('''WGA'''), sometimes referred to as '''Windows Genuine Disadvantage''' by Microsoft dissidents, is an anti-
Piracy system enacted by
Microsoft that enforces
Microsoft Windows online validation of the authenticity of several recent Microsoft
Operating System s when accessing several Microsoft Windows services, such as
Windows Update , and downloading from the Microsoft Download Center.
It also advertises Service Pack 2 for Windows XP, which requires manual intervention to disable. Previously voluntary, it became mandatory for use of these services in July 2005.
The WGA validation process validates the present installation of Windows and its license key against the
Hardware involved. It is accessible by either a stand-alone program, or as an
ActiveX control within
Internet Explorer , the latter of which is relevant to any attempt to access Microsoft updates via its
Browser . It includes the following steps:
- Upon their first visit to the Microsoft Download or Update Center, the users receive a message requiring them to validate their copy of Windows by downloading an ActiveX control which checks the authenticity of their Windows software. If successful in validating Windows, it stores a special license file on the PC for future verification.
- After successful validation, the regular update download can continue.
If an instance of Windows does not seem to have a valid license, WGA displays a specific notice to the user and prevents non-Critical updates from being downloaded from Microsoft.
The ActiveX control is downloaded on the first validation and when a new version is available, but the validation itself can be performed any time the user connects to a Microsoft website to update.
- On Windows Vista , WGA validation failure has a greater impact. In addition to persistent notification and the disabling of non-critical updates, WGA also disables Windows Aero , Windows Defender , and ReadyBoost . The user is given a grace period in which to then pass validation, after which most of the operating system is disabled and Windows reverts to Reduced Functionality Mode .
When a user installs WGA, an
Internet Explorer add-on is installed labeled "Windows Genuine Advantage". In early releases the tool could be readily disabled with the IE Add-on Management feature. A Windows
Group Policy was added by later updates, causing this option to be unavailable by default, but still accessible if the policy were removed. As of July 2006, the latest update blocks management by other means.
The program uses either a stand-alone program to generate a key or an
ActiveX control to discover whether the
License Key is valid; either way an Internet connection is required. If WGA determines that a user's copy of Windows is
Unauthorized but was installed from seemingly-legitimate media (i.e., the
CD and holographic emblem present on real copies of Windows seems genuine), then Microsoft will supply the user with a new CD. Microsoft also offers discounts to people who want to purchase a legitimate copy of Windows but do not have a valid CD. Microsoft has indicated that they will continue to deliver critical security updates through their Automatic Updates service as well as via the Microsoft Download Center. The company has made installation of WGA a requirement for use of Automatic Updates, in part to be sure that customers who use support resources of the company are aware when their software is unlicensed or counterfeit. According to Microsoft themselves, it is legal to run Microsoft Windows without WGA, however, installation of WGA is required for use of non-critical Automatic Updates. This means that all systems, including those that fail to pass validation, will still continue to receive critical security updates.
Beginning ,
2006 It was updated again on
May 30 ,
June 6 and
June 27 ,
2006 , though some forms of circumvention are still usable. The latest versions do not roll out worldwide at the same time: the dates given are the earliest dates on which the versions appeared, so the actual version being offered in some places will be an earlier version than the latest release. It is still possible to opt out of receiving this update using the "do not show" option at the Windows Update site. In addition to these notifications, Windows Genuine Advantage will also notify users with the message "This version of Windows XP is no longer secure." if users on an XP Operating System are not using Service Pack 2. It will provide a link to help users to upgrade their systems to the new service pack.
The version of Windows Genuine Advantage Notifications released ,
2006
A new update was released
March 27 ,
2007 .
Microsoft includes the Windows Genuine Advantage Validation Library in several products like
Windows Defender ,
Internet Explorer 7 ,
Microsoft Folder and
Windows Media Player 11 to validate about the Windows installation.
Microsoft has also launched the
Office Genuine Advantage program, which validates installations of
Microsoft Office .
In the US, the
Digital Millennium Copyright Act criminalizes production and dissemination of technology that can circumvent measures taken to protect copyright, not merely infringement of copyright itself, and heightens the penalties for copyright infringement on the Internet.
In September 2005, Microsoft filed lawsuits against a number of companies that sold unauthorized copies of software to unsuspecting consumers. The cases are important because the leads came from customers who learned they had counterfeit software via the Windows Genuine Advantage program.
Microsoft.com - Microsoft Files Lawsuits to Protect Consumers and Software Resellers , retrieved
June 13 ,
2006
On ,
2006
Various workarounds to get past WGA authentication have been released on the Internet. Before Microsoft issued official instructions on removing the WGA Notifier (a desktop application which resides in the system tray and periodically displays messages, reminding users to authenticate their operating system), users simply had to remove 2 files in order to rid their system of the software.
In September 2006, Microsoft dropped various required validations on programs such as
ActiveSync .
Recently it has been found that it is possible to validate with WGA when running
Linux (see
Below ).
Some
Personal Firewall s, though not the basic one in Windows, may alert on the method by which wgatray.exe is started, in the case of Outpost firewall, it is identified as a "hidden process". The wgatray.exe process itself can be firewall blocked, without apparent problems. Removing the reference to WGALOGON.DLL using
HijackThis appears to effectively de-activate this update, to the point where it will be offered again if it has not been marked "do not show".
A tool has been released by a firewall vendor to prevent WGA Notifications transmitting information from one's PC.
The Register - How to stop Microsoft's WGA phoning home
Windows Genuine Advantage checks the following components:
Microsoft WGA FAQ , retrieved
- Computer make and model
- BIOS Checksum .
- MAC Address .
- A unique number assigned to your computer by the tools (Globally Unique Identifier or GUID )
- Hard drive serial number.
- Region and language settings of the operating system.
- Operating system version.
- PC BIOS information (make, version, date).
- PC manufacturer.
- User locale setting.
- Validation and installation results.
- Windows or Office product key.
- Windows XP product ID.
Even if WGA does not really make the program unusable, the fact that no updates except critical ones could be downloaded from MicrosoftRather than just disallowing updating,
[http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,222518,00.html [http://blogs.zdnet.com/Bott/?p=84].
