I know MS has taken a lot of heat over the last few years for various things, and yes, some heat has been deserved. They own it, we just let it run on our systems.

Look guys, Microsoft has every right to check up on your installation of Windows. Believe me, this 'unique identifier' isn't going to cause any more problems than you already have by just living on this planet. You're already identified by IP address, you already have an installation serial number for Windows, Chrome (if you use it) contains a number for each individual installation. Trust me, one more number attached to you or your system isn't going to change anything. ■The name and a hash of the contents of the computer's start-up instructions file (commonly called the boot file) to help us discover activation exploits that modify this file.Īs standard procedure, your Internet Protocol (IP) address is temporarily logged when your computer connects to a Genuine Microsoft Software website or server.Ĭlick to expand. ◦The activation exploit’s file name and hash of the file, as well as a hash of related software components that may indicate the presence of an activation exploit

◦Original equipment manufacturer identification ◦The activation exploit's current state, such as cleaned or quarantined ■The result of the validation check, including error codes and information about any activation exploits and any related malicious or unauthorized software found or disabled, including: ■Whether the installation was successful if one was performed ■Hard drive volume serial number (hashed) ■BIOS name, revision number, and revision date ■A unique number assigned to your computer by the tools (Globally Unique Identifier or GUID) ■Version information for the operating system and software The tools do not collect your name, address, e-mail address, or any other information that Microsoft will use to identify you or contact you.

To help you validate your software, Genuine Microsoft Software tools must collect a certain amount of configuration and status information from your computer. Link is up and validation servers are running.

Windows 7 validation check