Originally Posted By: mlord
So.. now that I have a shiny old fresh install of WinXP + SP3 + 96 updates + drivers.. is there an easy way to use that system to create a new install_cd with all of the updates and drivers on it?

In theory, nLite can do this, or you can walk through manually downloading and integrating every hotfix via slipstreaming. In practice though, not every hotfix is properly set up to slipstream, and odds are it will be more effort then it's worth.

The alternative is to use sysprep (MS link, and another tutorial) to prepare the install to be cloned. Once done, you should just be able to use your favorite linux tool of choice to dump the hard drive to an image file for later restore.

I personally wish Microsoft would move to a much more rapid pace of service pack releases, since they do present a solid point in time where a machine can be patched to near modern levels. Every 12 months would be the maximum time I'd want to see between service packs, which would put XP at least at SP9 level today.