Since Windows XP went 'Gold' on Aug. 24, the conspiracy theorists and corporate planners have been hard at work. Contrary to the beliefs espoused by the 'Oliver Stone' DOJ advocates, Microsoft did not rush XP to market to beat some artificial government deadline and avoid an injunction.
I've been testing Windows XP since early April,
and after loading and testing the final release candidate a few weeks ago, I can
tell you that the product is feature-complete and ready to release. So why did
Microsoft decide to release the Gold code two months before a public release
date? Because peripheral manufacturers need a final build to test drivers for
printers, network cards, sound cards, etc., and to get drivers not included on
the Windows XP CD into their packaging and onto their Web sites in time for the
formal launch (scheduled for Oct. 25, although several PC manufacturers may
start releasing PCs with Windows XP preloaded prior to that date).As an update to the rock-solid Windows 2000 kernel, Windows XP is the most stable kernel yet. More importantly, the release of XP signifies the merger of two operating-system code bases--the DOS-based Windows 9x and Windows Me and the more robust Windows 2000 kernel--into a single, robust, reliable, and secure code base.
XP also has an updated interface (although you can configure it to use the familiar Windows 2000 interface) and remote assistance using NetMeeting-style remote application control. This release also includes drivers and built-in support for 802.11b wireless networking. Two of the most controversial features are the inclusion of Windows Media Player 8 and product activation. In this article, I'll look at the need for and the implementation of product activation in Windows XP.
What is product
activation?
When a consumer installs a shrink-wrapped copy of Windows
XP or boots a PC that's been preinstalled with Windows XP, the operating system
will ask the user to activate the software. Although Windows XP will continue to
operate normally for 30 days from the first boot or upgrade, it will cease
functioning on day 31 until the software is activated. The activation agent of
Windows XP uses the local hardware configuration and a one-way mathematical
algorithm to create a "hardware hash key." This hash key is either uploaded to
Microsoft via an Internet connection or called in to a product activation
representative by the user. This one-way algorithm cannot be decomposed to
return the users' hardware configuration, thus protecting the user's
privacy.
The need for product
activation
Microsoft designed product activation for Windows XP to
eliminate the most common form of consumer-driven piracy--casual copying. Users
typically violate the end user agreement in this way unknowingly, because they
don't fully understand what they have committed to by purchasing the software.
Many consumers pass around software CDs to share the way they pass around music
CDs, unaware that one constitutes piracy while the other constitutes fair use.
Industry trade groups estimate that over 50 percent of all economic losses due
to piracy are the result of casual copying.
How does this affect enterprise
customers?
Much to the chagrin of the conspiracy theorists, the
inclusion of product activation in XP has minimal or no impact on corporate
customers. Customers who acquire their licenses through volume licensing
programs will not have to activate the software before installing it. Instead,
they will be issued a Volume License Product Key (VLK) to use when installing
products that require activation. The VLK can be used with Microsoft deployment
tools like unattended setup or CD imaging so that users are never prompted to
enter product keys during installation. VLKs will work only with the versions of
Windows XP loaded on the Select CD or other volume licensing CD media. This
prevents users from taking their VLK from the office and attempting to use it
during the install of full packaged retail products on their home PC.
If
you are an enterprise customer who is licensed to install Windows XP, you will
get a letter from the Microsoft Activation Center in the next few weeks
detailing how to contact the Activation Center to acquire your VLK. You should
take serious measures to protect your VLK. If PCs outside your company start
turning up with copies of Windows XP installed with your VLK, Microsoft can
directly trace your VLK to those PCs.
How does this
affect small-business customers and consultants?
For consultants who
spend a lot of time reconfiguring their systems by adding or removing devices,
activation can be a real inconvenience. Once the hardware hash key changes to
the point that it no longer matches the prior generated key, you will have to
call the Microsoft Product Activation centre to get a new key issued. Of course,
this applies only to purchasers of full retail packaged products (and upgrades)
and to new PCs purchased from a manufacturer. Since most small companies and
independent consultants acquire their licenses through this channel, they will
be affected the most by activation.
It's important to point out, however, that companies with as few as five PCs can qualify for product licensing under Microsoft's open license program. If you're a small company investigating your options for upgrading to Windows XP, you should look into buying these upgrades from a local MS reseller or from an online licensing source, such as License Online. This also may affect future PC purchases, since you'll want to buy PCs without any preinstalled software to take advantage of the open-license pricing and to avoid the requirements of product activation.
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Who pays costs for product activation?
Are we now expected to work for MS without any compensation?
The product activation policy imposes additional costs on the administrators, in terms of lost production time, every time changes to a computer are made.
My personal prediction, based on my conversations with other IT professionals, is that Microsoft has done a big mistake as many now feel the need to evaluate alternatives.