Windows Vista Not Playing Well with IPv6
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Early adopters of Microsoft's new OS report problems with its implementation of a long-anticipated upgrade to the 'Net's primary protocol.
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(InfoWorld) - Microsoft has blamed an unspecified server problem for a 19-hour stretch during which paying users of Windows XP and Vista were accused by the company's WGA (Windows Genuine Advantage) validation system of running pirated software. Any Vista system fingered during the episode was stripped of some features, including the operating system's Aero graphical interface. As of Saturday at 3 p.m. EDT, Microsoft said the problem had been fixed. "We are aware it is a server-side issue," said Phil Liu, a Microsoft program manager in the WGA group. "[But] the cause is unknown at this current time." "Customers who received an incorrect validation response can fix their system by revalidating on our site," said Alex Kochis, senior product manager of WGA, in a blog posting. The site Kochis referred to is the Genuine Microsoft Software home page, which includes links to validation tests for Windows and Microsoft Office. "After successfully revalidating, any affected system should be rebooted to ensure the genuine-only features are restored," Kochis continued. The validation server snafu began sometime prior to 8 p.m. EDT on Friday, when users started posting messages on Microsoft's support forums, including Vista Validation Issues, saying that their PCs had been tagged as running nongenuine Windows. Overnight, the number of users adding their accounts to the tale spiked significantly, as did the frustration index. "What in hell is going on, Microsoft?" asked a user named Hedgemeister. "SUPPORT? Where are you? Validation issues with Vista. Hello? All of us need help," wrote Gnrlbzik. "This is an absolute disgrace. Treating legitimate customers like criminals is a great way to make people want to buy your software in the future! [I'm] absolutely disgusted," added Costanza. Although copies of both Windows XP and Vista were being tagged as counterfeit during the 19 hours, users of the latter were especially incensed. The WGA antipiracy scheme for that operating system disables several features when it thinks the copy is bogus, among them the Aero graphical user interface and ReadyBoost. Early in the outage, several Microsoft customers posted what they said was the text of e-mail they had received from Microsoft support that suggested users sit tight for several days. "I'm sorry to inform you that the Windows Genuine server might be down for few days," the e-mail, attributed to Microsoft Technical Support, said. "I have escalated the issue to our Genuine team, kindly try to validate again on Tuesday 28 Aug 2007." If the message was intended to mollify users, it didn't work. "TUESDAY!?! Yeah, f that," said Nooaah. It wasn't until Saturday around 1 p.m. EDT that a non-anonymous Microsoft manager offered up information. "I guarantee that we're working on this issue right now," said Liu in a post to the forum. "My goal is to identify a FIX for this issue -- afterwards get you all what you are looking for, an explanation and cause. I promise I will have an explanation and resolution as soon as humanly possible." Users' testy relationship with WGA Although Microsoft did not identify the number of affected systems Saturday, based on the user comments and Liu's promises, it appeared to be systemwide. If so, it would be the biggest problem so far in the developer's contentious WGA program. Designed to spot pirated copies of its Windows and Office software, WGA has been mandatory since mid-2005 before nonsecurity updates or files can be downloaded from Microsoft's site. WGA has faced criticism almost since its inception, but until Friday, the most vocal complaints dated back to June 2006, when users discovered that the Windows XP version of WGA was "phoning home" to Microsoft every time the PC was booted. Those critics returned when Microsoft upped the ante with Vista by replacing the WGA messages that only nagged XP users suspected of running counterfeits with a new policy that used an RFM (reduced functionality mode) to cripple machines. In RFM, only Internet Explorer works, and then for just an hour at a time. Because RFM only allows a grace period of three days to those who previously activated Windows but are subsequently deemed pirates, any problems must be fixed quickly to prevent customers' PCs from going dark. Microsoft managed to beat the deadline. That, however, didn't mean much to some, who said this was it for their relationship with the vendor. One claimed that he was heading out the door to buy a Mac, while others swore they would switch to Linux. Others called on Microsoft to ditch WGA. "Once again the legitimate person gets screwed while the people who pirate software probably aren't even affected," said Mark in the support forum. "This whole validation process should be dropped. This is just another nail in the Microsoft coffin." Saturday's outage was not the first time the validation service has gone dark and then identified all PCs connecting with the servers as running pirated copies. In October 2006, Microsoft's Kochis acknowledged a similar blackout. "Earlier this week, a server on the back end of the WGA service experienced a bug that resulted in a temporary outage. As a result, some systems were incorrectly flagged as being non-genuine, and we want to confirm for those who contacted us about this that it was indeed an error," he wrote.
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Microsoft Windows users need to watch out for several flaws in non-Microsoft media players.
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Readers pitch on whether Microsoft should change default IP settings amid concerns that Vista's launch could overwhelm the Net.
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Q: I have been trying to set up a networked Hewlett-Packard printer at home, but frankly, all the Windows networking stuff baffles me, especially when Windows starts up wizards that lead to nowhere.
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On his blog, Bill has posted about a patch for IIS7 running on a Windows Vista machine that corrects an issue with applications that send multiple response headers.   Today we released a patch for IIS7 in Windows Vista that addresses an issue we've seen with CGI applications (especially PHP applications that use the built-in CGI component).  The typical symptom is an application that runs using CGI and is unable to support multiple "cookies" for authentication or personalization.    He also links to the Microsoft Knowledge Base article on the topic and to the download for the patch.
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Windows XP Service Pack 2 gets a &#39;hotfix&#39; for VPNs, part of the never-ending process of software development.
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Want to corrupt your iPod? Use it with Microsoft's new operating system. Apple concedes that its music software still isn't compatible with all versions of Vista. By the Associated Press.
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. I understand that Microsoft&#39;s Service Pack 2 for Windows XP, a new update, includes improved firewall protection. I currently use Norton Personal Firewall; will any incompatibility result when both firewalls are installed, and is one ...
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On a computer that is running Microsoft Windows XP with Service Pack 2 (SP2), programs that connect to IP addresses that are in the loopback address range may not work as you expect.
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Unfortunately for users, computer equipment manufacturers and resellers don't adequately inform Windows users of the risks involved in accessing the Internet without proper security measures.-The Washington Post
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A curious network performance reduction noticed by many Windows Vista users of the 2CPU forum that became the talk of Slashdot last week has been identified as having been caused not by DRM, as Slashdot users expected, but by a curious prioritization "feature" of Vista that's intentionally biased toward Media Player at the expense of network and system resources.
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Some users of the new operating system are having a tough time connecting to the virtual world.
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PC owners who bought late last year and planned to take advantage of Microsoft's Windows Vista Express Upgrade program have found that their Vista OS upgrades are taking longer than expected to arrive. They are not amused.
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(InfoWorld) - Although some widely used applications from top software vendors haven't been certified for use with Windows Vista, they may nonetheless work with the MicrosoftÂ OS. Major applications from Symantec, Adobe Systems, Apple, and IBM aren't included on an official Microsoft list of applications that qualify for a "Certified for Windows Vista" or "Works with Windows Vista" logo. However, chances are they could currently be involved in the testing process to achieve those logos, Microsoft and its partners said. That's the case with Symantec's security products, according to a company spokesman. Though Symantec's software is not listed on the site as having achieved either of those designations, company spokesman Mike Bradshaw said Wednesday that Symantec's Norton 360, Norton Antivirus, and Norton Internet Security are already compatible with Vista. "It's just a matter of paperwork," he said. The products are going through a lengthy certification process and should be eligible for the label soon. Adobe's Acrobat Reader 8.0 also runs on Vista even though it is not listed on Microsoft's site as one of those applications certified for or working with Vista, according to Adobe spokesman Matt Rozen. Tom Caputo, group product manager on the Windows Vista partner team, said the list of vendors that have applications that have achieved either the "Certified for" or "Works with" Windows Vista designations is by no means the entire list of applications that actually work on Vista now. There are about 800 applications on that list, but "tens of thousands of applications" already can run on Vista, he said. "The goal of the logo programs is to give ISVs the opportunity to indicate to their compatibility status to the market using those two logos," he said. That said, there are still applications from top vendors that aren't available in a full compatible version for Vista, such as iTunes from Apple and Lotus Notes from IBM, among others. And according to some, this lack of compatibility is making it difficult to use Vista as their full-time OS. Microsoft blogger Chris Pirillo, founder of the Lockergnome technology portal, described the lack of compatibility with applications and hardware devices in a humorous blog entry "Windows Vista: Why I'm Breaking Up With You." The entry describes how Pirillo will "upgrade" from Vista to XP because he couldn't get some devices and applications he needs on a daily basis -- such as the software for his HP Laserjet 3052 scanner or his IPFax software-- to work on the new Windows client OS. "I gave Vista a real chance," he wrote. "I just can't use it as my primary OS anymore.... I'm still more than willing to help Microsoft improve Windows and get the message out to users, but I simply can't sacrifice my own time and productivity without benefits in clear sight. I'm begging Microsoft and all of my hardware and software vendors to make Windows better for me."
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Many XP users still not really fans of the Vista.
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Better all the time WPC Microsoft has used its annual Worldwide Partner Conference (WPC) to stress that it's working to solve stubborn compatibility problems between Windows Vista and partner products.â¦