15
Dec

Vista copy/move - The Service Pack 1 RC1 Follow-up

Posted by Steven Hodson in Saturday, December 15th 2007      

Windows Vista For anyone who read this blog you will probably remember my posts regarding Vista’s apparent inability to copy or move over an network to an XP machine. You will also probably remember how I said I wouldn’t be going anywhere near the Release Candidate of Vista’s Service Pack 1. Well …. what can I say … the irritation of not being able to use my machine the way it is suppose to got to be too much and as you can tell from my post earlier about the new Microsoft Download Center Beta I bit the bullet and grabbed my very own copy of what would hopefully be my salvation.

After what has to be the longest install of a service pack that I have experienced; and yes I know it’s only a release candidate so I accept the time spent, I was all ready to get to the business of finding out if the problem had been fixed. So from a fresh reboot and with nothing else running as far as using the network I proceeded to open up Explorer and drag the first victim video file from its folder on my Vista machine over to the mapped folder that resided on the XP machine in the next room.

And waited …. and waited …. and waited ….

Then all of a sudden I had this wonderful dialog box being displayed:

What happens when trying to copy from a Vista machine to a networked XP machine

I gotta admit this one still makes me scratch my head in wonderment after all the file was on my machine … the one I was sitting at .. the one I was trying to copy from and here Vista was telling me it couldn’t access the file and that I should check check the network setting that was already letting me access the XP machine through Explorer on Vista.

So being the hopeful optimist - hey it happens once in awhile - I clicked on the Try Again button hoping that maybe it just need a few minutes to figure out what was going on. This is the dialog box I got in return for my optimism:

and this is the reward I get for being optimistic

Needless to say I wanted the file copied before I died so I canceled out of this state of ridiculousness shaking my head wondering just what Microsoft was thinking when it came to Vista.

Not wanting to be totally depressed over the whole situation I decided to do some experimenting and see just what would copy between the two machines and this is where it gets really strange.

First I wondered if I could copy a video file from the XP machine to the Vista machine from the Vista machine and to my bewilderment it worked like a charm. Mind you it wasn’t the speediest experience but hey it worked. So I rightfully concluded that if that would work so would any other file and so it wasn’t a problem to do with XP and the network.

With that thought in mind I picked a text file in my Documents folder on Vista and dragged it in Explorer over to another mapped folder of the XP machine … damn the copy dialog box didn’t even display and the file was where I had copied it to.

Well that worked like a dream so next up was a JPEG graphic file .. drag … drop … presto there it was in the folder on the XP machine. Wow … that was as fast as the text file. So what to try next .. oh ya … an MP3 file … let’s give that a shot.

So selecting the lucky file in Vista I dragged it over to the mapped folder on the XP machine and let go. Lo’ and behold the Copy dialog box displays and the progress bar indicated that the file is being copied over. Wow .. it was copying … amazing.

The end result of all this?

Well it would seem that the Service Pack hasn’t made one bit of difference to the problems I was experiencing despite what had been listed in their published changelog that Long Zheng was good enough to publish. I realize that some will say that this is just something I am experiencing and must be related to my setup. The problem with that wishful thinking is that it is just that - wishful thing - especially considering that more than few forums around the web are reporting exactly the same; or very similar, problems.

Where does this leave me?

Well as far as I am concerned considering my needs - pretty well screwed. Yes I could wait until the RTM version of the Service Pack is available but that’s in the new year and I really don’t know if I have the stamina to wait that long. So I have to very carefully consider saying good-bye to Vista and actually make the plunge back to XP. I can tell you this though - if I do go back to XP I won’t be having anything to do with Vista and even though I’ve been bitten badly by Vista I’ll be waiting for any OS upgrades until Windows 7 goes Gold.

In the meantime Microsoft has left a really bad taste in my mouth and I am feeling just a tad bit ripped off considering that a core functionality of an OS is so badly borked and they still took money from loyal customers for a faulty operating system. I hope Bill and all those shareholders are happy because I know a shitload of customers aren’t.

As for migrating back to XP - well I’ll let you know how it goes and maybe prepare a list of all the things to make sure you have in place for those folks looking to make the same move over the coming months - which I am sure is going to happen.

Listening to: Infernal - from Paris to Berlin (UK edition) - Hey Hello

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Viewing 19 Comments

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    Here is a short blog concerning the error error0x800f0826 that crops up regularly with this update
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    lol funny i have had no prob with vista it is ok!!!
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    I have a question for Steven Hodson. Looking at your screen shots I noticed that the windows are Mac not Windows. Could you explain why it looks like you are trying to copy files with a Vista OS on a Mac computer.
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    ever hear of WindowBlinds by Stardock?

    http://www.stardock.com/products/windowblinds/
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    That explains that part and I appreciate the answer. But if you want to show screen shots keep it au natural since to be taken seriously it should not present confusing information.

    I still have not run into the situation as you have described but at least it is something to be aware of.

    Good work.
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    I do have 15+ solid years of experience in I.T. and much of it was spent working with MS-DOS and WIndows based PCs. Guess what. Today, all of my home computers (desktops and laptop) are Macs. People like "Jack Bling" will always be out there, trying to make themselves feel good about their loyalty to Microsoft-centric systems. But the fact is - Microsoft is rapidly heading down the proverbial toilet, while Apple has been on a meteoric rise.

    Yes, current Mac hardware uses Intel processors and is essentially "the same" as any other PC hardware. The difference is, you get the superior OS X operating system bundled with it. It's not even legal to install OS X on anything that's not real Mac hardware. The two are supposed to be purchased as a hardware/software combo (which isn't SO different from what Microsoft already does anyway with these OEM Windows licenses you can't legally separate from whichever PC they came with).

    If I buy a Dell, I get crappy phone support from India or Romania, and 45 minutes on hold just to do the "song and dance" of unplugging the PC, plugging it back in, telling the "tech" on the phone that yes, a green light does still come on when I press the power button, etc. etc. - before I can even RMA a bad monitor or something. With Apple, they're consistently top-rated for their level of customer service and satisfaction. Yes, I've had things go bad on my Macbook Pro. But it was handled in 10 minutes on the phone, and the repaired machine was shipped off, repaired, and returned in under 48 hours total! Apple even went above and beyond what was required, replacing a loose display hinge that wasn't covered as a "warranty" item to begin with.

    And all in all, the Apple computers I've owned are ALL built to better standards than any other Windows PCs I've used, barring perhaps a "server class PC". The "fit and finish" is above-average, and attention was paid to all the details. (EG. Slot loading DVD drives on laptops so you have no annoying tray that slides out and can break off or get in your way on a cramped desk.)

    Lastly, if I really feel the *need* for Windows (XP or Vista), the current Mac OS X version lets me dual-boot into either of them on my Mac anyway! So far, except for a few games though, I avoid doing that. OS X is just far more pleasant to use.
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    If you have 15+ years experience in the IT biz, why are you calling support hotlines for help? The problem for me is that with Mac I get a software/hardware combo. I want to have total control of what hardware is in my PC, not a couple of bundles to choose from. If I were to choose between a Dell and and Mac, I would probably go with the Mac. But the freedom of hardware control cant be beaten. And there is a lot of programs that are not released for Mac or are released late that I use, even obscure little things on the net that one can fall over that are for Windows only, Id hate to be limited becuase of vanity (the Mac design that seems to be a draw for many people).

    The way I see it, WinXP was pretty much useless too when it was first released, people were ranting about how Win2K was superior. Microsoft will get the OS together at some point.

    Better confess that I am running Vista on my desktop and my tablet PC with no problems (except for at few BSoD here and there, but I get those on XP aswell), and im very pleased with the OS overall.
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    This is sad, on all these forums there are people, claiming technical expertise, as well as extensive knowledge of vista. I have installed vista on literally thousands of PC's, under many varied hardware configurations. The only issues that i have encountered, outside of issues with SLI and early 8800 errors, that are consistent, and can reasonably be blamed on ms are as follows: issues with trustedinstaller.exe due to an auto update issue with media player, slow network transfer(as well as local disk transfers). As far as program compatibility, Vista supports every piece of software from 95 and up in compatibility mode.
    Every other issue i have seen has been strictly 3rd party driver related. This was the same thing that happened with xp, its popular to bash MS, and as for you mac fans....grow a brain, its just a pc, no difference, just a much higher markup on parts, and a tiny bit of code to allow mac os, a weak OS full of security flaws no one cares to exploit. Put another dollar in steve jobs pocket, get your macbook, and when you power it up and get online, take a look at apples profit, profit = markup. You are not getting a good deal if the company is making huge profit. Dell sells PC's at a loss, they lose money on every system shipped and make it up in warranty sells.
    Learn before spreading FUD, and in two years when you are still trying to squeeze the last bit of life from 32bit xp, you will be missing out on the key elements that make vista the power house it is, a la dx10, better memory management, not to mention a highly stable, highly recoverable OS.
    Do yourselves a favor, when you encounter a problem, google it, learn instead of spreading ignorance. There are many wonderful guides online. I hope eventually people stop moaning about UAC, the whole purpose is to have one admin with multiple users(running limited accounts), if they need administrative access it can be temporarily granted using UAC.....if you are a single user of the system and have enough of a brain to spell UAC, TURN IT OFF.
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    "Vista supports every piece of software from 95 and up in compatibility mode."
    That is just blatantly false. The compatibility issues are almost unbelievable in Vista, whether it's in "compatibility mode" or otherwise. Microsoft makes no such claim, in fact there is a seemingly infinite list of applications not compatible with Vista. Do your homework.
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    "Put another dollar in steve jobs pocket, get your macbook, and when you power it up and get online, take a look at apples profit, profit = markup."

    What about Microsoft's mark up? It's even worse. Like you said "You are not getting a good deal if the company is making huge profit."
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    anyone who pays the 500 some odd dollars for a retail vista copy needs to do some research, vista can be owned legitimately, in oem form, for under 140 dollars, for ultimate(which honestly is crazy overkill for average user, premium is as high as most should go, and you can find that for about 89 buks).
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    And anyone who spouts such nonsense should pull his head our of his American ass, and do a bit of research of his own..... preferably some geography. There are other places outside of America, and I should count myself LUCKY to be able to get a legit Vista Ultimate for only $500.

    I find comments like yours to be arrogant and stink of American superiority, but then again, I may just be overly sensitive about having to pay $700 to get a legit OS that's broken and doesn't work properly, and then having people tell me that I simply need to do "some research"
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    That might be the case if you live in the US, are online savvy and/or have a credit card. There are those of us that do not live in the US and as such we get jacked in the prices. Also for anyone who doesn't have a credit card 99% of the on-line shopping experience isn't available.
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    I got hauled over the coals when I posted to the engadget post regarding Vista being a disappointmnet. One person even said I had no clue as to what I was doing. Since I first encountered this problem I have been checking forums, blog posts and regular searches. I have tried pretty well all the fixes that have been suggested and finished up by installing the RC of the service pack - to no avail.

    Which is too bad because I do like Vista even with all its bloat and heaviness on eye candy.

    Thanks for stopping by Jack and adding your 2 cents.
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    I have never had the problem you described... I have been using Vista Business for several months on a Pavilion laptop and never had problems copying files to an XP machine.
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    Well I tell you what since I installed Vista (clean install) I had nothing but problems as I described in the post. This evening I rolled back to XP and under the same circumstances it 40 seconds to move a file over the network to the other machine.

    Wham Bam thank you madam - it was done.

    40 seconds .. and Vista couldn't do even 39,000 days.
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    Honestly, Vista is the best thing to ever happen to Linux and MacOS.

    I have a monster laptop for work - it's an HP nw9440 workstation with 4GB of RAM, 2.16 GHz dual core - because I do a significant amount of work with virtual machines in my job as a systems architect.

    With XP it was blazingly fast and nice as any MS product can be. Under Vista with HPs most up to date drivers it is a painfully, pitifully slow, worthless piece of crap.

    I thought about "upgrading" back to XP, but the entire situation just pissed me off. The largest software manufacturer in the world, with billions in resources and tens of thousands of employees managed to screw up their own frickin' flagship OS so bad as to render it basically unusable for real work.

    So, with the permission of the boss, I have switched my core OS to Ubuntu 7.10 and couldn't be happier. I run a XP VM for the things that I can't run under Linux, but I have found that list to be vanishingly short since I usually remote into Windows boxes to work anyway.

    I'm working on getting a MacBook Pro, but the boss might draw the line at that. In the meantime, I've removed all MS OS's from all of my home computers except the wife. She's holding out for a MacBook :^)
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