Microsoft security update: a follow-up

In a follow-up to our previous item, several readers also noted problems with the recently released Vulnerability Update for Microsoft Office. The solution appears that seems to work for most respondents is to reinstall the MS combined updater before applying the security patch, in some cases even if you have previously installed a combined update.

Tony Crooks writes: "I found that reapplying the Combined Updater for Office 98, even though the version number was higher than the notes for the vulnerability updated suggested, allowed the security fix to be applied." Jan Doorn confirms this.

Steve Fillhart appears to have discovered why reapplying the update first has an affect. He writes: "The recent Microsoft update to patch security vulnerability requires that the 'combined updater' be run in advance. In looking through the documentation of the security updater I noticed that it specifies the version of application software which the security updater is looking for. Although I had previously run the 'combined updater' and assumed the security updater would run without a problem, the updater aborted with a response that it could not find the software to update. I checked the version number and sure enough the 'combined updater' that I had used had not raised the application version number to the needed level. I downloaded and ran the latest 'combined updater', checked that the correct version number had been achieved, and the successfully ran the security patch. I did not have to do a clean install of Office 98. The inference is that Microsoft has been updating the 'combined updater'. Just because you've already run the 'combined updater' doesn't mean you've run the latest 'combined updater.'"

Update: Here is an alternative to a complete reinstall. A reader writes: "You only need to drag Excel 98 and PowerPoint 98 from the original install disk to your‘MS Office 98 folder, then apply previous updaters in strict date order. This will allow Office to finally take the vulnerability security update. Also, when applying the updates, you can skip the ones that only update Word 98 (check the Read Me files to verify ) as many of the previous updaters only affect Word 98."