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I am working a contract job for a business that was just bought out by an out-of-state company, and nearly all the IT infrastructure is being replaced. The PC's are going from Windows 10 to a different Windows 10 image. One of the salesmen relies on Microsoft Streets and Trips 2010, but getting it working on the new PC has been impossible. We have the DVD, keep case, literature, and registration key, but the online activation process fails with a message that we're out of usable licenses. I then spoke to a person at MS's registration center and because the software is discontinued, they won't lift a finger to help. (As an aside, being able to use something you've paid for is not my definition of offering "support".) Is there a technique to copy the "this software is registered" information from his original PC's registry, or is it signed in some way? As S&T is a MS product, I assume it adheres to some standard.
Failing that, can anybody provide insight into how the registration process works from a low level perspective? And has the Electronic Frontier Foundation or others ever put this scenario forward for a DMCA exemption? I am used to using free software at home, and this problem has gotten me ticked.
tao
Posted 2018-11-13T22:18:23.513
Reputation: 21
3You are very unlikely ever to see a DMCA exemption that will allow you to use Microsoft software (even if it's no longer supported) without a license. How the registration process works entirely depends on the software and the type of license you have, your activation options will vary based on the software you are trying to activate. Without more information on how the license was originally activated within your infrastructure this question cannot be answered. – Ramhound – 2018-11-13T22:29:38.527
I am not asking to use S&T without a license, which would essentially make it freeware. From what I understand, S&T was discontinued in 2014, while Win10 wasn't released until 2015. If MS was similarly intransigent back then, the company must have at least two licenses, to get it running on the first Win10 PC at all. The best solution would be for MS to let us recycle a license, but that ain't happening, hence my question about porting the underlying registry key(s). The registration process is similar to registering older MS products, either calling a number or typing the key into a form. – tao – 2018-11-14T02:55:49.230
Microsoft is free to support their software for as long as they want, as outlined by the terms of use, which have been upheld in numerous court cases. Most Microsoft software communicates with an activation server, which means, exporting the key by itself (after the software is installed) will NOT result in an activated installation of the software. DMCA only covers a fraction of Microsoft’s customers anyways. DMCA exception isn’t going to be granted to use Microsoft software, Microsoft has enough money, to make darn sure that will never happen – Ramhound – 2018-11-14T02:59:04.383
Right. I have the activation key and that hasn't fixed anything. My question is whether there's a technique to port the underlying registry infrastructure created by the activation process from PC#1 to PC#2. – tao – 2018-11-14T03:03:17.377
I would hazard to guess the machine was upgraded to Windows 10, instead of the application be activated, on a fresh install of Windows 10. You called your one legal the method. – Ramhound – 2018-11-14T03:06:31.400
Yeah, I guess that's highly possible. But my question still stands. :) And if the answer is "no", due to some kind of signing process, I'd be curious for any insights whatsoever into how the registration process works from a low-level perspective. – tao – 2018-11-14T03:09:36.953
The content of your final paragraph is off-topic. – I say Reinstate Monica – 2018-11-14T13:27:33.750