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But, between the RTM and the consumer launch, Vista was the undisputed star of hacking attempts. One of the most spread cracks designed to bypass the operating system's activation mechanism and also to fool the Windows Genuine Advantage antipiracy check is the Grace Timer, also known as the 2009 crack, and the timer crack.

Unlike Windows XP, Windows Vista permits the user to install the operating system without entering a product key. This aspect will also be modified for XP with the introduction of the third Service Pack. Following the deployment, Vista will enter the Initial Grace period permitting the user to run it for a total of 30 days. By the end of the test-driving period, a product key will have to be introduced in order to continue running the operating system.

The Grace Timer crack made its debut in late December 2006, almost a couple of months ahead of Vista hitting the shelves. On January 3rd, 2007, namely one year ago, Alex Kochis, Senior Product Manager for Windows Genuine Advantage, confirmed the existence of the workaround and promised that Microsoft would "take corrective action soon". One year after the Grace Time crack and Microsoft's promise to discontinue it, the workaround has yet to be dealt with.

In early December 2007, as an integer part of the revamping of its antipiracy strategy, Mike Sievert, Corporate Vice President, Windows Product Marketing, revealed that Vista SP1 would tackle the Grace Timer exploit for Vista. The Redmond company has yet to unveil the actual release date for Windows Vista SP1, besides pointing to the first quarter of this year.