XCLN: How to Apply a Hotfix to an Outlook 2000 Installation

To support repair, installation on demand, and reinstallation in Microsoft Outlook 2000, you must control the way that Outlook files are changed. When you merely replace a file with a newer version of the file, if an issue occurs, the system does not repair the newer file; the newer file is replaced by the old version of the file. An additional consequence of replacing a file with a newer version of the file is that if you uninstall a feature, the newer file is no longer necessary and is deleted by the installer, and you lose the update in any future reinstallations of the feature.

The proper way to distribute a patch is as a Windows Installer Patch file, which usually has an .msp extension. This file includes all of the information that is necessary to patch the administrative and client installations of one or more products.

You can use different options to apply the changes in a Windows Installer Patch file, depending on your situation.

Stand-Alone Installation

This information applies to Outlook installations from a CD. If you installed Outlook from an administrative image that is located on a network share, patch the administrative image by following the instructions in the "Administrative Image" section of this article.

To apply the patch for a stand-alone installation, in Windows Explorer, double-click the .msp file. The Microsoft Office 2000 Maintenance Mode Wizard starts. The patch runs immediately and installs the updated files.

Administrative Image

To patch the administrative image, run the following command line: Where path to network image .msi file is the full path to the .msi file in the administrative image, and path to patch .msp file is the path to the Windows Installer Patch file.

This command updates the administrative image. Any subsequent installations from this image will include the latest version of the files.

The following is a sample command line:

Updating Computers Where Outlook Was Installed from the Original Administrative Image

At every computer where Outlook was installed from the administrative image before the patch was applied, you need to update the system by using one of the following methods:

• At the computer that you want to update, run the following command:
  start msiexec /I path to updated .msi file in the server REINSTALL=ALL REINSTALLMODE=vomus
  Where path to updated .msi file in the server is the full path to the .msi file on the network.
  
  The following is a sample command line:
  start msiexe /I \\servername\installfolder\data1.msi REINSTALL=ALL REINSTALLMODE=vomus
• Use the Repair Office feature:
  1. In Control Panel, double-click Add/Remove Programs.
  2. In the list of installed programs, click Microsoft Outlook 2000.
  3. Click Add/Remove, and then click Repair Office.
  4. Click Repair errors in my Office installation, and then click Finish.

For additional information, click the article numbers below to view the articles in the Microsoft Knowledge Base: