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Why windows 7 is rubbish

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csharpc++comwindows-admintools
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  • C Christian Graus

    That's a good question, I guess I should look at my installer package to see if it supports that. Is such a setting permanent, because in my case, someone could install, and run the registration app later. My big fear would be that trying to do this, might cause the installer to just not run at all.

    Christian Graus Driven to the arms of OSX by Vista. Read my blog to find out how I've worked around bugs in Microsoft tools and frameworks.

    H Offline
    H Offline
    Hans Dietrich
    wrote on last edited by
    #5

    I believe you can change the access level later, but I don't know what privilege you would need. I'm pretty sure setting the access level at install time would solve your problem.

    Best wishes, Hans


    [Hans Dietrich Software]

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    • H Hans Dietrich

      I believe you can change the access level later, but I don't know what privilege you would need. I'm pretty sure setting the access level at install time would solve your problem.

      Best wishes, Hans


      [Hans Dietrich Software]

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      C Offline
      Christian Graus
      wrote on last edited by
      #6

      If an msi can do that, without having to right click and run as admin, then that seems counter intuitive to me, given that my app can't. If there's a way I can test for every possible Windows 7 configuration to make sure my users can use the msi, then I'll probably do it, but it worries me, because it's all obviously flaky to start with.

      Christian Graus Driven to the arms of OSX by Vista. Read my blog to find out how I've worked around bugs in Microsoft tools and frameworks.

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      • C Christian Graus

        If an msi can do that, without having to right click and run as admin, then that seems counter intuitive to me, given that my app can't. If there's a way I can test for every possible Windows 7 configuration to make sure my users can use the msi, then I'll probably do it, but it worries me, because it's all obviously flaky to start with.

        Christian Graus Driven to the arms of OSX by Vista. Read my blog to find out how I've worked around bugs in Microsoft tools and frameworks.

        H Offline
        H Offline
        Hans Dietrich
        wrote on last edited by
        #7

        I can't access MSDN right now, but I believe there are exceptions made for installers.

        Best wishes, Hans


        [Hans Dietrich Software]

        1 Reply Last reply
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        • C Christian Graus

          Apparently, the person reading the registry key I need to write, has found that his code works in Weven ( he's in C++ ) and it just writes to CurrentUser instead of LocalMachine. In C#, the code crashes if I try to write to LocalMachine, unless the user right clicks and runs as admin. Not much good for an auto run installer app, or even just a general user app. So, now my app will need to be registered by every user who uses it, or we need to change the registration mechanism.

          Christian Graus Driven to the arms of OSX by Vista. Read my blog to find out how I've worked around bugs in Microsoft tools and frameworks.

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          P Offline
          peterchen
          wrote on last edited by
          #8

          Christian Graus wrote:

          In C#, the code throws an exception indicating insufficient access rights if I try to write to LocalMachine

          FTFY (I assume)

          FILETIME to time_t
          | FoldWithUs! | sighist | WhoIncludes - Analyzing C++ include file hierarchy

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          • C Christian Graus

            If an msi can do that, without having to right click and run as admin, then that seems counter intuitive to me, given that my app can't. If there's a way I can test for every possible Windows 7 configuration to make sure my users can use the msi, then I'll probably do it, but it worries me, because it's all obviously flaky to start with.

            Christian Graus Driven to the arms of OSX by Vista. Read my blog to find out how I've worked around bugs in Microsoft tools and frameworks.

            K Offline
            K Offline
            kinar
            wrote on last edited by
            #9

            what installer are you using? I know that NSIS can do this with a simple "RequestExecutionLevel admin" at the top. scratch that, I misread the suggestion. However, with my dealings in C++, I know that my app certainly gets errors in Vista/Weven when I try to write or read from a registry setting the user doesn't have access to.

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            • C Christian Graus

              If an msi can do that, without having to right click and run as admin, then that seems counter intuitive to me, given that my app can't. If there's a way I can test for every possible Windows 7 configuration to make sure my users can use the msi, then I'll probably do it, but it worries me, because it's all obviously flaky to start with.

              Christian Graus Driven to the arms of OSX by Vista. Read my blog to find out how I've worked around bugs in Microsoft tools and frameworks.

              H Offline
              H Offline
              Hans Dietrich
              wrote on last edited by
              #10

              Christian Graus wrote:

              but it worries me, because it's all obviously flaky to start with

              I understand your concern, but in this particular case I think it works well. This technique is what stopped the rioting of the UAC wars. :)

              Best wishes, Hans


              [Hans Dietrich Software]

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              • C Christian Graus

                Apparently, the person reading the registry key I need to write, has found that his code works in Weven ( he's in C++ ) and it just writes to CurrentUser instead of LocalMachine. In C#, the code crashes if I try to write to LocalMachine, unless the user right clicks and runs as admin. Not much good for an auto run installer app, or even just a general user app. So, now my app will need to be registered by every user who uses it, or we need to change the registration mechanism.

                Christian Graus Driven to the arms of OSX by Vista. Read my blog to find out how I've worked around bugs in Microsoft tools and frameworks.

                N Offline
                N Offline
                NormDroid
                wrote on last edited by
                #11

                :sigh: Time to use Unix or Apple and let let me tell you, you'll be begging to come back. In windows YOU CAN NOT write to local machine unless you are Admin, this is by design and a security feature to stop malicous code.

                Software Kinetics - The home of good software

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                • C Christian Graus

                  That's a good question, I guess I should look at my installer package to see if it supports that. Is such a setting permanent, because in my case, someone could install, and run the registration app later. My big fear would be that trying to do this, might cause the installer to just not run at all.

                  Christian Graus Driven to the arms of OSX by Vista. Read my blog to find out how I've worked around bugs in Microsoft tools and frameworks.

                  N Offline
                  N Offline
                  NormDroid
                  wrote on last edited by
                  #12

                  You'd still have to run 'As Administrator' when launching the install program.

                  Software Kinetics - The home of good software

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                  • C Christian Graus

                    Apparently, the person reading the registry key I need to write, has found that his code works in Weven ( he's in C++ ) and it just writes to CurrentUser instead of LocalMachine. In C#, the code crashes if I try to write to LocalMachine, unless the user right clicks and runs as admin. Not much good for an auto run installer app, or even just a general user app. So, now my app will need to be registered by every user who uses it, or we need to change the registration mechanism.

                    Christian Graus Driven to the arms of OSX by Vista. Read my blog to find out how I've worked around bugs in Microsoft tools and frameworks.

                    L Offline
                    L Offline
                    Lost User
                    wrote on last edited by
                    #13

                    Wouldn't you have the same issue logged in as a limited XP user? I'm pretty sure you can't write to HKLM in that case either.

                    Blogging about Qt Creator

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                    • N NormDroid

                      You'd still have to run 'As Administrator' when launching the install program.

                      Software Kinetics - The home of good software

                      C Offline
                      C Offline
                      Christian Graus
                      wrote on last edited by
                      #14

                      Then it's useless. I tried creating a manifest that runs as admin and it did not help.

                      Christian Graus Driven to the arms of OSX by Vista. Read my blog to find out how I've worked around bugs in Microsoft tools and frameworks.

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                      • L Lost User

                        Wouldn't you have the same issue logged in as a limited XP user? I'm pretty sure you can't write to HKLM in that case either.

                        Blogging about Qt Creator

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                        C Offline
                        Christian Graus
                        wrote on last edited by
                        #15

                        Well, I guess it's possible, although not common, for an XP machine to be locked down so that software needs to be installed again for each user.

                        Christian Graus Driven to the arms of OSX by Vista. Read my blog to find out how I've worked around bugs in Microsoft tools and frameworks.

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                        • H Hans Dietrich

                          Christian Graus wrote:

                          but it worries me, because it's all obviously flaky to start with

                          I understand your concern, but in this particular case I think it works well. This technique is what stopped the rioting of the UAC wars. :)

                          Best wishes, Hans


                          [Hans Dietrich Software]

                          C Offline
                          C Offline
                          Christian Graus
                          wrote on last edited by
                          #16

                          No, it does not work. The msi ran fine, but I still can't write to that key.

                          Christian Graus Driven to the arms of OSX by Vista. Read my blog to find out how I've worked around bugs in Microsoft tools and frameworks.

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                          • C Christian Graus

                            Well, I guess it's possible, although not common, for an XP machine to be locked down so that software needs to be installed again for each user.

                            Christian Graus Driven to the arms of OSX by Vista. Read my blog to find out how I've worked around bugs in Microsoft tools and frameworks.

                            H Offline
                            H Offline
                            Hans Dietrich
                            wrote on last edited by
                            #17

                            Wow. It looks like you have a uni-follower.

                            Best wishes, Hans


                            [Hans Dietrich Software]

                            1 Reply Last reply
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                            • C Christian Graus

                              Apparently, the person reading the registry key I need to write, has found that his code works in Weven ( he's in C++ ) and it just writes to CurrentUser instead of LocalMachine. In C#, the code crashes if I try to write to LocalMachine, unless the user right clicks and runs as admin. Not much good for an auto run installer app, or even just a general user app. So, now my app will need to be registered by every user who uses it, or we need to change the registration mechanism.

                              Christian Graus Driven to the arms of OSX by Vista. Read my blog to find out how I've worked around bugs in Microsoft tools and frameworks.

                              P Offline
                              P Offline
                              PIEBALDconsult
                              wrote on last edited by
                              #18

                              The registry is evil, don't use it.

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                              • C Christian Graus

                                Well, I guess it's possible, although not common, for an XP machine to be locked down so that software needs to be installed again for each user.

                                Christian Graus Driven to the arms of OSX by Vista. Read my blog to find out how I've worked around bugs in Microsoft tools and frameworks.

                                L Offline
                                L Offline
                                Lost User
                                wrote on last edited by
                                #19

                                We see limited-user XP setups all the time, especially with larger customers who have thousands of desktops (I work in the automotive industry so I'm talking about companies like Mercedes-Benz, BMW, etc.) I don't use the registry any more tbh - I've gone back to using INI files! Much less hassle and easier to support because they can be sent via email and edited by hand without danger of breaking something else.

                                Blogging about Qt Creator

                                M C 2 Replies Last reply
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                                • C Christian Graus

                                  Apparently, the person reading the registry key I need to write, has found that his code works in Weven ( he's in C++ ) and it just writes to CurrentUser instead of LocalMachine. In C#, the code crashes if I try to write to LocalMachine, unless the user right clicks and runs as admin. Not much good for an auto run installer app, or even just a general user app. So, now my app will need to be registered by every user who uses it, or we need to change the registration mechanism.

                                  Christian Graus Driven to the arms of OSX by Vista. Read my blog to find out how I've worked around bugs in Microsoft tools and frameworks.

                                  A Offline
                                  A Offline
                                  Anna Jayne Metcalfe
                                  wrote on last edited by
                                  #20

                                  That's not new at all; in fact writing to HKLM from a user app has been deprecated behaviour since at least Windows 2000 (along with writing to Program Files etc.). It's just that it wasn't enforced until 2006 when Vista arrived (the redirect to HKCU is for backward compatibility for badly behaved apps). I'm a bit surprised you're only discovering this now, to be honest.

                                  Anna :rose: Tech Blog | Visual Lint "Why would anyone prefer to wield a weapon that takes both hands at once, when they could use a lighter (and obviously superior) weapon that allows you to wield multiple ones at a time, and thus supports multi-paradigm carnage?"

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                                  • L Lost User

                                    We see limited-user XP setups all the time, especially with larger customers who have thousands of desktops (I work in the automotive industry so I'm talking about companies like Mercedes-Benz, BMW, etc.) I don't use the registry any more tbh - I've gone back to using INI files! Much less hassle and easier to support because they can be sent via email and edited by hand without danger of breaking something else.

                                    Blogging about Qt Creator

                                    M Offline
                                    M Offline
                                    Mycroft Holmes
                                    wrote on last edited by
                                    #21

                                    Rob Caldecott wrote:

                                    I've gone back to using INI files!

                                    Whats old is new again - isn't a config file just an ini file on xml! I don't understand anyone using the registry these days, me thinks CG is going to have to change his rego regime.

                                    Never underestimate the power of human stupidity RAH

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                                    • L Lost User

                                      We see limited-user XP setups all the time, especially with larger customers who have thousands of desktops (I work in the automotive industry so I'm talking about companies like Mercedes-Benz, BMW, etc.) I don't use the registry any more tbh - I've gone back to using INI files! Much less hassle and easier to support because they can be sent via email and edited by hand without danger of breaking something else.

                                      Blogging about Qt Creator

                                      C Offline
                                      C Offline
                                      Christian Graus
                                      wrote on last edited by
                                      #22

                                      Yeah, I know. I do the same, but in this case, I am doing what I was told to pass info from my program to theirs. I've suggested we revert to using an ini file.

                                      Christian Graus Driven to the arms of OSX by Vista. Read my blog to find out how I've worked around bugs in Microsoft tools and frameworks.

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                                      • C Christian Graus

                                        Then it's useless. I tried creating a manifest that runs as admin and it did not help.

                                        Christian Graus Driven to the arms of OSX by Vista. Read my blog to find out how I've worked around bugs in Microsoft tools and frameworks.

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                                        A Offline
                                        Anna Jayne Metcalfe
                                        wrote on last edited by
                                        #23

                                        The manifest should work; we've used this technique ourself. Alternatively, if the installer has "setup" in the name the system will assume it's an installer and automatically elevate it (for backward compatibility with installers without manifests).

                                        Anna :rose: Tech Blog | Visual Lint "Why would anyone prefer to wield a weapon that takes both hands at once, when they could use a lighter (and obviously superior) weapon that allows you to wield multiple ones at a time, and thus supports multi-paradigm carnage?"

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                                        • A Anna Jayne Metcalfe

                                          That's not new at all; in fact writing to HKLM from a user app has been deprecated behaviour since at least Windows 2000 (along with writing to Program Files etc.). It's just that it wasn't enforced until 2006 when Vista arrived (the redirect to HKCU is for backward compatibility for badly behaved apps). I'm a bit surprised you're only discovering this now, to be honest.

                                          Anna :rose: Tech Blog | Visual Lint "Why would anyone prefer to wield a weapon that takes both hands at once, when they could use a lighter (and obviously superior) weapon that allows you to wield multiple ones at a time, and thus supports multi-paradigm carnage?"

                                          C Offline
                                          C Offline
                                          Christian Graus
                                          wrote on last edited by
                                          #24

                                          Anna-Jayne Metcalfe wrote:

                                          I'm a bit surprised you're only discovering this now, to be honest.

                                          *grin* I've known for a long time that the registry is not the recommended way to do things, this is the first time I've touched it in ages ( I had to look up the code for accessing the registry in .NET ). In that sense, I'm not surprised there are issues, it's just frustrating, I mean, again, what's HKLM for, if not to store something machine wide ?

                                          Christian Graus Driven to the arms of OSX by Vista. Read my blog to find out how I've worked around bugs in Microsoft tools and frameworks.

                                          H A 2 Replies Last reply
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