Posted on 05/04/2006 10:36:48 AM PDT by ShadowAce
Some system administrators are finding that Microsoft's new anti-piracy software is incorrectly labeling PCs used in public places, such as university computer labs, as counterfeits, and that the solution sidestep a basic security practice for out-in-the-open machines, according to a newsgroup discussion of the issue.
After Microsoft unveiled its Windows Genuine Advantage Notifications tool last week, a university system administrator -- who preferred to remain anonymous but took the name "GodOfLions" on the Microsoft "WGA Validation Problems" newsgroup -- said that lab PCs came back as running fake copies.
"I work at a University where we have a bunch of Windows XP SP2 machines setup in lab areas," said GodOfLions in a message on the newsgroup. "In these areas students are allowed to log on to the systems, but their accounts are restricted to what they can do. The problem with the WGA installation is that it works perfectly fine as long as you are using an account with administrative rights on the system. As soon as one of the students, or other non-administrative level account, logs on to the system it screams that it is not a valid copy of windows and it is counterfeit."
A Microsoft staffer monitoring the newsgroup intervened, eventually diagnosed the problem, and offered a fix: give everyone, including the student systems running under rights-restrictive accounts, write access to a file called "data.dat."
"Validation tool writes data to data.dat file during validation process," wrote a Microsoft staffer identified as "Satish." So 'User account' needs to have Write access to file."
The system administrator eventually gave in to Microsoft's solution, but blasted it as violating the security concept behind limited-rights accounts.
"It does not make sense to have to reduce security in order to validate the system," wrote GodOfLions. "Yes it is only allowing write to one file, but still that is another small area you can have users or viruses now write to on a system that it didn't have before."
He also pointed out that the Microsoft tech support document outlining the rights needed by data.dat were still incorrect, and needed to be updated. As of Wednesday, the document had not been modified.
"Our lead architect has been informed and we are noting the changes necessary," was the response from Philip Liu, another Microsoft staffer. "I apologize sincerely upon the WGA team for causing this inconvenience for you," wrote Liu.
Here you come, rushing to the aid of pirates, just as I'd expect.
Are you accusing this guys college lab of software piracy?
Helpful tip #2 from "How to become an internet forum troll in 30 days":
When you don't have anything else to say, impugn the motives of other posters.
Don't work for Microsoft, or even know anyone personally who does. And this was posted from a Palm Treo 650, not a Windows mobile device. BTW, you're slobbering on yourself again.
Are you accusing this guys college lab of software piracy?
No, I'm obviously recommending they report it to the vendor, and resolve it properly and responsibly, so that others might not face the same problem. You guys would send them off to some hacker site instead, where they might not only become liable for using some illegal copyright cracking software, but where they might get cracked by the hackers themselves. What kind of a bonehead would recommend something like that? You idiots, that's who.
Have you even read the article?
A Microsoft staffer monitoring the newsgroup intervened, eventually diagnosed the problem, and offered a fix: give everyone, including the student systems running under rights-restrictive accounts, write access to a file called "data.dat."
The vendors solution was to make a file less secure..
You guys would send them off to some hacker site, hell you called a page that I run a 'hacker site'. The sad thing is you dont know the difference between a hacker and a cracker..
yadda yadda yadda youre a broken record...
Well, basically, he just reinforced to me the best reason to use Linux...
That being, I don't have to call anyone and get permission to secure my own computer.
If you can't use it the way you want, it's not really yours, now, is it?
More BS, now from flaming idiot. You don't have to validate to download patches, you just can't "auto-update". Of course you wouldn't speak the truth, even if you knew it.
Oh yea because if I am running a lab of 500 computers I want to avoid auto updates..
Oh, so it's not a problem?
Then why are you suggesting that people call Microsoft to get it taken care of? Why not just tell them to ignore it?
A geek flame fest. I love it!!
That's Mr. Geek to you, buddy.
Fix it with the vendor. Sending ANY of those computers to a hacker site as you bozos are recommending jeapordizes them all. You obviously don't know jack about security and are the last one that needs to be advising anyone on anything related to it.
The vendor solution is to make the OS less secure by making some files world writeable.
Sending ANY of those computers to a hacker site
What you call a 'hacker site' and an actual hacker site are two different things.
You obviously don't know jack about security
Hmm your saying trust the vendor they are God and I dont know anything about security? I have had vendors tell me to disable firewalls rather than forward traffic over a secure protocol. In this case the vendor is asking to make a data file world readable oh yea your a security guru.. You have called me a hacker in the past, I guess now your taking that back...
last one that needs to be advising anyone on anything related to it.
I know enough to know vendors are not god when it comes to securing something as this very incident has shown..
Shouldn't have to go to a "hacker" OR the vendor...Microsoft shouldn't write software that penalizes legitimate users.
Obviously you're a hacker or a hacker wannabee, you created a username using hacker codes! Go push your crap somewhere else.
Wow. That was the most banal thing you've said in a while.
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