (this answer seems to give some options).

Searching for "windows xp" at microsoft's web pages brought up this page which says

Windows XP Service Pack 3 Network Installation Package for IT Professionals and Developers

Brief Description This installation package is intended for IT professionals and developers downloading and > installing on multiple computers on a network. If you're updating just one computer, please visit Windows Update at http://update.microsoft.com . ... File Name: WindowsXP-KB936929-SP3-x86-ENU.exe

I am currently downloading this file. Will installing this bring my installation up to date with security updates? What about later updates whenever a new problem is discovered, how can i update without using wga?

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