Designing a Proper Home Media System

Over the last couple of days I’ve had a lot of time to think about the design goals for a home media system. I firmly believe we possess all the technological bits and pieces to make this system a reality but I have yet to find anyone having published an article describing a real-world implementation.

The design goals are:

  1. I want to be able to view live and recorded HD cable (including premium channels) via a CableCard box on every TV in the house. I’d also like to be able to switch to satellite or OTA HDTV if I choose in the future.
  2. I want to be able to set up recording timers from any TV, computer, or device in the house. I’d also like to be able to do this remotely via the internet or telephone.
  3. I want to be able to share recorded programs between TVs. For example, if I record CNBC’s “Mad Money” from my office then I’d like to be able to watch the recording on another TV upstairs in the evening. I’d also be able to record a movie off HBO-HD in my family room and be able to watch the recording later in my home theater.
  4. I don’t want stacks of equipment next to every TV. Instead I want a client/server architecture (or more appropriately extender/media-center/storage-server architecture) and put it as much as possible in an equipment room.
  5. I’d like access to my entire library of CD, DVD, and Blu-Ray titles instaneously on any device in the house without loss of quality. If displayed on a smartphone then I’m happy to have it transcoded to a lower bitrate.
  6. I’d like to be able to view pictures, movies (regardless of codec), music (regardless of codec), and other content stored on a storage server on any display in the house. Adding content should be easy.
  7. I’d like to be able to pause a show/movie/music (either live, recorded, or stored media, internet TV, and HD/XM/internet/regular radio) on any playback device in the home and pick up from where I left off on another playback device.
  8. I’d like to be able to send recorded shows to my smartphone, portable music/video player, or laptop for viewing at another time. I’d to the player to know how far I was into the show just like a car CD player begins playing a song from where it left off when I turn off the ignition. When I return the device to the home network it should sync playback info so I can pick-up for where I left off again.
  9. I’d like to be able to view all of the content (live TV, recorded TV, movies, music, media files, internet TV, and HD/XM/internet/regular radio) anywhere I have an internet connection.
  10. I’d like to be able to burn and/or archive the shows onto another storage media as I determine.
  11. I’d like to be able to easily mirror the video content on either a subset or all of the displays in the house.
  12. I’d like to be able to easily mirror the audio content on either a subset or all of the multi-room speakers and audio systems in the house.
  13. I’d like to able to control this system via a home automation system (Crestron) and remotely when I’m not on the premises.
  14. I’d like to be able to selectively display caller-ID, weather, smarthome statistics, security camera feeds (triggered by a doorbell for example), and any other info on a display-by-display basis based on any triggering criteria desired. I’d also like these triggers to be able to lower the volume or perform other actions.
  15. I’d like the less technically inclined people to be able to run the system without supervision or fear of ruining the system itself.

I think this would satisfy my requirements but I’m sure there are things missing. Is there anything else you’d add or remove from this list? Let me know in the comments below.

Popularity: 1% [?]

August 5, 2009 | Filed Under General, Tech/Gadgets | 2 Comments 

Windows 7 Activation Spoofed (not cracked) via SLIC 2.1 and OEM Master Key

Is anyone surprised that news hit the web (Lifehacker, Neowin, Download Squad, Gizmodo, Softpedia, Ars Technica) today that Windows 7 can now be activated using the OEM BIOS hardmod/softmod method? I’m certainly not. The fact that Windows 7 can now be activated even though it won’t be available to the general public until October 22, 2009 should raise an eyebrow.

History

For those not in the know, Microsoft tightened up Windows Vista’s product activation scheme from the era of Windows XP due to prevalent usage of the less stringently protected corporate version. Vista requires users to activate the operating system by inputting a key and then verifying it with Microsoft either automatically over the internet or over the telephone. Large OEMs like Dell, IBM, Asus, and others need an efficient way to mass activate their computers so buyers don’t have to deal with the hassle of verifying their copy of Windows. Ultimately a method called System-Locked Pre-installation (SLP) 2.0 was devised from an earlier and simpler SLP 1.0 system used to protect OEM copies of Windows XP and Server 2003. SLP 1.0 and 2.0 both use a special area in a computer’s BIOS to host a set of identification data. In SLP 1.0 it was simply the name of the OEM in the BIOS with a set of less than half a dozen files on the hard drive to verify the OEM listed in the BIOS. In SLP 2.0, one piece of the puzzle involves an ACPI_SLIC table that Vista checks upon starting to verify its activation status. That’s not all. The remaining portions of SLP 2.0 puzzle include the presence of a matching OEM-supplied key and OEM-specific certificate file in addition to the OEM-specific ACPI_SLIC table (SLIC 2.0 table) before it can activate.

Crackers could easily retrieve the OEM-supplied key and OEM-specific certificate file but lacked the ACPI_SLIC table to fool Vista into activation. One cracking group released a method to insert an ACPI_SLIC table via a piece of software loaded by Vista (also known as a softmod). This method worked initially but Microsoft was able to detect it and shut it down. The next method was to insert an ACPI_SLIC table via software after the computer’s warm-up system checks but before Vista began loading. This method is commonly referred to as a loader and is the basis of nearly all software-based Vista activators.

While one group worked on software-based activators another group worked on modifying the BIOS on their computers by inserting an ACPI_SLIC table (also known as a hardmod). The technical learning curve for this method is still quite high but several pre-altered BIOS files for manufacturers can be Googled easily. There are also people on various internet forums more than willing to help out their less technically-skilled fellow community members by modifying BIOS files. The great benefit of this method was Microsoft would have a harder time coordinating a surgical strike against faked BIOS ACPI_SLIC tables since they would likely harm legitimately bought computers. Therefore the risk of being caught was less than Microsoft trying to detect software-based BIOS modification. While this vector is an attractive route for SLP 2.0 activation, the biggest risk with this method is an improperly modified BIOS could render the computer unable to start.

Both softmod and hardmod methods continue to be used today and Microsoft has done little to stop this form of piracy whether because of ambivalence or because of the very real threat of inundating OEMs like Dell, Asus, IBM and others with irate customers of legitimate machines being wrongly disabled.

The Story So Far…

Crackers knew Microsoft would be using the same basic method of activation from Vista in both Windows 7 and Server 2008 R2. Therefore today’s news of Microsoft’s next flagship consumer operating system, Windows 7, being activated with both a hardmod and softmod comes as no surprise. All that was needed was an updated version of the ACPI_SLIC table known as SLIC 2.1 so it was only a matter of getting the OEM-specific certificate file and OEM-supplied key. A Windows 7 disc stolen from computer-maker Lenovo was used to extract the OEM master key and certificate and posted online to a Chinese forum.

Within hours every major Windows 7 forum had manual instructions on how to install the softmod, key, and certificate. Shortly thereafter a programmer named Orbit30 from Win7Vista released 7Loader which automates the process for anyone astute enough to Google a download link and to grab a torrent for the RTM version of Windows 7 Ultimate. This loader was then posted on the My Digital Life Windows 7 Forums to join the already leaked key.

Semantics

Other sites have termed this activation method as a crack but I prefer the term spoofed because the activation system is only fooled to think its running on a legitimate OEM machine. A crack would entail a group defeating Microsoft’s built in activation system by directly disabling it. This hasn’t been done yet. Nor has anyone released a key generator for Vista, Server 2008, or Windows 7 with a way to generate the phone-based challenge response for offline activation.

What’s Next?

What happens next is dependent on Microsoft and Lenovo. It boils down to these two simple scenarios:

  1. Based on history, Microsoft could continue to not target the latest generation of softmods and hardmods due to either technical issues with detection or because of collateral damage and accept the fact an OEM key has been leaked.
  2. Microsoft could blacklist the leaked key and reissue one to Lenovo because the number of consumer machines with Windows 7 is close to zero so collateral damage is not an issue.
  3. Lastly, Microsoft could strip their draconian activation scheme (and kill of DRM within Windows 7) knowing that it has failed at the futile game of playing cat-and-mouse with skilled crackers and ultimately they punish paying customers.

Microsoft has repeatedly shown that they’ll treat their paying customers who follow the rules like criminals with door prizes such as activation glitches, deactivation after changing components in a computer, and blocking access to customer computers if they suspect a key has been stolen. Therefore option #3 will never happen because it makes too much sense and would be helpful. When has Microsoft ever thought about being helpful? The other two options present there own pros and cons so there is no knowing what will happen next. As it stands Microsoft has a choice but history has shown it will ultimately lose to crackers and further hassle customers.

My Stance

My personal choice is to wait until Windows 7 is released and purchase a copy so I can pay for the man hours put into this version of Windows and so I can utilize Microsoft Support in the rare case Googling doesn’t net a fix for a problem.

As a paying customer with several licensed copies of XP and Vista I would like to know what happens when Microsoft disables activation servers for either XP, Vista, or Windows 7 many years down the road. Will I be able to still access the operating system on an old machine tucked away in a closet or will be stuck up a creek without a paddle?

UPDATE (7.31.2009): Alex Kochis, Director of Genuine Windows over at Microsoft, has released a statement on the Genuine Windows Blog indicating Microsoft may be able to detect various hacks used to implement a SLIC 2.1 BIOS table for activation. I’m not convinced and suspect Microsoft is saber-rattling. While blocking the key used by unreleased systems is logical at the moment it’ll be a disaster once systems are customer’s hands. Microsoft also can’t ban hardmod and biosmod methods because those look just like any other OEM-sourced SLIC 2.1 BIOS. The softmod category of Windows 7 loaders may be detectable because some use a variant of the GRUB bootloader but others do not. Unfortunately this angle of attack may nail Linux dual-booters and other legitimate users.

Microsoft just bought itself a little more time until the next key is released by crackers. Although next time crackers will maker sure to wait until a few legit systems are in the wild before releasing the key so Microsoft can’t blacklist it so easily. What’s certain is Microsoft needs to focus its corporate energy in removing this extra activation (and DRM) kludge from Windows 7 for the sake of us paying customers because pirates will always find a way around any protection scheme. However, paying customers may look to other operating systems, including sticking to XP, if we’re asked to jump through even more hopes just to use our computers.

UPDATE (8.22.2009): As expected a new key has found its way into the hands of pirates. It’s only a matter of time before they’ll collect an entire laundry list of these keys and Microsoft’s anti-piracy system will be for nothing.

Popularity: 7% [?]

July 30, 2009 | Filed Under Tech/Gadgets | 11 Comments 

YouTube: The Anatomy of a Home Theater

This is a quick video titled “The Anatomy of a Home Theater” I put together of us putting up the home theater over the last few days. It’s not fully ready yet. We are waiting for custom red-colored theater curtains to be completed that will eventually surround the screen. We’ll also be adding/replacing a few pieces of equipment in the set up. Stay tuned!

Popularity: 1% [?]

June 16, 2009 | Filed Under Tech/Gadgets | Leave a Comment 

← Previous Page — Next Page →