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There are plenty of programs refused to be installed on a Server OS. These programs will check the OS version and stop installation if it is a Server OS. Running ORCA will not fix the problem.
I happened to have brought a HP F2210 All-in-One Printer/Scanner and failed to install the driver/applications.
I am thinking of converting the w2k8 to Vista and make the installation and convert it back afterward to see if it will bypass the limitation.
I have successfully download/run a program to convert w2k8 to Vista but I lost it.
I want to learn how to convert between w2k8 and Vista! Can anyone help?
You can let Windows Server 2008 think it is Vista by replacing the tokens.dat file in %windir%ServiceProfilesNetworkServiceAppDataRoamingMicrosoftSoftwareLicensing with the tokens.dat file from a Vista PC. Always backup the current tokens.dat first! After installing the required drivers/applications you can revert to the backup of tokens.dat to have the normal Server 2008 back.
Possibly you have to take ownership over the tokens.dat file. To do this take a look at the Take Ownership/Permissions page in the manual.
Good luck!
This method is a complete success
Installing an un-installable software to w2k8 by changing w2k8 to Vista and backThanks Arris!
It turns out that it takes 2 things to convert w2k8 and Vista back and forth – changing the Taken.dat file and the Product Key.
The method work perfectly on my HP F2200 All-in-One Printer/Scanner.
The following procedure is what I have done to install HP Driver/Application Suite:
1. Boot to Vista x64
Replace the w2k8’s token.dat with Vista’s token.dat
(For the location of the token.dat file, please check with Arris’s post above.)2. Boot to w2k8 x64
Windows asked for activation but allow delay activation. Choose delay activation.
Replace the w2k8 product key with Vista’s.
(StartButton-ControlPanel-System-ChangeProductKey)
Reboot.
I checked with Windows Update and confirmed OS as genuine Vista.
Install the HP printer driver and application suite and test print OK.3. Boot to Vista x64
Replace w2k8’s token.dat with the original w2k8’s token.dat4. Boot to w2k8
Replace product key with w2k8’s
Reboot.
Test HP printer application suite and found working perfectly.Using this method, I believed most of the failed installations can be installed on w2k8
(unless the installed software continue to check for OS version when run).
Be sure to run w2k8 and Vista with the corresponding x64 or x86 version during conversion.Please report applications that pass/fail using this method
@Uncout wrote:
is there a way around this?
If you are not using a dual boot as described in stukan’s tutorial you will have to stop the Software Licensing service first. To do this click Run in the Start menu and enter services.msc. Next click OK, look for the Software Licensing service, right click it and choose Stop. Now you should be able to replace it after which you start the service again! To revert back to the original tokens.dat, also use this method!
Good luck! 🙂
Btw. Nice tutorial, stukan! :geek:
Arris, Stukan, you’re both geniuses. This is the ultimate crack ! The whole thing can be automated with a simple script. Maybe add the registry mod to it to get AVG working but change the real key temporarily instead of making the fake one. No need to patch software kits individually anymore. Convert, install anything that installs on that other OS and convert back to Server again. Even my mother can do that. Fantastic !! Thanks a lot.
@lars wrote:
Arris, Stukan, you’re both geniuses. This is the ultimate crack ! The whole thing can be automated with a simple script. Maybe add the registry mod to it to get AVG working but change the real key temporarily instead of making the fake one. No need to patch software kits individually anymore. Convert, install anything that installs on that other OS and convert back to Server again. Even my mother can do that. Fantastic !! Thanks a lot.
Arris:
How about asking sawo to add the function to his Windows Server 2008 Workstation Converter.
It will save us numerous boot and reboot of a dual-boot system to accomplish the same thing!stukan
@stukan wrote:
How about asking sawo to add the function to his Windows Server 2008 Workstation Converter.
It’s a nice suggestion, but I’d like to keep this forum clean of illegal activities. However, to automate the process a bit you can try to use the following batch-script I created.
@echo off
color 1f
echo [*] Windows Server 2008 temporary Vista Pretender.
echo [*] Visit www.win2008workstation.com for more info!
set tokenspath=%windir%ServiceProfilesNetworkServiceAppDataRoamingMicrosoftSoftwareLicensing
reg query "HKLMSOFTWAREMicrosoftWindows NTCurrentVersion" /v ProductName|find /I "Server"|find "2008">nul
IF %ERRORLEVEL% EQU 0 (
IF "%1" == "apply" (
IF EXIST tokens.dat (
IF EXIST %tokenspath%tokens_original.cab (
echo [-] tokens.dat has already been replaced by the Vista version! Aborting...
goto end
)ELSE (
echo [+] Enter a Windows Vista serial in order to continue.
echo Format: XXXXX-XXXXX-XXXXX-XXXXX-XXXXX
set /P vistaserial=
echo [+] Stopping Software Licensing services
net stop SLUINotify>con 2>nul
net stop slsvc>con 2>nul
echo [+] Deleting possible tokens_original.cab backup
del /Q %tokenspath%tokens_original.cab>nul 2>&1
echo [+] Backing-up original tokens.dat to tokens_original.cab
makecab %tokenspath%tokens.dat %tokenspath%tokens_original.cab
echo [+] Copying Vista's tokens.dat overwriting the Server 2008 one
copy /Y tokens.dat %tokenspath%tokens.dat
echo [+] Starting Software Licensing services again
net start slsvc>con 2>nul
net start SLUINotify>con 2>nul
echo [+] Applying Vista serial "%vistaserial%"...
cscript %windir%system32slmgr.vbs -ipk "%vistaserial%"
IF %ERRORLEVEL% NEQ 0 (
echo [-] Something went wrong, try to do it manually!
goto end
)ELSE (
echo [+] Serial installed! Reboot to apply new license!
goto end
)
)
)ELSE (
echo [-] Run this tool on Vista first to get it's tokens.dat!
goto end
)
)ELSE (
IF "%1" == "revert" (
IF EXIST %tokenspath%tokens_original.cab (
echo [+] Enter your Windows Server 2008 serial to continue,
echo or leave it blank to not enter a serial:
set /P serverserial=
echo [+] Stopping Software Licensing services
net stop SLUINotify>con 2>nul
net stop slsvc>con 2>nul
echo [+] Deleting possible tokens_vista.cab backup
del /Q %tokenspath%tokens_vista.cab>nul 2>&1
echo [+] Backing up tokens.dat to tokens_vista.cab
makecab %tokenspath%tokens.dat %tokenspath%tokens_vista.cab
echo [+] Copying the original tokens.dat back
expand %tokenspath%tokens_original.cab %tokenspath%tokens.dat
echo [+] Starting "Software Licensing" service again
net start slsvc>con 2>nul
net start SLUINotify>con 2>nul
IF "%serverserial%" == "" (
echo [+] No serial entered... Uninstalling current key...
cscript %windir%system32slmgr.vbs -upk
echo [+] Serial deinstalled. Reboot to apply new license!
goto delbak
)ELSE (
echo [+] Applying Server 2008 serial. This may take a while...
cscript %windir%system32slmgr.vbs -ipk %serverserial%
IF %ERRORLEVEL% NEQ 0 (
echo [-] Something went wrong, try to do it manually!
goto end
)ELSE (
echo [+] Serial installed! Reboot to apply new license!
goto delbak
)
)
)ELSE (
echo [-] No backup available to revert to!
goto end
)
)ELSE (
echo Usage: pretender.bat [action]
echo Where action is:
echo * apply - Apply the Vista tokens.dat and license to Windows Server 2008
echo * revert - Revert back to the original Windows Server 2008 license
goto end
)
)
)ELSE (
REM reg query "HKLMSOFTWAREMicrosoftWindows NTCurrentVersion" /v ProductName|find /I "Vista">nul
REM IF %ERRORLEVEL% EQU 0 (
echo [+] Copying Vista's tokens.dat to the folder in where this script runs
copy %tokenspath%tokens.dat .
REM IF %ERRORLEVEL% EQU 0 (
echo [+] Tokens.dat copied succesfully, now copy this script
echo including tokens.dat to your Server 2008 and run it there!
REM goto end
REM )ELSE (
REM echo [-] Something went wrong!
REM goto end
REM )
REM )ELSE (
REM echo [-] Make sure you run this script on Windows 6.x!
REM goto end
REM )
)
:delbak
del %tokenspath%tokens_original.cab
del %tokenspath%tokens_vista.cab
:end
colorUsage: pretender.bat [action]
Where action is:
* apply - Apply the Vista tokens.dat and license to Windows Server 2008
* revert - Revert back to the original Windows Server 2008 licenseHow to use
Fist run the tool in Windows Vista, after that copy the files tokens.dat and pretender.dat to Windows Server 2008 and run it there using the commandline pretender.bat apply. After you installed the software that didn’t want to install before, return to the Server 2008 license by running pretender.bat revert. You can view the Vista serial using for example the WinGuggle freeware tool.Known bugs/weird problems:
- The set /P vistaserial= command doesn’t save the input for within the script so the variable can’t be used later and the slmgr.vbs -ipk command fails. Workaround is to set the variable before running the script using set vistaserial=XXXXX-XXXXX-XXXXX-XXXXX-XXXXX.
- The error-handling part to copy the tokens.dat file from a Vista PC doesn’t work for some reason so I commented it out using the REM keyword.
Only use it if you know what you are doing and only at your own risk!
Maybe someone can find out how to fix these bugs because I couldn’t find any solution yet… 🙄
Good luck! 😉
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