We’re all used to Microsoft’s customary Patch Tuesdays, where Microsoft releases most of its security updates for its Windows and Office product families. It’s also not unheard of to see emergency out-of-band security updates, like the one released earlier this week to patch holes in Internet Explorer. Less common, at least outside of service packs, are patches that fix performance and reliability bugs, as do some patches released today.
The first patch, one that will apply to most if not all Windows 7 and Server 2008 R2 users, fixes the following:
- Keyboard function keys or keyboard shortcuts, such as mute or calculator, may not work correctly.
- The notification icon for an application may be moved or lost when the executable application is updated.
- On a computer that is running Windows 7, you configure the Screen Saver Settings to display the logon screen on resume. Additionally, you configure the computer to go to sleep. However, the computer may not go to sleep after the screen saver starts. Instead, a black screen is displayed. This problem causes the operating system to stop responding. You must restart the computer by holding down the power button.
I know I’ve been experiencing the second issue when iTunes has been updated, but I thought that was Apple’s problem and not Microsoft’s.
The second patch applies only to computers with this specific configuration, and only if the computer freezes or fails during a file copy operation:
- You have a computer that is running Windows 7 or Windows Server 2008 R2.
- The computer has an NVIDIA USB Enhanced Host Controller Interface (EHCI) chipset.
- The computer has at least 4GB of RAM.
- You try to copy data from the computer to an external USB storage device.
If these updates apply to your system, they can be downloaded automatically via Windows Update. They will also be included in Windows 7 Service Pack 1 when it releases later this year.
