Office 2003 Update Woes (Office 2003 Standard)

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A couple months ago, I installed Office 2003 over Office XP Pro with no problems. I am able to use Office 2003 products with no problems and can still access my CD collection with MS Access XP (2002) with no problem.

When I run Office Update, Office Update identifies the following as required, already downloaded, and now awaiting installation:

Word 2002 Security Patch: KB830346
Excel 2002 Security Patch: KB830350
Office XP Web Services Security Patch: KB812708

This has been happening since day 1 with Office 2003. I just deselect those items so they will not be installed but they are re-identified upon the next update scan.

A search of “kb8” on my HDs does NOT find these patches (it does find others) so I do not know where or how Update thinks they are already downloaded.

I do not want to install these patches for XP/2002 products when I have 2003 installed for fear of overwriting a critical file. So for now, I just continue to deselect them. However, I would prefer they do not appear in my Update window at all.

Ideas?

Bill (AFE7Ret)
Freedom isn't free!

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This is just a guess but it may be due to the upgrade not removing all traces of the earlier versions of Excel & Word. You can try using the Office removal wizard which is a part of the Office Resource Kit to see if that helps.

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This is just a guess but it may be due to the upgrade not removing all traces of the earlier versions of Excel & Word. You can try using the Office removal wizard which is a part of the Office Resource Kit to see if that helps.

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This has happened to many including myself of 3 machines. When at Office update, go to the listing of updates and see the description area and there is a “More” link. Select the link, and then there should be another link to install that update. You will need to do this for EACH listed update. Since I have done that the new updates are installing just fine, including the one listed today.

DaveA I am so far behind, I think I am First
Genealogy....confusing the dead and annoying the living

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Tony – I used the Office removal tool ( I forgot I already had that as part of the resource kit). Unfortunately, outside of freeing up a little disk space, did not help.

Dave – just to make sure we’re on the same page, because I am not having problems installing new updates, including today’s. I am using Office 2003 Standard. I am also using Access 2002, which was part of my old Office XP Professional suite (Access only comes stand-alone or in the Pro version).

I have followed the “More Info” links to the KB articles for each patch. They indicate these 2002 security patches are for Word 2002, Excel 2002, and Office XP Web Services. There is no mention of any Office 2003 products that I saw.

So, are you suggesting I install the Word 2002, Excel 2002 and the Office XP Web Services security patches (as Office Update suggests) when I am using Word 2003, Excel 2003, and Office 2003 Web Services?

I am not comfortable applying patches to older versions of upgraded programs.

Bill (AFE7Ret)
Freedom isn't free!

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I missed the part about Office 2002. I think because you are running Access 2002, and there is enough left behind that Office updates thinks that you have BOTH 2002 and 2003 installed.

You may need to uninstall Access and then try reinstalling it, to clear up any of the leftovers.

DaveA I am so far behind, I think I am First
Genealogy....confusing the dead and annoying the living

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That’s what I figured too – now my concern is that since my Access 2002 is part of my Office XP Pro, I worry what “other stuff” Office XP Install will try to install over my Office 2003 files when I re-install Access 2002 – I’ll have to be careful about what I select during that custom install.

Thanks

Bill (AFE7Ret)
Freedom isn't free!

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You would need to do a “Custom” install. But you are correct that some of the 2003 shared files may get over written.

Do as stated above, and “Hide” them at the update site.

DaveA I am so far behind, I think I am First
Genealogy....confusing the dead and annoying the living

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You would need to do a “Custom” install. But you are correct that some of the 2003 shared files may get over written.

Do as stated above, and “Hide” them at the update site.

DaveA I am so far behind, I think I am First
Genealogy....confusing the dead and annoying the living

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That’s what I figured too – now my concern is that since my Access 2002 is part of my Office XP Pro, I worry what “other stuff” Office XP Install will try to install over my Office 2003 files when I re-install Access 2002 – I’ll have to be careful about what I select during that custom install.

Thanks

Bill (AFE7Ret)
Freedom isn't free!

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I missed the part about Office 2002. I think because you are running Access 2002, and there is enough left behind that Office updates thinks that you have BOTH 2002 and 2003 installed.

You may need to uninstall Access and then try reinstalling it, to clear up any of the leftovers.

DaveA I am so far behind, I think I am First
Genealogy....confusing the dead and annoying the living

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Bill,

Because you have Access XP installed, Office Update will continue to show ALL of the available updates for Office XP (including Word, Excel, Web Services, etc.). I also had this “problem” on a computer which had Office 2003 as well as Access XP installed. There is nothing you can do about this.

The Windows Update site allows you to ‘personalize Windows Update’ so that you can hide updates which you do not need or do not want. Unfortunately, the Office Update site does not offer this option. I think you are doomed to view these unnecessary updates each time you connect to Office Update.

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I think you are all right – so I can live with it – too bad MS does not allow you to select/deselect update options on the Office Update like WU.

I just wonder what is telling OU that I need those patches. Seems there must be a 0 somewhere in the registry, ini file, or the like that I can change to a 1.

Bill (AFE7Ret)
Freedom isn't free!

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It may be looking at the contents of the HKLMSOFTWAREMicrosoftOffice10.0 key – and seeing that it has more than Common and Registration populating it. HTH

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Well, Unkamunka – you’ve hit on something – now tell me what!

Under the 10.0 key there is:
Common (with tons of stuff under it)
Access (with tons of stuff under it)
Clip Organizer (with Catalogs and Contents folders with more subfolders)
Common (with tons of stuff under it)
Designer (with 5 sub-folders)
Outlook (with Setup folder)
Registration (with one folder)
Word (with a populated Text Converters folder)

Ideas?

Bill (AFE7Ret)
Freedom isn't free!

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Well, presuming that you want to get rid of traces of no longer used Office 2002 apps:

• Set a Restore Point.
• Keys you definitely should keep: Common, Registration, Access
• Keys that are probably safe to delete: Outlook, Word[/list]As for Clip Organizer and Designer, I’m not clear what you have been using these options for. Designer may be something to do with Access; in which case, you will want to keep it. You know better than I whether you will be using ClipArt for Access 2002.

  Make sure that you do a full range of tests on the post-delete impact a.s.a.p. – as Restore Points can disappear far faster than you might expect.

  OTOH this doesn’t seem to explain why you keep being offered an Excel Update Patch by Office Update.

  HTH

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Well, presuming that you want to get rid of traces of no longer used Office 2002 apps:

• Set a Restore Point.
• Keys you definitely should keep: Common, Registration, Access
• Keys that are probably safe to delete: Outlook, Word[/list]As for Clip Organizer and Designer, I’m not clear what you have been using these options for. Designer may be something to do with Access; in which case, you will want to keep it. You know better than I whether you will be using ClipArt for Access 2002.

  Make sure that you do a full range of tests on the post-delete impact a.s.a.p. – as Restore Points can disappear far faster than you might expect.

  OTOH this doesn’t seem to explain why you keep being offered an Excel Update Patch by Office Update.

  HTH

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Well, Unkamunka – you’ve hit on something – now tell me what!

Under the 10.0 key there is:
Common (with tons of stuff under it)
Access (with tons of stuff under it)
Clip Organizer (with Catalogs and Contents folders with more subfolders)
Common (with tons of stuff under it)
Designer (with 5 sub-folders)
Outlook (with Setup folder)
Registration (with one folder)
Word (with a populated Text Converters folder)

Ideas?

Bill (AFE7Ret)
Freedom isn't free!

Reply | Quote

It may be looking at the contents of the HKLMSOFTWAREMicrosoftOffice10.0 key – and seeing that it has more than Common and Registration populating it. HTH

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Bill,

I’m confused . In your earlier posts, you say that you installed Office 2003 Standard over a previous installation of Office XP Pro (retaining Access 2002). Then in your post 336976 to Dave, you state that “I worry what “other stuff” Office XP Install will try to install over my Office 2003 files when I re-install Access 2002.” If you already have Access 2002 installed, why would you be re-installing it?

If for some reason you have uninstalled Access 2002 and want to re-install it, you will most likely have to uninstall Office 2003 as well and then follow Microsoft’s recommended procedure for having different versions of Office installed on the same computer – i.e. install the older version first and then install the newer version. Also, they should be installed in different directories.

If, you haven’t uninstalled Access 2002 and are simply worried about what “other stuff” Office Update will install, you will be fine as long as you originally installed 2003 in a different location than XP.

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Bill,

I’m confused . In your earlier posts, you say that you installed Office 2003 Standard over a previous installation of Office XP Pro (retaining Access 2002). Then in your post 336976 to Dave, you state that “I worry what “other stuff” Office XP Install will try to install over my Office 2003 files when I re-install Access 2002.” If you already have Access 2002 installed, why would you be re-installing it?

If for some reason you have uninstalled Access 2002 and want to re-install it, you will most likely have to uninstall Office 2003 as well and then follow Microsoft’s recommended procedure for having different versions of Office installed on the same computer – i.e. install the older version first and then install the newer version. Also, they should be installed in different directories.

If, you haven’t uninstalled Access 2002 and are simply worried about what “other stuff” Office Update will install, you will be fine as long as you originally installed 2003 in a different location than XP.

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It is confusing – sorry – but I was responding to an earlier post that suggested re-installing Access 2002. That would have to be done from the older Office XP Pro disks and installing from those older Office XP disks onto my system that already has Office 2003 Standard installed is what bothered me. I am afraid Office XP install might try to overwrite newer files that Office 2003 laid down.

Clear as mud, right?

I think the way to fix it is to remove both Office 2003 and Office XP Pro. Reinstall XP Pro with custom install and install ONLY Access. Then install Office 2003. Not worth it – I don’t need the disk space and I only update Office when Woody tells me it’s okay to apply a new patch anyway – when that happens, I’ll just pay attention to what I am doing.

And if I mess up and don’t deselect those 3 Office XP patches, they just fail to install and no harm is done – but a few minutes lost time.

At any rate, for now, since I am the sole user of this PC, I will just let Office Update yell at me and like most things MS does, I will ignore it for awhile.

Bill (AFE7Ret)
Freedom isn't free!

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It is confusing – sorry – but I was responding to an earlier post that suggested re-installing Access 2002. That would have to be done from the older Office XP Pro disks and installing from those older Office XP disks onto my system that already has Office 2003 Standard installed is what bothered me. I am afraid Office XP install might try to overwrite newer files that Office 2003 laid down.

Clear as mud, right?

I think the way to fix it is to remove both Office 2003 and Office XP Pro. Reinstall XP Pro with custom install and install ONLY Access. Then install Office 2003. Not worth it – I don’t need the disk space and I only update Office when Woody tells me it’s okay to apply a new patch anyway – when that happens, I’ll just pay attention to what I am doing.

And if I mess up and don’t deselect those 3 Office XP patches, they just fail to install and no harm is done – but a few minutes lost time.

At any rate, for now, since I am the sole user of this PC, I will just let Office Update yell at me and like most things MS does, I will ignore it for awhile.

Bill (AFE7Ret)
Freedom isn't free!

Reply | Quote

Bill,

Because you have Access XP installed, Office Update will continue to show ALL of the available updates for Office XP (including Word, Excel, Web Services, etc.). I also had this “problem” on a computer which had Office 2003 as well as Access XP installed. There is nothing you can do about this.

The Windows Update site allows you to ‘personalize Windows Update’ so that you can hide updates which you do not need or do not want. Unfortunately, the Office Update site does not offer this option. I think you are doomed to view these unnecessary updates each time you connect to Office Update.

Reply | Quote

Tony – I used the Office removal tool ( I forgot I already had that as part of the resource kit). Unfortunately, outside of freeing up a little disk space, did not help.

Dave – just to make sure we’re on the same page, because I am not having problems installing new updates, including today’s. I am using Office 2003 Standard. I am also using Access 2002, which was part of my old Office XP Professional suite (Access only comes stand-alone or in the Pro version).

I have followed the “More Info” links to the KB articles for each patch. They indicate these 2002 security patches are for Word 2002, Excel 2002, and Office XP Web Services. There is no mention of any Office 2003 products that I saw.

So, are you suggesting I install the Word 2002, Excel 2002 and the Office XP Web Services security patches (as Office Update suggests) when I am using Word 2003, Excel 2003, and Office 2003 Web Services?

I am not comfortable applying patches to older versions of upgraded programs.

Bill (AFE7Ret)
Freedom isn't free!

Reply | Quote