Great find! Certainly has to be faster than zeroing out the entire drive. Were you able to use the same name and email address?
@Xxb: Thanks for all your research on this issue. BTW, did you ever get a message similar to this when attempting your reinstall after formatting? In any event, I think Nitro went a bit too far with their licensing protection scheme since there are many "less intrusive" ways to handle expired registrations. my2cents
Yes - post #14 originally contained a link to a warez site. Poster removed it and now understands their error. All good now.
Just wondering, how did you found this?... This remembers me some kind of protection SimCity 3000 had. In that game, when some anti-piracy protection was enabled (triggered by using a backup CD), then even inserting the original CD, it still said something like "insert the original CD". Even formatting the HDD the problem was continuing. By that time, I was forced to use some No-CD, even having the original!. So, how I can find some similar kind of protection?... What tools you used to find this out?....
The question is: WHAT infos the developer is capturing from your computer? Ok, 'restoring' operations are NOT an formatting, means that the original infos about installed apps and min. partly available which could prevent a new installation and/or activation and that's a procedure up to the developer how much 'he' would allow to do! If there were an (multiple) format of the HDD, that would differs quite a lot. If an developer has captured data from my computer and is later on able to get again access to my machine and could compare the 'old' captured data with the new one, means he could have captured much more than 'just' infos about 'his app', he could also have 'captured' confidential private data and that's something I wouldn't like at all! From such apps I would keep my hands of for the future and block the access from that developers to my machine in total! To avoid the use of such apps on any computer on my LAN, for testing purpose I use an very cheap ADSL connection with 1 older machine only connected. That one is also on dynamic IP while my LAN is on static IP!
Sorry Mr. my2cents, I didn't leaved that out, I just used to quote and that will not display already quoted text! And you're right with your response about the formatting, but: For to access an formatted HDD over the Internet for to retrieve and restore some data, you'll need to have quite some knowledge in Computer Forensic! It may would also be an question if such action is covered by existing law for an private Company and/pr person. That it may would be allowed for Law Enforcement, it would with still some limitation, me think! In my company and my Office we generally low level formatting Hdd's which will be replaced, repaired, regenerated etc. etc. or physically damaged if broken already, means the platter would be destroyed! Also any new Hdd will be checked if there any data on it and if, they get directly low level formatted before any use! And don't do the mistake to think that all new HDD's are not containing any date, many of them do!
Forget to mention that, if they want to access your machine via the Internet unauthorized, they would have need some connection data captured which would be against the law, me think! Easy is an static IP was and is used, but dynamic IP! Here they need to have the Mac Address of your NIC captured, which is not an easy job! What they're using are clearly Hacker Methods! Lawfully? I don't think so!
No problem. I didn't get that. I beleive you would get that if you have activated a license before and then reinstalled windows, not a trial.
I came across this method after heavy Google search for couple days since formatting did not fix the issue . It was posted on an apps downloading forum (all credits goes to that user for finding this!) Apparently not only Nitro stores license info in that part of the disk, but any program that uses Nalpeiron services to handle their activation such as, onOne products. I guess from now on I will Secure Erase my SSD instead of quick format
Here is a dumb question: If sector 63 is blank (all zeros), could I put some identifying information there to help prove that drive is my property, should the need arise?