Windows - ISA proxy

[EeEk]

Hiya people...question for you...

 

First we have a managed service so cant add PCs to a domain etc, and have virtually no control over anything.

 

What Im trying to do is sneek none domain PCs out to the internet to activate various software...now if i conect them to the network they get an IP, add the proxy IP to IE, enter username/pass when asked - can browse the I'net like normal but activating software/windows xp/vista just reports faulty internet connection.

 

In linux you can add enviroment vars for proxies with a username/pass in them to allow the whole internet thingy to be transparent and this works well here. Can you do the same with windows?

This software activation is getting to be a real pain in the a$$. They will not allow us to connect any none managed PC to the domain for any reason and we dont even have a real phone line where we could use a dial up modem.

[srochford]

You can try using proxycfg to set a proxy; this will then be picked up by some applications.

 

I suspect the problem is that the app is trying to connect to the ISA server and being refused because it can't pass your credentials - the server will be making an NTLM challenge and the app won't know what to do with it.

 

If you have access to the ISA server then you can fix this. Look at the monitoring bit and set it to monitor just the IP of your test workstation. Now try to activate the software - you'll probably see the workstation trying to connect to a web site and being refused as unauthenticated.

 

Create a rule which allows unauthenticated access to that web site; this means that you don't get decent logs of who went there but this is rarely a problem (you generally only want to know who's going to "bad" sites, not "good" sites)

[Nexarius]

Most schools use Volume Licensed versions of XP, which don't require product activation. Do you not have Volume Licensed media to install it from?

[EeEk]

srochford

proxycfg - looks like its worth further investigation

 

No access to the ISA server. We used to be able to sneak past it by setting the gateway to the next hop out but they must have got wise to that.

 

Their contract is up in July and the local council take over but no info on what we will be allowed to do yet...frying pan to fire springs to mind

 

Nexarius

Everything’s ok with the managed/vol licence stuff, it’s only the schools unconnected stuff we have problems with...there are various unconnected PCs spread around the school examples...

Kids won a PC running Vista in a comp...It worked for 6 months but now needs activating.

Music uses Sibelius on standalone PCs...it wont activate.

Local firm donated PC with oem XP home..wont activate.

 

Can all be done by phone but a couple of clicks would be easier.

 

Its not the end of the world but if vars could be added, like you can in Linux then it just may work.....next plan it connect them through a Linux box and see if it can handle the authentication to the ISA Something to fiddle with to look busy