HEY You may be a victim of software counterfeiting!

OMFG... I have a log server (running Kiwi of course) that was an OEM Dell NT workstation with licensed copy and was upgraded to XP Pro with a corporate license that I personally bought and intalled. This thing has been running for years along winodows update and that annoying Windows Genuine Advantage tool for months. Today... Your Copy of WIndows is not genuine. Absolutely no changes to any configuration. Ok fine...

Del *.*
Format C:
boot : Linux install

FLUSH whats that? The sound of another windows box going into the toilet.

It seems as if this problem has been encountered by a number of people.

I suspect that MS rushed the deployment of the software?

:(

You could have saved yourself some time... the linux install disc(s) can do the two previous commands for you! lol ;)

I am laughing my ass off at that avatar phish. Linux is even faster with the DVD boot and all defaults.
:D

//EDIT Nihil, I know linux almost as much as I know windows. Maybe a little more since you have to interact a little more to install stuff. There is no reason I see going forward on some boxes when this happens. I had a heck of a time getting the key to work the other day. After looking around trying deperately to find the righ keyed CD I bought with the damn machine... I installed Linux and had it up and back in operation in way less time than re-installing windows. And going forward if it's replaceable each time i have to call MS and get a key reset or mess with this Not Geniune crap, FLUSH.

Lol, didn't I say this would happen when someone posted about this tool ? Yes I did :) Hahahahaha.

I remember the first time I got pissed off a a Windows machine here. I too went for the Linux install media. And Phish is right you could have saved yourself a command just booting from the disks. However, if you're like me, you probably enjoyed deleting the file system.

I remember doing that to Windows 98SE:

deltree C:WINDOWS *.* \y

I think that worked, I can't remember the exact syntax.

So what did you install?

On my network here I have a Laptop dual booting slackware 10.2 and Windows XP Home, this box dual booting Slackware and SUSE, the other box dual booting SUSE and Windows 98 SE so I can play oldschool DOS ****. And my FTP server running SUSE, and another machine in here, which was my Mom's old machine, the HD went in it, so I popped a new one in and she had already ordered a new computer so I kept it, it's dual booting Slackware Linux 10.2 and Free BSD 6.0. Current up time: 38 days, 17 hours, 27 minutes.

My Windows 98 SE SUSE box:

59 days, 23 hours, 12 minutes. (Booted into SUSE, running KDE, Kmail, Mutt, Fetchmail, and SSH and FTP servers, andit's all on a P3 733 MHz machine with 384 MBs RAM).

I play around with almost every distro that comes out but I always delete them and install SuSE. I just don't know why, maybe the green color is hypnotising me but I always end up with SuSE. But just for fun I have a bunch of bootable distros.


greeeeeeeeeeeen.......................

Quote:

---

you probably enjoyed deleting the file system.

---

EXACTLY. :D



greeeeeeeeeeen........................

You know what, I find this thread incredibly sad...................

It displays a lack of perspicacity and understanding of the industry that is frightening.

Look at the situation if you will?

1. Microsoft sold a product that they claimed had certain properties?
2. This product was PURCHASED in good faith
3. Microsoft subsequently took an ineffectual course of action that rendered the product partially "unfit for purpose" and not of "merchantable quality" in some circumstances?
4. This action was taken without the consumers' expressed knowledge and consent?

Not that much different from Sony BMG?............except their "sin" was applicable in all circumstances.

I can assure you that if people belly up and take the coward's way out things will not get any better.

The correct approach is to insist that Microsoft fix the problem at their expense ..............OK they may think that buying a few politicians is adequate? well we have the votes and it is time that MS and their ilk were made aware of this?

If we do not defend our individual and corporate consumer rights we are surely doomed?



:eek:

Quote:

---

If we do not defend our individual and corporate consumer rights we are surely doomed?

---

Hi Nihil,
Putting the merits of this particular example aside (i.e. whether Microsoft is doing right or not), it seems to me that switching to a competitor (in this case Linux) is certainly a valid way of working for change. Competition makes things better for the consumer.

An example is my internet service provider, a cable company. When DSL became an option, eventually the cable company increased the speed of the internet service. Competition between the companies generated a better value for the buyer.

Is there a company which will not pay attention when they begin to lose revenue to competition? It seems to me that Linux provides a great service to users of other operating systems, since it gives them an option, a place to go.

Also, a switch to Linux can eliminate product validation concerns altogether. Linux distributions are available that can be installed on as many computers as you wish.

Hey,

I am not knocking any specific product or even products in general. My moan is about the way some corporates put their commercial interests way above the service levels that they promise and owe their customers. And, above what I would consider to be responsible corporate behaviour, and their commercially moral duties.

Because of its open source nature, Linux is obviously nothing like as susceptible to this temptation, as closed source suppliers.

I take your comments on competition, but Microsoft don't do competition do they?.................. witness anti trust prosecutions in the US and Europe :D

Quote:

---

I can assure you that if people belly up and take the coward's way out things will not get any better.

---

Switching OS's is a cowards way out? Not sure what you mean there. I don't shop at certain retailers because of what you described above in a post that is very well articulated. So I am taking action and minimizing my risk on a softwware company that seems blinded by their actions. Much like the RIAA, focusing on what is best for their control versus what consumers desire and more important what they are willing to shell out money on. It was "flexability" that made microsoft the giant they are today. Otherwise we would be calling the CEO of Apple the worlds most wealthy human

I can't solely operate on Linux or any one OS and I don't even want too MS included. But I can say with great certainty I won't be upgrading ANYTHING anytime soon. Not when I run the risk of a critical business function being flagged as not a genuine windows product. MS should ENSURE their business line is completely separate from grandma surfing AOL at night. They are in fact doing the opposite. Merging business and home use into a single maintainable workstation. And I am no stranger to my local MS reps either in their own offices or at local professional organizations.

Other than that I agree with you, we cannot take the cowards way out. :p I cannot fathom why they are doing this, they aren't losing revenue and Linux continues to gain a foot hold. I can only come to the conclusion that they all believe we will just roll over and let them scratch out bellies while they reach for our wallets.

//EDIT I am sure I'll buy a copy or two of Vista for my test boxes. :eek: Its like a drug addiction.

It is indeed a puzzling question.

I agree that if something is causing a problem and you have SLAs to deliver, the temptation is to rip it out and replace it. I am sure that we have all been along that route?

I would say that the concept applies to applications and hardware as well os OSes.

My "position" if you could describe it as such, is that vendors should not be able to "get away" with this sort of nonsense. They sold their product in good faith, so they should be obliged to keep that faith with their customers.

We also have to bear in mind that for many users and in many situations there is no practical alternative. The User and/or enterprise want a particular environment.

So, every time a small proportion of users have this sort of problem, there is a downside in adopting a different solution. This is that the vendor is not sufficiently harmed by loss of business, they have less incentive to get their side of the bargain right, and they have had their money already. It would be better if they were obliged to make a refund of that, at least :)

I do agree with the comments on commercial/institutional products and domestic/home ones.

Up until XP that is what happened. Then I suppose they decided to cut their development and support costs by merging their "desktop" OSes? I guess that is where the problem has arisen? Their attempts at DRM haven't been able to differentiate between corporate and individual licences.

As for *nix, I have always regarded this as a perfectly viable alternative on the server side, which is not where MS should be having DRM problems anyway? I could be wrong there, but I always had the impression that it was the the desktop deployments that MS was concerned about.

I appreciate that you are probably way too busy, but I would still be inclined to give them some "corporate consumer" grief over it..............then maybe you can get those copies of Vista for free, as compensation?

:D

Does anyone know how to get rid off this patch without redoing the whole OS?
I have a few machines at work which are affected.

The person who started this thread found a patch that seemed to work, you can find it here:

Windows fix

And the second patch:

Patch 2

On a realted note, I was going to use windows for my mail relay I am building. Did you catch the key word? WAS. :p

I am now 3 days into SuSE, Spammassasin, ClamAV, Maia Mail Guard, MySQL, DCC and Postfix. Getting this stuff to work together isn't easy. Sure MS and GFI would have been up and running in about an hour and I am three days in but... I am having fun.

Well Shik a tik,

Sorry for the double post but I was needing a file configuration off that box so I restored the image. The genuine window kept pissing me off so I got curious. WTF was marking this PC as invalid in the eyes of our lord MS. Like I said I have the ****ing cd right here in front of me. So I clicked the grotesque little blue star and got this bit of info...

My local clock is more than 5 days off from the Lord's validation server. Curious. The tool seems to flag your copy as invalid if your time skew is MORE than 24 hours. I changed my clock ran the validation tool and our lord and savior Thanks me for my pittance. His mighty coffer is at ease say ye. So I feel kind of idiotic. But think of MS their customers and grandma who hasn't a clue why her windows has cast her into the purgatory of would be thieves?

Alas the annoying icon is still there however after several minutes. So I clicked it again and told it to make me "genuine" in my faith. Behold the word of our lord:

Ordering Process Unavailable[0x80080403]

The Windows Genuine Advantage Kit for Windows XP is currently only available to users of known invalid Product Keys for Windows XP Professional and Windows XP Home.

Tis a vicious circle, and now I must recycle my Valid key and shake hands with grub once again.

Hahahahahahahahahahahhahaha. Don't you love that? It's greta huh? Hahahaha...

Your clock made you a criminal.

What time is it? Tux time! lol.

And as you said pretend you were computer illeterate. You'd be on the phone while soem nerd tried to tell you to buy a new copy because of what time it is!

Yeah dude I can't even pretend to say how absolutely messed up that is. WHO the **** is MS to say what date or time I can keep on my clock. This is a friggin test machine I use to VERIFY stuff is working and turn back the clock on events that take place. They want us all to be part of their internal domain it seems. The "Collective" the Genuine Advantage Club. :rolleyes:

It does have it's comical element though. :D