Hi Jwharmsby,
Thank you for the post. I did a check on the Product ID, that you provided. It is a Volume License Key (which is normal for a school) and does come up as a good key.
I am assuming the OS being used is Windows XP. Windows Genuine Advantage Validation is not required for Windows XP (except for downloading from download.microsoft.com and a few other Microsoft sites)
Blocking access to the Validation site, on their network, is perfectly within their right. And since the site is blocked, they wouldn't need to uninstall the files required for Validation, because thoses files would never have been downloaded in the first place.
To answer your questions:
Q: Is it Illegal?
A: I don't know - The better question is, "are they running Genuine Microsoft Software?" Given the Product ID you provided, I would say it is Genuine.
Q: Is there a reason for this?
A: Again, I don't know, but I don't need to know. As long as they are running Genuine Microsoft Software and using it in accordence with their license aggremment and/or EULA, it is not my (or Microsoft's) concern how they use it.
Thank you,
Darin Smith
WGA Forum Program Manager
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All Users: Please go to http://forums.microsoft.com/Genuine/ShowPost.aspx?PostID=1255325&SiteID=25 before posting a question.
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