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Anti-piracy tool removed from Vista
Microsoft is withdrawing a feature known as the 'kill switch' in Windows Vista due to customer complaints. 'Kill switch' was designed to prevent piracy of the operating system.When the 'switch' is triggered it disables the operating system to prevent users with illegal copies of the programme from using certain features.
Glitches with the feature have led to a number of legal copies of Vista being disabled sparking protest from users.
The 'kill switch' will be removed with the release of Service Pack 1, a major update to the operating system.
When a copy of Vista is installed, either with a new PC or as part of an upgrade, an online tool, called Windows Genuine Advantage (WGA) checks the copy's authenticity.
If it is an unauthorised copy then WGA can "lock" it from further use, it was introduced as voluntary system in 2006 and became mandatory with release of Vista earlier this year.
The removal of the 'kill switch' has been described by Microsoft as a "change of tactics".
In a statement Microsoft corporate vice president Mike Sievert said: "It's worth re-emphasising that our fundamental strategy has not changed.
"All copies of Windows Vista still require activation and the system will continue to validate from time to time to verify that systems are activated properly."
In the last year the software giant has taken legal action against over 1,000 dealers of counterfeit products and taken down more than 50,000 "illegal and improper" online software auctions.
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Published Date: 2007-12-05 12:39:30Subscribe to our RSS News feed:
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