Posted on 12/17/2006 4:40:37 PM PST by MikefromOhio
Microsoft updates Vista in latest piracy crackdown
'Frankenbuild' update detects tampering of Vista code that would let users work around the OS' built-in activation system
Microsoft on Thursday released an update to Windows Vista that will shut down unauthorized versions of the OS that allow users to skip the product's activation system.
The move comes as pirated copies of Vista are already making the rounds, mere weeks after the product was released to business customers.
The update, which Microsoft has dubbed "frankenbuild," detects tampering of Windows Vista code that would allow users of the OS to work around the product's built-in activation system, which requires users to validate their copy of Vista with a product activation key to use the full version of the product after 30 days.
Frankenbuild mixes files from various test and final versions of the software. It will require only systems in which it detects specific tampering to go through a validation check for authenticity, according to a posting on the Windows Genuine Advantage blog.
If a version of Vista that has used a workaround to avoid product activation is detected, a user of that software will have 30 days before the OS goes into a reduced functionality mode, Microsoft said. In this mode, all users can do is access their existing files and surf the Web for an hour before having to log back on to the software.
The pirating of Windows has been a perennial problem for Microsoft, particularly in developing countries. The company began coming down hard against piracy last year with a widely criticized system it called Windows Genuine Advantage, which initially required users to validate their copies of Windows if they wanted to use Microsoft's update services.
Microsoft took its antipiracy campaign one step further with Vista by building the validation system directly into the OS. This system requires a Windows Vista user to validate the software through a product activation key within 30 days of using the OS to avoid having the software go into reduced functionality mode
It's Windows ME all over again. I can't wait.
ping!!
Just another article showing the problems Microsoft is having with Vista.
Microsoft's difficulties with Vista don't really count as news anymore. It's routine at this point. The sun comes up, the paper's out in the driveway, Microsoft encounters another hurdle with Vista.
Yep...
A simple Google search yields links to copies of Vista--and it hasn't even been released to the general public yet.
MS certainly is betting the farm on Vista, and with stuff like this, I really believe it's going to be a flop.
Yeah it is a bit, however, I think VISTA stories should be posted as much as possible so more people have a chance to see the problems before switching to it.
If this thing flops like it appears that it will, Microsoft could seriously hurt it's standing.
I don't know what will happen though.
I wouldn't count piracy as a problem most people will experience with Vista. Most people switch operating systems only when buying a new PC, so they won't deal with that.
They will deal with a flood of attacks on Vista's new network stack, though.
Sure they will have problems related to this.
Wait until Microsoft decides to make everyone revalidate their OS loads. You know there will be a screwup or three in that process so people who legally bought the OS will end up being denied full operability of it.
I wish I could post the eweek.com story I found.
...and it's not even Patch Tuesday!
Too bad they can't get security patches out that fast.
Nope.
I wonder what the actual size of this OS will end up being.
If the holes are shown to be big enough before they put it out, you'd think they'll delay it AGAIN.
There are snags in everything, though. For such a wide-scale implementation, WGA went over pretty well in a technical sense. Everyone complained about it, but there were precious few "WGA killed my Windows XP install" complaints. Which is pretty remarkable, since we're talking about Microsoft here...
Exactly.
You wouldn't expect them to get it right twice would you?
:)
I'll just let others test it first. :)
I waited until 2 years after XP was released before I got it.
Good point.
yeah...
I don't think I'll ever get Vista. Maybe where I work they will, but my home network will be all-LINUX by 2007. I just need to convince the wife to let me convert her laptop to it :)
Thank you :)
Never under-estimate the power of Microsoft to screw something up :)
A Linux version of MS Office?
I wonder when people are going to finally have enough of this and switch to Linux. I've been playing around with the latest builds of fedora and debian, and I can do EVERYTHING in those OSs that I can do in Windows and more.
The only reason I keep windows on my computers is because the wife has resisted Linux, and my kids play games in Windows. However, the other day I caught my wife using Linux, browsing her fav websites. That's a start. When I pointed out what she was doing she downplayed it, saying she didn't want to boot into windows.
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