We reported earlier about this newly announced hotfix for Windows XP here. This update is applicable to Windows XP Home Edition or Professional, both with Service Pack 1 installed. We can now offer you to download this hotfix. However we want you to understand that you should consider this hotfix as beta as it might receive further testing from Microsoft. Symptoms: After you install Windows XP Service Pack 1 (SP1), your programs may take as much as ten times as long to start. Cause: This problem may occur if the programs you run frequently allocate and deallocate large blocks of memory. Changes in Windows XP SP1 in the memory management system have caused this operation to take significantly longer than with pre-SP1 Windows XP. A supported fix is now available from Microsoft, but it is only intended to correct the problem that is described in this article. Apply it only to computers that are experiencing this specific problem. This fix may receive additional testing. Therefore, if you are not severely affected by this problem, Microsoft recommends that you wait for the next Windows XP service pack that contains this fix. The file offers a valid digital signature by Microsoft Corp. The hotfix will update a core system file ntdll.dll from SP1 version 5.1.2600.1106 to 5.1.2600.1177. We will not include this into our Post SP1 hotfix chart until it is officially available by Microsoft. Update! Microsoft has released a new hotfix for ntdll.dll. Download and learn more: New ntdll.dll update View: Q815411 Knowledge Base Article