Microsoft suspends distribution of Vista SP1 prerequisite update

Following reports by users of problems resulting from new Vista Service Pack (SP) 1 installation prerequisite update -- which Microsoft pushed out via Windows Update last week -- Microsoft has halted availability of those prerequisites.

Microsoft announced on February 19 via the Vista Team Blog its decision to stop the distribution of the Vista SP1 prerequisites.

Vista Product Manager Nick White posted the following update:

"Immediately after receiving reports of this error, we made the decision to temporarily suspend automatic distribution of the update to avoid further customer impact while we investigate possible causes.

"So far, we've been able to determine that this problem only affects a small number of customers in unique circumstances. We are working to identify possible solutions and will make the update available again shortly after we address the issue.

"Customers who may be experiencing this issue can use system restore to correct it or contact 1-866-PC-Safety for help troubleshooting. Additional guidance will be available via Microsoft's free Update Support Center soon."

Last week wasn't the first time endless reboot problems were reported by Vista users. In fact, there were reports of endless-reboot-loop problems from some Vista SP1 users dating back to late January, before Microsoft distributed the prerequisites for SP1 -- right around the time the company delivered the final bits (in the form of the Vista Service Pack 1 Release Candidate 1 Refresh 2 build).