ANYONE WHO HAPPENS to be the (proud?) owner of an AMD based HP desktop computer would do well to wait for a fix patch before attempting to install XP SP3, a HP spokesperson warned.

A rather unfortunate hiccough in the driver means that the unlucky user who attempts to install a Windows XP SP 3 could send their computer into frustrating freeze mode or even worse, a never-ending reboot cycle.

The problem stemmed from XP service pack 1 Sysprep images which hail from Intel based computers, trying to adapt to non Intel machines. Apparently a rogue orphaned registry key - a name that almost makes you feel sorry for it - left behind on non Intel computers causes the problem by trying unsuccessfully to load an Intel processor driver (Intelppm.sys). The driver just doesn’t exist on an AMD based machine.

A spokesperson for HP, Tiffany Smith told ChannelWeb, "The issue with SP3 was identified by early adopters of AMD-based PCs who have proactively downloaded the new service pack".

Smith urged anyone affected to call HP customer support, possibly to be put on hold for inordinate amounts of time. For those who can’t quite handle the rage that telephone customer support induces, HP has also written up a document which can purportedly help.

HP is also frantically working with Volish developers to come up with a software update, which can then be automatically sent out to anyone using an HP machine. Assuming they can unfreeze it first. µ