"You may be a victim of software counterfeiting" - Calgarypuck Forums - The Unofficial Calgary Flames Fan Community

metallicat · 07-23-2006, 12:19 AM

I restarted my PC a little while ago, and something came up before windows fully loaded that said I am not using a genuine copy of Windows. A friend of mine built my PC for him, and installed XP Home for me. He told me it was a legitimate copy of XP that he had bought for himself, but no longer used. Whether it was, I don't know.

But if it was fake, why am I just now getting this message? Apparently I cannot download full updates because of this. I don't exactly want to purchase another copy of Windows...

Anyone know how I can overcome this?

Circa89 · 07-23-2006, 12:31 AM

I have the same thing thinking I had a legitimate copy of windows, but I put my computer together piece by piece at memory express and a few other loctaions around town. When you click on the link to purchase a full version they want $200. I know I can get one cheaper but will I have the same problem?

I-Hate-Hulse · 07-23-2006, 12:32 AM

Ask your friend how "legit" his copy of XP was. I'll bet it's not.

Not much you can do, other than to live without updates. A good search on Google will tell you how to remove those nagging messages, but I can't be more specific here on CP.

jamesteterenko · 07-23-2006, 12:47 AM

This is a good reason not to turn on automatic Windows updates. When I saw that "update", I just rejected it. I know my version of Windows is good, but I didn't want to take the chance with Microsoft.

James.

if.away · 07-23-2006, 12:49 AM

Your copy was not legit. You can either a) disable the messages or b) bypass them and obtain the updates just like a legit copy of windows would.

EDIT: Oh yeah, turn off automatic updates for crying out loud...

SoulOfTheFlame · 07-23-2006, 01:47 AM

Meh... turn off auto-updates, wait for vista.

Resolute 14 · 07-23-2006, 02:17 AM

Even with a pirated copy, you can still download critical updates. XP is stable enough at this point that automatic updates arent a huge issue.

Hemi-Cuda · 07-23-2006, 05:12 AM

MOD EDIT: Removed, do not offer that sort of thing here.

photon · 07-23-2006, 09:04 AM

You can overcome this by getting a legal copy of Windows (either by buying it or by having your friend provide it as you paid for it).

Otherwise, this thread is about how to circumvent Windows' copy protection, so I'm locking it.