Microsoft pulls faulty patch, plans re-release

A critical vulnerability affecting Microsoft Windows 2000 Server running Windows Media Services will remain unfixed until Microsoft re-releases a patch for it, the company said on Friday.

A patch for the hole, which could allow an attacker to take control of a system, was released during Patch Tuesday last week. However, Microsoft pulled the patch this week because it failed to work.

"Shortly after we released the update we received several reports that it did not protect against the vulnerability reported to us. At that time, we pulled the update and notified customers," Jerry Bryant, group manager of response communications for the Microsoft Security Response Center, wrote in a blog post on Friday afternoon. "The main reason for pulling the update was to save a reboot for customers who had not yet installed it. The original issue was missed due to focusing on a variant of the original report early in the investigation. We are addressing this issue and plan to re-release the update next week."

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