What's Genuine About Windows Genuine Advantage?
An article over at Microsoft-Watch has been posted about what Windows Genuine Advantage is all about.
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10.6.2006 Windows Genuine Advantage works
IT may have cost Microsoft millions of sales, but Redmond claims that Windows Genuine Advantage has forced punters to buy legitimate copies of its software.
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26.11.2007 Microsoft changes Windows Genuine Advantage name
Microsoft is giving its anti-piracy/DRM technology a PR face lift with Windows 7. The “Windows Genuine” branding is being supplanted by a new name: Windows Activation.
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7.5.2009 Get Genuine Kit and Windows Product Key Update Tool
The best and most cost-effective way for customers to acquire Windows software is preinstalled on a new PC.
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15.8.2006 Windows Genuine Advantage now supports Firefox
Microsoft Genuine Windows Validation process now works in Firefox and other Mozilla browsers. Firefox users can manually install the Windows Genuine Advantage validation Firefox plug-in available on Microsoft's website to complete the Windows validation process.
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17.11.2005 Microsoft Windows Genuine Advantage Crack
A brief guide on how to bypass Windows Genuine Advantage check on Windows XP.
It took basically 5 minutes to figure out how to bypass this check. However, Microsoft can change his server part of the check in order to block this.
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7.3.2006 Microsoft Windows Genuine Advantage Crack
A brief guide on how to bypass Windows Genuine Advantage check on Windows XP.
It took basically 5 minutes to figure out how to bypass this check. However, Microsoft can change his server part of the check in order to block this.
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8.4.2006 Windows Genuine Advantage (WGA) Not Spyware!
Thanks MrCobra for the heads up on this update in Back Page News on our forums.
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9.6.2006 Windows Genuine Advantage crack 1.5.726
Anonymouse user report to us - This is the last Windows Genuine advantage (WGA) probed in a computer whit just Windows installed (My Volks3" computer) and they work!
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8.2.2007 Windows Genuine Advantage Validation 1.7.18.1
Thanks to setter_gr who report this download in our forum. This is newest version on WGA Validation patcher.
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27.3.2007 Windows Genuine Advantage Validation 1.9.40.0
Windows Genuine Advantage Validation 1.9.40.0 [2 Authors Exclusive]. Users who have an unlicensed version of , as we know, can not updates from the official site.
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2.4.2009 Download everything from Microsoft without Windows Genuine Advantage Check
ghacks.net has found a workaround to bypass the WGA, wonder how long MS will take to fix this.
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8.9.2006 Windows Genuine Advantage Validation 1.5.530.0 crack
You can still use the WGA Patcher to get only Updates through Windows Update!
If theres a new crack, Ill added to this website! Sorry for this problem!
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26.9.2006 Windows Genuine Advantage Validation 1.5.723.1 CRACK
Next version of WGA. How to bypass Windows Genuine Advantage Check on Windows XP 1.5.723.1?
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26.12.2006 Microsoft Windows Genuine Advantage: An Overview and Screenshot Gallery
Microsoft announced its Genuine Advantage software initiative in March 2006. It's designed as part of the company's wider assault on software piracy (another infamous part of this fight, Product Activation, won fame and fortune for Microsoft went XP was released in late 2001).
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21.7.2006 Windows Genuine Advantage Validation v1.5.716.0 CRACK
Are you one of them who starts you're computer and see a sign with the sentence you're computer can be a false version or something like that, It is a false version.
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17.11.2006 Windows Genuine Advantage Validation v1.5.722.0 Crack
How to bypass Windows Genuine Advantage Check on Windows XP 1.5.722.0?
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13.12.2006 Windows Genuine Advantage Validation v1.7.36.0 patch
I just found the latest Windows Genuine Advantage Validation v1.7.36.0 cracked by Team ETH0. Release date of this cracked WGA is on 17 May 2007.
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20.5.2007 Even with Vista SP1, Hackers Still Crack Windows Genuine Advantage
The fact that Microsoft has relaxed its antipiracy mechanism built into Windows Vista concomitantly with the release of Service Pack 1 failed to stop hackers from providing a crack for the latest version of Windows Genuine Advantage Validation.
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1.4.2008 Windows Genuine Advantage Notification Wga crack 1.8.31.9
You should know by now that Microsoft enhanced Windows anti piracy measures with Genuine Advantage Wga 1.8.31.9.
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24.9.2008 Windows Genuine Advantage Validation v1.8.32.0 CRACKED
A new version of Windows Genuine Advantage Validation Tool has been released by Microsoft.
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26.10.2008 Windows Genuine Advantage Validation v1.8.32.1 CRACKED
100% working on Windows Update, Microsoft Download Center and Microsoft Update
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1.12.2008 Office 2007 Genuine Advantage
Thanks to hwh1226 for this download. Office 2007 Genuine Advantage - 05/27/2007 This will make any Office 2003 or 2007 genuine! you will be able to update with any application of Office.
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11.6.2007 Windows Genuine Advantage Validation - WGA Patcher v 1.5.708.0 Download
Windows Genuine Advantage Patcher 1.5.708.0 Plus!
By:Matt in our forum
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28.9.2006 Microsoft Plans Office Genuine Advantage
Despite the criticism leveled at Microsoft Corp. after its recent rollout -- and partial rollback -- of Windows Genuine Advantage (WGA), that tool was just the first phase in the company's latest antipiracy effort.
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28.7.2006 Office Genuine Advantage (OGA), Now Mandatory
If you don't like the mandatory anti-piracy checks that Microsoft now enforces for Windows, brace yourself. The Microsoft Office productivity and collaboration suite is about to get a similar program.
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27.10.2006 Microsoft Releases Windows Genuine Advantage (WGA) Bypass Tool for OEM's
With the introduction of Windows Genuine Advantage (WGA), a computer must be validated as genuine prior to receiving security patches from Windows Update.
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16.10.2006 Windows Genuine Advantage Validation - WGA Patcher v1.7.17.0 Crack
Windows Genuine Advantage Validation v1.7.17.0 Crack for Windows XP.
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27.2.2007 Genuine Advantage: Can Microsoft recast itself as protector, not punisher?
I wouldn't want Cori Hartje's job. She is the head of Microsoft's much-maligned Genuine Software Initiative — the team responsible for implementing Windows Genuine Advantage and Office Genuine Advantage.
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22.1.2007 Microsoft to add the Genuine Advantage nag to Office
Microsoft is set to begin a pilot of a new Genuine Advantage anti-piracy mechanism for Office that will add a “nag-like” feature, akin to what is now part of Windows Vista, to Office.
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9.4.2008Windows Genuine Advantage Notifications (v1.8.0031.0)
Windows Genuine Advantage Notifications is a tool to help reduce software piracy. This tool will confirm that the copy of Windows installed on the PC
is genuine and properly licensed. If it is not genuine, the tool will provide periodic reminders to help you take the appropriate action.
This is the most current release of Windows Genuine Advantage Notifications. We encourage you to upgrade to this version. This release
includes enhanced features that reflect ongoing input from customers, as well as Microsofts continually improving anti-piracy technology.
winbeta.org -
27.08.2008Microsoft prepares Genuine
Software initiative
The recently rolled out Office
Genuine Advantage, along with
its widely known Windows
counterpart, seems to have
made Microsoft decide to
protect all of its paying
software using a Genuine
Advantage initiative.
The new tool, named
simply Genuine Advantage
Initiative, is aimed at
protecting all Microsoft
retail desktop software other
than Windows and Office, which
will both remain under their
own Genuine Advantage. It is
based on the Office version,
but the changes it adds from
this version is currently
unknown.
jcxp.net -
28.07.2006Microsoft changes 'Windows Genuine Advantage' name
Microsoft will be changing to name of it's activation and validation system from "Windows Genuine Advantage" to "Windows Activation
Technologies" according to a report by Mary-Jo Foley. However, the "Genuine" brand isn't completely disappearing. A press release states that
Microsoft will continue to deliver genuine updates and notifications for XP users. The program has been criticized for its punishment tactics and
false-positive results, even though Microsoft has fixed some of these problems in Vista SP1. According to Microsoft, Windows 7's activation will
be built on the same software protection platform that was part of Vista, with some minor tweaks made for Windows 7.
Read full story.....
neowin.net -
08.05.200922% of Windows Installs Non-Genuine
Microsoft disclosed Monday
that over one in five Windows
installations were deemed
non-genuine through the
company's Windows Genuine
Advantage program, which
requires users to validate
their operating system before
downloading updates from the
company...
betanews.com -
23.01.2007Get Genuine Kit
The following download links include a 1 page document containing information for resellers to help customers get legal when they have non-genuine
Windows XP Professional installed on their PC and a 4 page document containing frequently asked questions (FAQ) on the Get Genuine program.
winbeta.org -
21.11.2007Microsoft Seals Cracks
With the impending release of Service Pack 1 for Vista, Microsoft looks to slow down the pirates by cutting off two popular hacks to circumvent the
Windows Genuine Advantage Program.
Testing both these methods of circumventing Windows activation and Windows Genuine Advantage (WGA)
has shown me that SP1 effectively ignores both these hacks. Systems that previously were shown to be genuine prior to the installation of SP1 then
require activation - and if the system isn’t activated it is marked at non-genuine and enters the nag state.
jcxp.net -
11.02.2008Microsoft: Windows Genuine Advantage works!
IT may have cost Microsoft millions of sales, but Redmond claims that Windows Genuine Advantage has forced punters to buy legitimate copies of its
software. According to the Sydney Morning Herald, Vole had tried everything from court cases, to threats, to try and counter piracy. But now that
Windows Genuine Advantage has locked down its Vista product, piracy is more or less a thing of the past.
The SMH admits that Microsoft does
not have any actual figures to back up its startling claim. The closest thing it has said was that Windows sales were up 20 percent while worldwide PC
sales were up only 14 to 16 percent. It claims that this was because people with counterfeit copies of Windows were having to put the real thing on
their computers or the software does not work
neowin.net -
26.11.2007Microsoft to target Windows XP Pro users with Genuine 'nagware' notifications
Microsoft is stepping up its war on software pirates by rolling out new Windows Genuine notification software for what it is calling its most pirated
version of Windows: Windows XP Professional.
In an August 26 posting to the Windows Genuine Advantage blog, Director of Genuine
Windows Alex Koch said XP users should expect Microsoft to begin rolling out
a new version of Windows Genuine
Advantage (WGA) notifications starting this week. Microsoft is expecting the rollout to take several months.
winbeta.org -
27.08.2008Windows Genuine Advantage Notifications Update
Windows Genuine Advantage Notifications is a tool to help reduce software piracy. This tool will confirm that the copy of Windows installed on the PC
is genuine and properly licensed. If it is not genuine, the tool will provide periodic reminders to help you take the appropriate action.
This is the most current release of Windows Genuine Advantage Notifications. We encourage you to upgrade to this version. This release
includes enhanced features that reflect ongoing input from customers, as well as Microsofts continually improving anti-piracy technology.
Specific features of this version include:
- Improved Setup “ A new installation wizard provides an overview of the tool,
and shows validation results immediately at the end of the installation process. No reboot is required following installation.
- Redesigned
User Interface - The system tray notifications have been redesigned to make them more visually appealing with clear links to full details of each
message and further options for resolving any problems.
- Improved User Assistance “ Improved messaging for users who are unable to
complete validation, along with links to more and better self-help tools.
winbeta.org -
15.12.2007Windows Genuine Advantage suffers worldwide outage.
Late last night we started receiving reports from readers experiencing problems with Windows Genuine Advantage authentication. Users of both Windows
XP and Windows Vista were writing to say that they could not validate their installations using WGA, and one user even said that his installation was
invalidated by the service.
We contacted our sources at Microsoft, who told us off the record that the company is aware of a major WGA
server outage affecting users across the globe. The Windows Genuine Advantage support forum has exploded with complaints, as a result, and Phil Liu,
WGA project manager, says that he won't sleep until the problem is fixed. Windows Vista and XP are affected, 32- and 64-bit versions.
neowin.net -
26.08.2007Microsoft Pushes New Piracy
Initiative
Expanding upon its Windows
Genuine Advantage program,
which requires customers to
verify their licenses before
downloading operating system
updates, Microsoft has rolled
out a new effort called the
Genuine Software Initiative.
The undertaking will combine
the company's anti-piracy and
counterfeit prevention
efforts...
betanews.com -
09.03.2006Microsoft to add the Genuine Advantage ‘nag' to Office
Microsoft is set to begin a pilot of a new Genuine Advantage anti-piracy mechanism for Office that will add a “nag-like” feature, akin to
what is now part of Windows Vista, to Office.
Office already currently
includes an Office Genuine Advantage (OGA) validation mechanism (for Office XP and Office 2007), but Microsoft doesn’t do
a whole lot to “punish” those it deems to be running non-Genuine versions of Office. However, as part of a
new OGA notifications pilot program — which
Microsoft is launching in Chile, Italy, Spain and Turkey, according to an April 8 announcement buried in a Q&A on Microsoft’s Web site —
Microsoft is set to turn up the unpleasantness a notch.
neowin.net -
09.04.2008MS Office Validation Now Mandatory
Want to use the extra features
within Office? Be prepared to
verify that your copy of the
productivity suite is genuine.
While the so-called Office
Genuine Advantage has been
around since April, Microsoft
did not make it mandatory
until Friday...
betanews.com -
28.10.2006What's Genuine About Windows
Genuine Advantage?
An article over at
Microsoft-Watch has been
posted about what Windows
Genuine Advantage is all
about. In short it was
mentioned that the first time
you run the WGA validation
check, Microsoft's servers
collect the following
information:
The Windows XP product key,
PC Manufacturer, Operating
system version, PC BIOS
information and User locale
setting and language.
In the past WGA
pinged your system everyday to
see if your notifications are
running, not if you're valid.
This changed on June 8th
where it now pings your system
every 14 days. According to
Microsoft, no identifying
system or user information is
sent to Microsoft as part of
this check.
jcxp.net -
10.06.2006Microsoft slams the door on Vista pirates
Adrian Kingsley-Hughes: With the launch of SP1 Microsoft promised to put an end to two popular hacks used by pirates to allow a non-genuine install of
Windows Vista to function in the same way as a genuine install. Testing that Ive carried out in the lab today suggests that Microsoft has been true to
its word.
The two most common hacks used were the OEM BIOS hack and the grace timer hack (of which there were two flavors which
were widespread).
Testing both these methods of circumventing Windows activation and Windows Genuine Advantage (WGA) has shown me
that SP1 effectively ignores both these hacks. Systems that previously were shown to be genuine prior to the installation of SP1 then require
activation - and if the system isnt activated it is marked at non-genuine and enters the nag state.
winbeta.org -
11.02.2008Even with Vista SP1, Hackers Still Crack WGA
The fact that Microsoft has relaxed its antipiracy mechanism built into Windows Vista concomitantly with the release of Service Pack 1 failed
to stop hackers from providing a crack for the latest version of Windows Genuine Advantage Validation. Various reports point out that Genuine
Advantage Validation and Notifications versions 1.7.69.1 (1.7.0069.1) and 1.7.69.2 released in March 2008, following the March 18 availability of
Windows Vista SP1 through Windows Update and the Microsoft Download Center, have been cracked.
The workaround is designed to be integrated
with pirated copies of Windows XP and Windows Vista in order to render useless the WGA Validation mechanism. According to the reports, applying the
WGA crack will permit users of counterfeit versions of Windows to access and download items from Windows Update, Microsoft Download Center and
Microsoft Update. The pirated operating systems with the cracked WGA will pass all validations on Microsoft's websites and offer anything from
updates to applications that are restricted to users of genuine operating systems only.
neowin.net - 02.04.2008
Microsoft Private Folder
Released
Microsoft released today a
file encryption program,
called Microsoft Private
Folder. The way it works is
that it automatically creates
you a folder and you can add
files in it, which are
encrypted as soon as you put
them in.
The
program is part of the Windows
Genuine Advantage Offers, so
you'll need to pass the
Windows Genuine Advantage
validation before installing.
You'll need to set your
location to United States
using the scrollbar at the top
of the page. Else, the offer
won't be there.
jcxp.net - 06.07.2006
Microsoft WGA servers down; XP and Vista installs being marked as counterfeit (Updated)
Microsoft Windows Genuine Advantage servers all failed sometime earlier today.
The result? Every single Windows XP and Vista
installation -- except possibly those with volume license keys -- is being marked as counterfeit when it tries to check in. Installations which are
flagged as counterfeit switch to a "reduced functionality mode" which results in features like Aero and DirectX being disabled.
So far, the only public response from Microsoft has been indirectly via their technical support forums, where a user has posted the following snippet from an email he received
from MS's technical support address: Thank you for your response.
Im sorry to inform you that the Windows Genuine server might be
down for few days. I have escalate the issue to our Genuine team, kindly try to validate again on Tuesday 28 Aug 2007.
Thank you for
contacting Microsoft Technical Support.
It is highly recommended to avoid WGA if at all possible for the moment.
Update:
Phil Liu, WGA Project Manager, says that he
won't sleep until the problem is fixed. (via Ars
Technica)
winbeta.org - 25.08.2007
Internet Explorer 7 Now Available to Pirates
Microsoft has released a minor update to Internet Explorer 7 for Windows XP, removing the requirement for users to be validated through the company's
Windows Genuine Advantage program. This means those with non-legitimate or pirated copies of Windows can now upgrade their browser...
betanews.com - 05.10.2007
Vista SP1 x86 appears on Torrent Sites
In the last few days, certain Neowin forum members have reported that an image of Vista SP1 x86 Final has leaked to torrent sites. This file is
supposedly a slipstreamed image of the final Service Pack 1 for Vista x86. It is allegedly available in various languages, including English. Since
many believe that this is indeed the download that Microsoft will provide in the upcoming weeks, I would like to emphasize that this is not the case.
This release is not official, nor is it genuine. I repeat: Vista SP1 has not gone final.
Neowin members are reporting that the file in
question may be SP1 Refresh 2 slipstreamed or simply a malware-filled release. I would like to remind our members not to post links to any Vista SP1
build, unless it comes directly from Microsoft’s servers.
Read full story.....
neowin.net - 28.01.2008
