March 2003 Volume 13 • Number 3 


Windows Watcher

Pirated copies of Windows XP ... by Tom Bair

I heard from a reader who was sorry he upgraded to Windows XP Pro for a bargain $100. He tried to install Service Pack 1 (SP1) and it refused to install for him. Says he should have stuck with Windows ME which came with his Dell computer.

Many pirated copies of Windows XP have been sold to the public by dishonest vendors. These copies used one of a couple of pirated keys. If you have one of these "bargain" copies for one hundred dollars, you did not buy it from Microsoft, you bought it from a thief, and you have an illegal copy.

Microsoft has explicitly prevented PCs with Windows XP containing one of these pirated keys from installing SP1. You can approach the vendor who sold you the copy for redress and provision of a legitimate copy, and you might even try threatening him with the Microsoft legal department. However, I'd be surprised you would get any satisfaction from such dishonest vendors. If all else fails, you can report the details of the sale to: http://www.microsoft.com/pira cy/reporting/default.asp

To find out if you have this pirated key, do the following:

  1. Click on the 'Start' button.
  2. Click on 'Control Panel.'
  3. Click on 'System.'
  4. There, on the "General" tab, under Registered to:; you will see your name and the Product ID key.
  5. If it matches XXXXX-640-0000356-23XXX or XXXXX-640-2001765-23XXX (where X represents any number), you indeed do have one of these keys.

    Baseline Security Analyzer

    [XP/2K] A new version of the Baseline Security Analyzer is now available from the Microsoft website. To download it, click on this link.

    This tool complements Windows Update and verifies your computer actually does have all the needed security updates it's supposed to. The new version has an improved display screen showing more details, among other things.

    Saving Update Patches

    [95/98/SE/ME/XP/2K] Chris wants to save all the updates and patches he installs from the Microsoft Update website. He dislikes the amount of time it takes to download the several tens of megabytes via his 56K dial-up modem each time he formats and reinstalls Windows XP. Since he has a CD-RW drive on his PC, he'd like to make a CD containing all the files. The solution is to perform the below steps the very next time you have reinstalled your Windows Operating System:

    1. Create a new folder on your drive named 'UPDATES.'
    2. Log onto the Microsoft Windows Update website.
    3. When you are presented with the list of updates and patches, click on the "Review and Install" link for each item (one at a time, of course).
    4. Click on the "Read More" link.
    5. A new window will pop up with a reference to a Knowledgebase article for that item.
    6. Click on the "Microsoft Security Bulletin" link located in this window.
    7. When the security bulletin opens up, there will be a link in it to download the item separately. Click on this link.
    8. When Internet Explorer's 'Download' window opens, instruct it to save the new file in C:/UPDATES.
    9. Perform steps 3 through 8 for each item listed.
    10. When you have all the items downloaded to your 'UPDATES' folder, use your CD burning software to copy all the items to a CD-R or CD-RW.
    11. Use your newly created CD as needed.

    Locked Admin Account

    [XP,2K] A Security Forums reader reported an interesting problem. "I am the administrator of my (XP) home computer. I went to disable my child's account for a little while as punishment, and I ended up disabling my own account by accident. Of course, I didn't notice it until I logged out to see if it had worked. That was the only Admin account on my computer, and now I have no way to access it. I need help in reclaiming it."

    1. Reboot the PC into safe mode by hitting the F8 key during the boot process.
    2. On the safe mode menu, you will see the user, "Administrator" listed. (It has a blank password by default). Click on this account.
    3. From the desktop, click on the 'Start' button.
    4. Click on 'Control Panel.'
    5. Click on 'User Accounts.'
    6. Under "Pick a task...," click on 'Change an account.'
    7. Click on the user icon under "Pick an account to change."
    8. Alter the settings as needed.
    9. Exit all open windows and reboot your computer.

    Reinstall XP Files

    [XP] Jack had a virus. During his process of removing the virus, he had to delete certain parts of the Windows XP Registry. Then he used his updated anti-virus software to remove the actual virus. Since then his computer will not shut down unless done so manually by pushing the power switch.

    He wishes to avoid having to format his hard drive and install XP again. He asks if there might be a way to avoid this. There is:

    1. Click on the 'Start' button.
    2. Click on the 'Run' button.
    3. In the "Open:" dialog box, type sfc /scannow. Note that there is a space after "sfc."
    4. Have your Windows XP Install disk handy, as you will be asked to place it in your CD-ROM drive.

    This process will reinstall all your XP files without overwriting your registry. Odds are good the "shut-down sequence" will be repaired after replacing the system files.

    Folder Properties Security Tab

    [XP] I've received several complaints from readers claiming they cannot access the Security tab in Folder Properties.

    Your hard drive must be formatted in the NTFS format for this tab to show up. Most users fail to see the tab because their hard drives are formatted in the FAT32 format.

    If you are running Windows XP Pro Edition:

    1. Open 'Windows Explorer.'
    2. Click on 'Tools' in the command menu at the top of the window.
    3. Click on 'Folder Options.'
    4. Click on 'View.'
    5. Uncheck the box beside "Use Simple File Sharing."
    6. Exit all open windows and reboot your computer.

    If you are running Windows XP Home Edition:

    1. Simple file sharing is enforced by default and cannot be disabled.
    2. You must boot the computer in safe mode by hitting F8 during the bootup process.
    3. Log in to the computer with the 'Administrator' account. This will allow you to see the Security tab.

    Forward E-mail Update

    [OE6] Last month (February 2003 issue) I presented a solution for Ryan Erlandsen's problem of receiving e-mail on a single account to two inboxes (see Forward E-mail In OE, page 51).

    Mark McCorkle wrote that he too had a similar issue, but he solved it differently. I thought his solution was excellent, and wanted to share it with you.

    Mark writes, "Use the setting in OE that leaves a copy of the mail on the server for one of the profiles - probably the one that is used most often, and have one profile remain as is - which removes the messages from the server. Thus, when the more regular user retrieves mail, the messages still remain on the server until the other person downloads the messages."

    Thanks for the great tip, Mark.

    About the Author

    Contrary to popular rumors, Tom is indeed human and not an AI construct designed by the combined efforts of Carla Schroder and Michael Pearce. For proof, visit his website at  http://users.cwnet.com/pcwriter and closely examine his photo.

    Please feel free to email the author with your comments about this article: Tom Bair

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