Not running real Windows?

Okay, I forget the exact wording because I got flustered, but I just came back
to my desktop after being away for a few hours while I watched the football game
and there was a window open telling me my computer wasn't using real, or
authentic or whatever the adjective was Windows. It told me to click on a link
to resolve online. I did so and it launched my browser and sent me to a
microsft.com site wanting to sell me Windows for $149.

I've had this system for 4-1/2 years. It was custom built for me and I bought
and paid for Windows 7 Professional, 64bit. The disk is in the hutch above the
computer.

Why would I get such a message? Is this some kind of scam? I thought a legal
version of Windows was known to Microsoft. I've always gotten the updates
whenever they comeout. What the hell was this all about? Thanks.

On 12/11/2014 9:06 PM, wrote:
Okay, I forget the exact wording because I got flustered, but I just came back
to my desktop after being away for a few hours while I watched the football game
and there was a window open telling me my computer wasn't using real, or
authentic or whatever the adjective was Windows. It told me to click on a link
to resolve online. I did so and it launched my browser and sent me to a
microsft.com site wanting to sell me Windows for $149.

I've had this system for 4-1/2 years. It was custom built for me and I bought
and paid for Windows 7 Professional, 64bit. The disk is in the hutch above the
computer.

Why would I get such a message? Is this some kind of scam? I thought a legal
version of Windows was known to Microsoft. I've always gotten the updates
whenever they comeout. What the hell was this all about? Thanks.


You might be a victim of fraud or at least attempted fraud. If so, I
suspect the fraud is not from the building of your PC and the
installation of Windows 7. Instead, it is likely from the more recent
request for payment.

--
David E. Ross

The Crimea is Putin's Sudetenland.
The Ukraine will be Putin's Czechoslovakia.
See http://www.rossde.com/editorials/edtl_PutinUkraine.html.

wrote:
Okay, I forget the exact wording because I got flustered, but I just came back
to my desktop after being away for a few hours while I watched the football game
and there was a window open telling me my computer wasn't using real, or
authentic or whatever the adjective was Windows. It told me to click on a link
to resolve online. I did so and it launched my browser and sent me to a
microsft.com site wanting to sell me Windows for $149.

I've had this system for 4-1/2 years. It was custom built for me and I bought
and paid for Windows 7 Professional, 64bit. The disk is in the hutch above the
computer.

Why would I get such a message? Is this some kind of scam? I thought a legal
version of Windows was known to Microsoft. I've always gotten the updates
whenever they comeout. What the hell was this all about? Thanks.

If you've the disk and material on the shelf, you should be able to
reenter the product key that came with the stuff on the shelf.

Worst case scenario...the custom builder used the same product key on
more than one machine.

--
...winston
msft mvp consumer apps

On Fri, 12 Dec 2014 00:06:23 -0500, wrote:
it launched my browser and sent me to a
microsft.com site wanting to sell me Windows for $149.

If you mean what you wrote, there's your answer. You have some sort
of malware or ransomware, and "microsft.com" is trying to extort
money from you.

If that was just a typo for "microsoft.com", you've fallen victim to
Microsoft's flawed "Windows Genuine Advantage" scheme. Call them and
have them unlock your copy.

--
Stan Brown, Oak Road Systems, Tompkins County, New York, USA
http://OakRoadSystems.com
Shikata ga nai...

wrote:
Okay, I forget the exact wording because I got flustered, but I just came back
to my desktop after being away for a few hours while I watched the football game
and there was a window open telling me my computer wasn't using real, or
authentic or whatever the adjective was Windows. It told me to click on a link
to resolve online. I did so and it launched my browser and sent me to a
microsft.com site wanting to sell me Windows for $149.

I've had this system for 4-1/2 years. It was custom built for me and I bought
and paid for Windows 7 Professional, 64bit. The disk is in the hutch above the
computer.

Why would I get such a message? Is this some kind of scam? I thought a legal
version of Windows was known to Microsoft. I've always gotten the updates
whenever they comeout. What the hell was this all about? Thanks.

This is purely a guess on my part, but see the

"What is this KBKB3024777 update?"

thread. There is an update for root certificates which
was apparently broken, and 777 removes it.

It's possible the screwed up root certificate situation,
causes a problem when Windows "called home", leading to the
"Not Authentic" indication.

Now, what I can't tell you, is whether using System Restore
would return authentication or not.

At the very least, remove the last batch of updates. I would
at least want the root certificate one removed.

Then, do a reboot. Is it still complaining ?

*******

From my notes file:

License manager for Windows 7

slmgr -dli
(this will display the current activation/licensing info)
slmgr -dlv
(same as dli but verbose)

slmgr -xpr (shows expiration date of current license)

slmgr -upk
(this will remove the product key)

slmgr -ipk xxxxx-xxxxx-xxxxx-xxxxx-xxxxx (this will replace the current
product key with a specified key)

slmgr with no parameters for pages of info.

The Startup-type should be set to: Automatic (Delayed Start)
and the Recovery tab should show First and Second failure set
to Restart.

That last line is pretty cryptic and I'd have to look in Services
to see what that was about.

There are also commands involving "slui 3" or "slui 4",
which bring up a GUI onto the screen. For example "slui 3"
allows changing the product key.

http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials...er-change.html

This thread (for Vista), says the slui command options
are as follows.

https://social.technet.microsoft.com...istaactivation

slui.exe 2
Automatically activates Windows online.

slui.exe 3
Allows you to enter the Product Key and then activate Windows.

slui 4
Starts the Activate by Telephone option.

It looks like option 2 might be enough, as the license
key is correct.

But I wouldn't do that, until whatever update tipped
the machine over, has been removed. While a "Not Genuine"
could pop up after some third party addition, I'm guessing
in this case, it was caused by something from Patch Tuesday.
And we know at least one of the patches was bad
(Root Certificate one).

Paul

On 12-Dec-2014 00:06, wrote:
Okay, I forget the exact wording because I got flustered, but I just came back
to my desktop after being away for a few hours while I watched the football game
and there was a window open telling me my computer wasn't using real, or
authentic or whatever the adjective was Windows. It told me to click on a link
to resolve online. I did so and it launched my browser and sent me to a
microsft.com site wanting to sell me Windows for $149.

I've had this system for 4-1/2 years. It was custom built for me and I bought
and paid for Windows 7 Professional, 64bit. The disk is in the hutch above the
computer.

Why would I get such a message? Is this some kind of scam? I thought a legal
version of Windows was known to Microsoft. I've always gotten the updates
whenever they comeout. What the hell was this all about? Thanks.


Windows update KB3004394 issues

some issues include the inability to receive further updates, the
sudden popup of the "windows genuine advantage" dialog asking you to
validate your copy of windows and then some more; the solution is to
uninstall the update, reboot and everything goes back to normal

On Fri, 12 Dec 2014 00:06:23 -0500, rfdjr1 wrote:

Okay, I forget the exact wording because I got flustered, but I just
came back to my desktop after being away for a few hours while I watched
the football game and there was a window open telling me my computer
wasn't using real, or authentic or whatever the adjective was Windows.
It told me to click on a link to resolve online. I did so and it
launched my browser and sent me to a microsft.com site wanting to sell
me Windows for $149.

I've had this system for 4-1/2 years. It was custom built for me and I
bought and paid for Windows 7 Professional, 64bit. The disk is in the
hutch above the computer.

Why would I get such a message? Is this some kind of scam? I thought a
legal version of Windows was known to Microsoft. I've always gotten the
updates whenever they comeout. What the hell was this all about? Thanks.

Control panel/System and scroll down will tell you if you are activated
and genuine or not but I suspect the microsoft site is a fake.

On 12/12/2014 09:31, Stan Brown wrote:
On Fri, 12 Dec 2014 00:06:23 -0500, wrote:
it launched my browser and sent me to a
microsft.com site wanting to sell me Windows for $149.

If you mean what you wrote, there's your answer. You have some sort
of malware or ransomware, and "microsft.com" is trying to extort
money from you.

If that was just a typo for "microsoft.com", you've fallen victim to
Microsoft's flawed "Windows Genuine Advantage" scheme. Call them and
have them unlock your copy.


It is so badly flawed that my preferred option is to use a little
utility to remove the whole of the validation and WGA **** from my
system even though it is a licensed and paid-for copy of windows.
Otherwise years down the line you will still be pestered by it if you
say, put in a new graphics card or something.

Tim W

On Fri, 12 Dec 2014 13:08:49 +0000 (UTC), Newsworthy
wrote:

On Fri, 12 Dec 2014 00:06:23 -0500, rfdjr1 wrote:

Okay, I forget the exact wording because I got flustered, but I just
came back to my desktop after being away for a few hours while I watched
the football game and there was a window open telling me my computer
wasn't using real, or authentic or whatever the adjective was Windows.
It told me to click on a link to resolve online. I did so and it
launched my browser and sent me to a microsft.com site wanting to sell
me Windows for $149.

I've had this system for 4-1/2 years. It was custom built for me and I
bought and paid for Windows 7 Professional, 64bit. The disk is in the
hutch above the computer.

Why would I get such a message? Is this some kind of scam? I thought a
legal version of Windows was known to Microsoft. I've always gotten the
updates whenever they comeout. What the hell was this all about? Thanks.

Control panel/System and scroll down will tell you if you are activated
and genuine or not but I suspect the microsoft site is a fake.


It says Windows is activated and shows a product ID. And as I haven't caalled
them in years, is it still possible to call and get through to Microsoft and get
help? Thanks for the replies.

On 12/11/2014 11:06 PM, wrote:
Okay, I forget the exact wording because I got flustered, but I just came back
to my desktop after being away for a few hours while I watched the football game
and there was a window open telling me my computer wasn't using real, or
authentic or whatever the adjective was Windows. It told me to click on a link
to resolve online. I did so and it launched my browser and sent me to a
microsft.com site wanting to sell me Windows for $149.



You said the site was "microsft.com"

Note, that is /not/ how you spell Microsoft


so I am quite sure it's a scam

wrote:

On Fri, 12 Dec 2014 13:08:49 +0000 (UTC), Newsworthy
wrote:

On Fri, 12 Dec 2014 00:06:23 -0500, rfdjr1 wrote:

Okay, I forget the exact wording because I got flustered, but I
just came back to my desktop after being away for a few hours
while I watched the football game and there was a window open
telling me my computer wasn't using real, or authentic or whatever
the adjective was Windows. It told me to click on a link to
resolve online. I did so and it launched my browser and sent me to
a microsft.com site wanting to sell me Windows for $149.

I've had this system for 4-1/2 years. It was custom built for me
and I bought and paid for Windows 7 Professional, 64bit. The disk
is in the hutch above the computer.

Why would I get such a message? Is this some kind of scam? I
thought a legal version of Windows was known to Microsoft. I've
always gotten the updates whenever they comeout. What the hell was
this all about? Thanks.

Control panel/System and scroll down will tell you if you are
activated and genuine or not but I suspect the microsoft site is a
fake.


It says Windows is activated and shows a product ID. And as I
haven't caalled them in years, is it still possible to call and get
through to Microsoft and get help? Thanks for the replies.

Check the validity of your Windows 7 license by following the steps
from the link;


http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials...ndows-7-a.html



--
Sir_George

On Fri, 12 Dec 2014 09:41:09 -0500, wrote:

On Fri, 12 Dec 2014 13:08:49 +0000 (UTC), Newsworthy
wrote:

On Fri, 12 Dec 2014 00:06:23 -0500, rfdjr1 wrote:

Okay, I forget the exact wording because I got flustered, but I just
came back to my desktop after being away for a few hours while I watched
the football game and there was a window open telling me my computer
wasn't using real, or authentic or whatever the adjective was Windows.
It told me to click on a link to resolve online. I did so and it
launched my browser and sent me to a microsft.com site wanting to sell
me Windows for $149.

I've had this system for 4-1/2 years. It was custom built for me and I
bought and paid for Windows 7 Professional, 64bit. The disk is in the
hutch above the computer.

Why would I get such a message? Is this some kind of scam? I thought a
legal version of Windows was known to Microsoft. I've always gotten the
updates whenever they comeout. What the hell was this all about? Thanks.

Control panel/System and scroll down will tell you if you are activated
and genuine or not but I suspect the microsoft site is a fake.


It says Windows is activated and shows a product ID. And as I haven't caalled
them in years, is it still possible to call and get through to Microsoft and get
help? Thanks for the replies.

I just got off the phone after a half hour with Microsoft. It was indeed an
issue with one of the most recent updates. They're apparently aware of in.The
night before last, when I shut the computer off, I had 21 updates downloaded. It
was apparently one of those. The Microsoft tech took remote control of my system
and supposedly removed the offending update with the caveat that if it returned,
a higher up tech would help me. They will call me in a day or two to see if it
happened again. Otherwise, I have their number and a ticket number to call them
back. Also, when I did contact them initially, it was online, and I requested a
call. They called me back in 2-1/2 minutes. I was actually pleasantly surprised.

On 12-Dec-2014 10:34, wrote:
On Fri, 12 Dec 2014 09:41:09 -0500, wrote:

On Fri, 12 Dec 2014 13:08:49 +0000 (UTC), Newsworthy
wrote:

On Fri, 12 Dec 2014 00:06:23 -0500, rfdjr1 wrote:

Okay, I forget the exact wording because I got flustered, but I just
came back to my desktop after being away for a few hours while I watched
the football game and there was a window open telling me my computer
wasn't using real, or authentic or whatever the adjective was Windows.
It told me to click on a link to resolve online. I did so and it
launched my browser and sent me to a microsft.com site wanting to sell
me Windows for $149.

I've had this system for 4-1/2 years. It was custom built for me and I
bought and paid for Windows 7 Professional, 64bit. The disk is in the
hutch above the computer.

Why would I get such a message? Is this some kind of scam? I thought a
legal version of Windows was known to Microsoft. I've always gotten the
updates whenever they comeout. What the hell was this all about? Thanks.

Control panel/System and scroll down will tell you if you are activated
and genuine or not but I suspect the microsoft site is a fake.


It says Windows is activated and shows a product ID. And as I haven't caalled
them in years, is it still possible to call and get through to Microsoft and get
help? Thanks for the replies.

I just got off the phone after a half hour with Microsoft. It was indeed an
issue with one of the most recent updates. They're apparently aware of in.The
night before last, when I shut the computer off, I had 21 updates downloaded. It
was apparently one of those. The Microsoft tech took remote control of my system
and supposedly removed the offending update with the caveat that if it returned,
a higher up tech would help me. They will call me in a day or two to see if it
happened again. Otherwise, I have their number and a ticket number to call them
back. Also, when I did contact them initially, it was online, and I requested a
call. They called me back in 2-1/2 minutes. I was actually pleasantly surprised.


They probably removed Windows update KB3004394

In t Stan Brown
wrote:

If you mean what you wrote, there's your answer. You have some sort
of malware or ransomware, and "microsft.com" is trying to extort
money from you.

Domain Name: microsft.com

Registrant Organization: Microsoft Corporation
Registrant Street: One Microsoft Way,
Registrant City: Redmond
Registrant State/Province: WA
Registrant Postal Code: 98052
Registrant Country: US
Registrant Phone: +1.4258828080
Registrant Phone Ext:
Registrant Fax: +1.4259367329
Registrant Fax Ext:
Registrant Email:

Although "extort" might still be the right word.

--
St. Paul, MN

On Fri, 12 Dec 2014 16:52:39 +0000 (UTC), Bert wrote:

In t Stan Brown
wrote:

If you mean what you wrote, there's your answer. You have some sort
of malware or ransomware, and "microsft.com" is trying to extort
money from you.

Domain Name: microsft.com

Registrant Organization: Microsoft Corporation
Registrant Street: One Microsoft Way,
Registrant City: Redmond
Registrant State/Province: WA
Registrant Postal Code: 98052
Registrant Country: US
Registrant Phone: +1.4258828080
Registrant Phone Ext:
Registrant Fax: +1.4259367329
Registrant Fax Ext:
Registrant Email:

Although "extort" might still be the right word.


That was a typo on my part. It was microsoft.com.