If Using Windows Trial OS For PHP Client Testing

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volomike
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If Using Windows Trial OS For PHP Client Testing

Post by volomike »

If you're using a Windows trial version of an operating system for doing browser testing of your PHP pages, the thing gives you normally 3 times to rearm for up to 60 days each, giving you 180 total days to use the OS. You can then reinstall the OS again fresh after those 180 days and start over.

Little problem though. If you fail to run the following command before your 60 days is up...

slmgr.vbs -rearm

...it boots up and gives you a dialog box you can't get out of -- forcing you to have to pay for something that Microsoft's TOS says you don't have to pay for because it's a trial version. That's what I call a bug.

To get around this bug, there's a clever hack to get you back on track:

http://www.petri.co.il/bypass-windows-s ... vation.htm

Basically the site above shows that you get the help file to open, and then get it to open online help, which fires up your networking and your browser. The networking is essential. You then use the help again to open a command prompt, and you can then type:

slmgr.vbs -rearm

At that point, you'll get an error about a moved data store security problem. But, just reboot, login, and all is well again. You can see that you have a valid install by doing:

slmgr.vbs -dli

...and it will say 60 days, which is correct according to the MS terms of service (TOS).

Just thought you should know this because it is a pain to reinstall the whole OS again just because of a bug in the MS activation system, and this gives you a way around it.

P.S. I'm using Windows Server 2008 in an Oracle (Sun) Virtualbox VM on Ubuntu Linux.
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Benjamin
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Re: If Using Windows Trial OS For PHP Client Testing

Post by Benjamin »

You'd be amazed what you can get past through (blatant security holes) by using Windows help. It's been that way since 95, probably earlier.
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volomike
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Re: If Using Windows Trial OS For PHP Client Testing

Post by volomike »

astions wrote:You'd be amazed what you can get past through (blatant security holes) by using Windows help. It's been that way since 95, probably earlier.
Yeah, it used to be that you could type either:

252-(series of 1's)

or:

2552-(series of 1's)

to bypass some of their older (now discontinued) MS products.

Also on the original Windows 95, there was a trick where you could click next on the install wizard at the serial step, get the error, click back, back, then next, next, next, and poof -- it lets you bypass the serial number check and just auto-assigns you one.
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