Vista Antipiracy Technology Will Lock Pirated Oss...

[Teddy Rogers]

Vista Antipiracy Technology Will Lock Pirated OSs

In the absence of the activation code Windows Vista will be locked. This is the result of Microsoft stepping up its game with the antipiracy technology implemented in the upcoming operating system. A simple registration code won't be sufficient to deliver the Vista experience to the public. Microsoft customers will be allowed a period of 30 days to activate their operating system, following which Vista will enter into Reduced Functionality Mode.

"At the end of 30 days, the machine will move into reduced functionality mode for validation, and users will only get an hour of reduced experience Internet access before being logged off. They will then have to log on again before getting another hour of Internet access," stated Cori Hartje, director of Microsoft's Windows Genuine Software Initiative.

An integer part of Microsoft's new Software Protection Platform to be integrated into Vista and Windows Server "Longhorn," the antipiracy technology will be universal, meaning the Redmond Company will not make a differentiation between retail and volume licensing customers, all being tributary to activation within 30 days.

Failing to activate will prompt users with four options, online activation, Reduced Functionality Mode, entering a product key and phone activation options. “Piracy is one of the most significant problems facing the software industry. Fifty percent of the piracy, we think, uses keys issued to volume licensing customers”, Hartje said. If at any time an activation key will be entered into Vista while it runs under Reduced Functionality Mode, the operating system will revert to its full functionality. Furthermore validation will be required with each software update, and if the product is labeled not genuine, the user is yet again granted a 30-day activation period.

Mandatory activation is a solution already implemented by other software developers with little success. Only time and crackers have will have a say in confirming the success of Microsoft's Software Protection Platform.

Vista Volume Activation 2.0

Say goodbye to the old, obsolete volume-licensing keys in plain text that allowed for in excess of 1 million Chinese machines to run pirated Windows XP copies via the same volume key. And say goodbye to the volume of Microsoft counterfeit software. These are the promises of Microsoft's new Software Protection Platform introducing Volume Activation 2.0.

“Volume Activation 2.0 will provide system administrators the ability to centrally manage and protect product keys,” reads the Microsoft FAQ. “Looking forward, Volume Activation 2.0 will provide the basis for an easy-to-use, comprehensive, integrated activation process that will support both Microsoft's and third-party applications. It is also the starting point for a strong software asset management system that will increasingly offer substantial, measurable benefits to customers.”

“With Windows XP, the volume-licensing keys could easily be stolen and leaked as they are in clear text and in the registry on everyone's computer. Customers told us that we needed to help them protect that key, so now the keys are going to be encrypted and kept in a trusted store,” stated Thomas Lindeman, senior product manager for Microsoft's Software Protection Platform.

Microsoft's Software Protection Platform will not only be integrated into Windows Vista and Longhorn Server, but also in all the forthcoming products of the Redmond Company, with Office 14, SQL Server and Exchange already in the plans.

In this context, Microsoft has announced the availability of two separate volume-license key services: the volume-license KMS (key-management service) and MAK (Multiple Activation Keys). The first requires validation at least a couple of times per year via a KMS service and is designed for end users, while the MAK variant is designed for enterprise environments and the Redmond Company is also providing a Volume Activation Management tool to ease proxy activation.

“It will talk to 1,000 machines and harvest the hardware identity data from them. That single proxy machine will then talk to Microsoft, get the activation identities back for all the machines, and then shoot this out to those machines and activate them. Customers can also use this method to activate their entire organization,” stated Thomas Lindeman, senior product manager for Microsoft's Software Protection Platform.

Ted.

[Guest Yair]

there is ALWAYS a way around

[kittmaster]

interesting, they are actually helping us crack the software by tipping their hand on how its being done........smart.......LOL

[Guest Yair]

some people say this harsh behavior will turn users away from windows but if cracking this gets too tricky i may just buy it

and in some weird way i want them to succeed with this move...

weird...

[Blah]

wow..after reading that i cant wait to see somebody crack this....just to show that anything can be defeated...but than again after its defeated they'll probably come out with something trickier...

i think ill stick with xp for AWHILE until it all gets itself sorted...

peace all

B

[Guest bootsum]

Shxt!!!

Even if it is cracked, we may get trouble again when we update Windows.

[Guest mph185]

i really hate microsoft

but windows xp was the only software i brought... its just easy that way

cracks/keygens/patches are a pain in the *** for os software

we need more compaines making os software

mph...

[Nehebkau]

Shxt!!!

Even if it is cracked, we may get trouble again when we update Windows.

um then dont update windows?

[Guest shah_hardi]

They come with a new trick with every new OS/Update and someone finds a way to crack it..

see even with windows XP service pack 2 there is a requirement for activation but again someone has made a patch that can make it work..

so relax guys u'll soon get a solution for Vista...

and if unfortunately no one will be able to crack it then I guess microsoft will loose its popularity and more ppl will turn towards linux or anyother OS