Product Maintenance: While Microsoft continues to recommend that customers
install the most current Service Pack/Release for non-Year 2000 reasons, we understand
that, for many reasons, this may not be possible. In order to aid our customers? Year 2000
efforts, Microsoft intends to maintain Windows NT Workstation 4.0 Service Pack 4 as
compliant through January 1, 2001. Newer Service Packs are also to be maintained as
compliant, and may include additional non-Year 2000 updates. This is intended to minimize
the Year 2000 as a reason to upgrade. [This information applies to Windows NT
Workstation 4.0 SP4]
Updated Information
A new issue has been discovered in versions of Outlook Express installed by Internet
Explorer 4. Users of Outlook express should consult the
Internet Explorer Product Guide for details.
Through our ongoing testing, Microsoft has identified four issues that are addressed by
post-Service Pack 4 updates. Microsoft recommends that users evaluate the post-SP4 year
2000 updates and consider deploying them based on their exposure to each issue. The issues
are detailed in Step 2 below.
A year 2000 issue has been discovered in the Jet 3.5 data engine. Microsoft has
provided a software update to address this issue. Consult the MDAC product guide
HERE for details.
Microsoft recently announced the release of Service Pack 5 for Windows NT 4. Service
Pack 5 is not required for Year 2000 compliance. Service Pack 5 may provide a more simple
Year 2000 remediation process for some customers. Customers should consult the
Windows NT 4 SP5 compliance document in the Year 2000 product guide for details.
Introduction
Windows NT 4.0 has had a number of service packs since its release. To reach a
compliant state with Windows NT 4.0, Service Pack 4 plus additional Year 2000 software
updates must be installed. Additionally, Microsoft intends to maintain the compliance of
Service Pack 4 through January 1, 2001, in addition to any subsequent service packs.
When users load the Windows NT Workstation 4.0 operating system on a computer they are
asked to select from many installation options. In addition, Microsoft has made additional
Windows NT Workstation 4.0 features available to licensed users via Service Packs, the
Windows NT Option Pack and the Windows NT Web site. Because users may have selected a
variety of options and installed additional features on a given system, all options and
features must be considered when assessing the system?s Year 2000 readiness status.
Microsoft has determined that Windows NT Workstation 4.0 and some versions of
additional Windows NT Workstation 4.0 features have known Year 2000 issues, requiring
upgrades. In order to address these known Year 2000 issues, users must first determine the
set of options and features that they have installed on a given system (the "Target
System") and follow the three-step procedure described below. In some cases the
Year 2000 issue can be updated by users applying updates. In other cases, users are
instructed to upgrade a feature to a newer version of the feature to address known issues.
The steps identified below take a comprehensive approach to correcting known issues.
- Step 1 prepares the target system for SP4 by installing any upgrades that are needed in
addition to SP4.
- Step 2 installs SP4 and the post-SP4 Year 2000 Update to analyze the target system,
remove versions that have known issues, and install versions that have no known issues.
- Step 3 then audits the target system. To confirm all known issues have been corrected
and steps 1 and 2 have been done correctly, the results of the audit should indicate that
only those versions having a "complaint" rating (as identified on the tables
below) remain on the target system after Steps 1 and 2 have been completed.
Important Preliminary Notes:
- In order to simplify the upgrade process and provide more flexibility to customers, the
Y2KSETUP.EXE composite patch has been removed from the recommended upgrade path.
Y2KSETUP.EXE was used to install IE4.01 SP1, MDAC 2.0 SP1, and Site Server Express 3.0. We
now recommend that customers install these components individually. See Note 7 for
additional details.
- Users that have both Microsoft Message Queue Service Version 1.0 and Site Server Express
Version 2.0 installed on their Windows NT 4.0 machines should review the Microsoft
Knowledge Base article
Q197533 before proceeding:
Step 1
Microsoft has created Service Pack 4 (SP4) to help users address the majority of Year
2000 compliance issues with their Windows NT Workstation installations in a simple and
automated fashion.
SP4 itself will address most known Year 2000 issues. However, users must update or
upgrade certain features to their later releases, in addition to applying SP4.
Table 1A (below) lists the Windows NT 4.0 features that must be updated or upgraded in
addition to applying SP4, along with specific repair/update instructions.
Table 1B (below) lists the Windows NT 4.0 Optional features that must be updated or
upgraded only if previous versions exist on the machine.
Note that these updates and upgrades can be performed either before or after applying
SP4 (which is outlined in Step 2).
Table 1A: System Components.
| Feature Name |
Version |
Action Required Prior to Step 2 |
| Microsoft
Internet Explorer (IE) |
Multiple Versions |
Upgrade to
IE4.01 SP2 or newer including any applicable Year 2000 software Updates. For information
on additional Year 2000 Updates for IE, refer HERE.
Go Here for IE Downloads.
(Users who prefer to remain on IE 4.01 SP1 should refer to the IE Year 2000 Compliance
document available HERE for appropriate
actions. Additional software updates are required in addition to SP1.)
Users who wish to install IE 4.01 SP2 or IE 5 Technology without adding IE icons and
without making IE the default browser should consult KB article Q224088. |
Table 1B: Optional Components.
| Feature Name |
Version |
Action Required Prior to Step 2 |
| Microsoft Data
Access Components (MDAC) |
Multiple Versions |
Install MDAC 2.1
SP1 or newer including any applicable Year 2000 software Updates. For information on
additional Year 2000 Updates for MDAC, refer HERE.
Go Here for MDAC Downloads
(Users who prefer to remain on MDAC 2.0 SP1 should refer to the MDAC Year 2000
Compliance document available HERE for appropriate
actions.)
A year 2000 update for the Jet3.5 engine has recently been released. (April 1999)
Consult the MDAC product guide for details.
(MDAC 2.0 SP1 is installed by Y2KSETUP.EXE, see Note 7) |
| Microsoft
FrontPage 97 |
"97" |
Install FrontPage 97 Year 2000 Updates. |
| Microsoft
FrontPage 97 Server Extensions |
"97" |
Install FrontPage 98 Server Extensions. |
| Site Server
Express |
2.0 |
Uninstall Site
Server Express 2.0 and install Site Server Express 3.0. Refer HERE. (Site Server
Express 3.0 is installed by Y2KSETUP.EXE, see Note 7) |
Step 2
Apply SP4 to the Target System. SP4 can be obtained at:
http://www.microsoft.com/support/winnt/default.htm
The installation of SP4 applies updates to the base
Windows NT Workstaton 4.0 product including the installation options. Applying SP4 also
updates certain Windows NT Workstation 4.0 features.
Microsoft previously recommended that customers also run Y2KSETUP.EXE. to address the
following components: Microsoft Data Access Components, Site Server Express, Microsoft
Internet Explorer. These areas are now addressed in step 1. Refer to Note 7 for additional
details.
Users should also apply any Windows NT Year 2000 (Y2K) Updates that have been made
available post-SP4. The current post-SP4 Y2K updates are listed below.
Current post-SP4 Updates and their respective Knowledge Base (KB) Articles address the
following known Year 2000 issues:
Click
HERE for the catalog of
currently available post-SP4 Year 2000 Updates.
(Additional information about these issues can be obtained at
http://support.microsoft.com/support/)
1. BIOS Date Value does not Immediately Update on January 1, 2000. (
for more details.
2. This Not Compliant version of this feature should only be present if the
procedures outlined in Step 1 have not been performed correctly.
3. This Not Compliant version of this feature should only be present if the
procedures outlined in Step 2 have not been performed correctly.
4. There is no Content Analyzer feature in Site Server Express 3.0. A replacement
version that is Year 2000-compliant will be made available.
5. The Compliant ratings for Zero Administration Kits (ZAK kit) are based on
being used with Compliant versions of the software configured for installation by
the ZAK kit.
6. To verify the version number of a dynamic link library (DLL) file, users should:
- Start Windows NT Explorer from the Start/Programs menu
- Locate the DLL file to be verified
- Select the file by pointing the mouse cursor at the file clicking the left mouse button
once
- Click the right mouse button once to display a menu
- Select "Properties" from the menu by pointing the mouse cursor at the option
and clicking the left mouse button once
- Select the "Version" tab by pointing the mouse cursor at the tab and clicking
the left mouse button once
- Visually Locate the version number in the field labeled "File Version."
7. Y2KSETUP.EXE has been removed from the recommended remediation path.
- Y2KSETUP.EXE was used to update Windows NT components to the following versions:
- Internet Explorer 4.01 SP1
- Microsoft Data Access Components 2.0 SP1
- Site Server Express 3.0
- Customers who already applied Y2KSETUP.EXE should evaluate their systems based on having
the versions above. Additional remediation is required for IE 4.01 SP1. See Table 3 for
details.
- Microsoft as chosen to remove Y2KSETUP.EXE from the recommended remediation path for the
following reasons:
- Feedback from customers indicated that more flexibility was desired regarding how and
when each component was upgraded
- Additional remediation was required for IE4.01 SP1 in order to achieve the compliance.
This was confusing for customers.
- Note: Users that have both Microsoft Message Queue Service Version 1.0 and Site Server
Express Version 2.0 installed on their Windows NT 4.0 machines should review the Microsoft
Knowledge Base article