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Thread: IE4Linux..Wine...Ubuntu=Legit Windows lol

  1. #1
    Senior Member t34b4g5's Avatar
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    Smile IE4Linux..Wine...Ubuntu=Legit Windows lol

    Genuine Windows is Ubuntu I just did this for a laugh and didn't expect it to work. I went to microsoft.com using IE4Linux ( http://www.tatanka.com.br/ies4linux/page/Main_Page ) and tried to download Windows Defender, on Xubuntu. Of course, I was asked to do the Genuine Advantage test. I used the alternate authentication method (IE4Linux doesn't support Active X), downloaded and then ran the genuine advantage application (which took quite a while to start). It gave me a code that I pasted into the authentication box, and to my surprise it verified me and forwarded me to the download page. This just goes to show how rubbish they're validation software is. I thought it was funny though, so I've uploaded a recording of it to rapid share, which you can get here:
    http://rapidshare.com/files/37580147/recording.ogg
    (the file is about 10MB, so it might take a while to get)

    Alternatively you can watch it on YouTube: http://youtube.com/watch?v=OfwC1XAy3Sc
    Original Article/Story can be found here.
    Code:
    http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=475709
    Pretty interesting indeed. so i wonder if this is just going to open up a whole lotta problems for MS? what with that whole genuine advantage stuff an all...

  2. #2
    Senior Member nihil's Avatar
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    I could be wrong, but somehow I had the impression that the genuine advantage thing only looked for known counterfeits of XP and Vista?

    It works with Windows 2000, which does not require activation.

    Strictly speaking it was correct as it didn't find a counterfeit

  3. #3
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    I know the alternative tool is just an exe that makes a key for that computer. I am not sure how they work but I know there is a time limit on how long the work for. So part of the key you generate has a timestamp and I would think the other part of it would be part of your windows key encoded.

    If it generates a valid key on ubuntu then either it only checks for known pirated keys. In this case the key it generates probably is only a time stamp and the other part of it determines weather or not the key is valid.

    This brings me to believe that when you run the alternative program it searches for matches to pirates keys. In this case it would not find one because there is no windows key to look at and it probably took so long to generate because it actually produced a ton of errors trying to look for the key. Therefore it assumes your "key" does not match a blacklisted one and the program generates a valid key for the website.

    Yes? No? Maybe so?

  4. #4
    Senior Member nihil's Avatar
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    Yes, I think that is pretty much how it works. It will generate and store a local key, but only for XP and presumably, Vista?

    Otherwise I think it is likely to just pass you through to the download, as it hasn't found a known counterfeit.

    I have heard that sometimes it will identify earlier versions of Windows as a MAC OS

  5. #5
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    lol that doesnt even make sense how could it id it as a mac. MS doesn't know how to detect their own operating systems?! haha. Thats probably just because it runs an api call that is not present windows 9x systems and so the returned value is blank. So once again the program ASSUMES it is a mac. Why a mac and not linux, who knows. Maybe because IE is more commonly run on a mac then linux.

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