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How does Windows decide whether your computer has full Internet access?

devblogs.microsoft.com

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Re: How does Windows decide whether your computer has full Internet access?

#121

Post by t0bia_s »

httpz wrote: post #38

I'm not sure if it's still in use but iPhones used to hit http://www.apple.com/library/test/success.html to test connectivity. I used to use it to test connectivity on my own apps because Apple is probably better at making sure a url reachable than I am.

Same for Android which always call to Google everytime device connect to WiFi. At least you can change captive portal via ADB, I'm not sure if iOS let you do that too.

Re: How does Windows decide whether your computer has full Internet access?

#122

Post by 9dev »

askvictor wrote: post #119
bombcar wrote: post #104

Earlier quoted context omitted.

They use more than that, I've seen it on the wire (to prevent DNS caching I believe). http://neverssl.com also works And https://1.1.1.1 breaks people's brains if they know enough

Even more fun: https://16843009

Did they actually issue the certificate for that??

Re: How does Windows decide whether your computer has full Internet access?

#123

Post by Vanit »

This is the kind of thing that comes up whenever I've worked on an app and the client asks us to report as server connectivity to the user. Despite what the OS tells you, you basically don't know anything until you actually try to use the network, so not surprised at all this is what Windows does.

Re: How does Windows decide whether your computer has full Internet access?

#124

Post by RedShift1 »

picture wrote: post #117
qwertywert_ wrote: post #58

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Can't you disable NCSI in registry? Or does that not actually help for those other services internally?

If you do so, which I have tried, it will just show permanently no internet

Lol, the developer who wrote it that way is definitely the "want to watch the world burn" type.

Re: How does Windows decide whether your computer has full Internet access?

#125

Post by me_again »

hsbauauvhabzb wrote: post #39

Two things I’ve always wanted to do is figure out how to cache windows updates on my local network without an enterprise windows install, and how to block windows updates by sinkholing domains and/or ip addresses (I work in IT security). Can anyone give any tips on either of these?

Look into WSUS / Windows Update Services

Re: How does Windows decide whether your computer has full Internet access?

#126

Post by RedShift1 »

Jamie9912 wrote: post #78
pxeboot wrote: post #74

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It is configurable via a registry setting, ActiveWebProbeHost [1]. But you have to point it at a server with the right file present. It doesn't just do a ping. [1] https://www.ghacks.net/2014/02/07/disable-customize-windows-...

I wonder if we can hack the binary that's doing the actual check >:)

Knock knock.

Who's

IT'S WINDOWS FILE PROTECTION

Re: How does Windows decide whether your computer has full Internet access?

#127

Post by albertopv »

photoGrant wrote: post #2

Doing this during a Windows 11 install will result in a road block until you fix said connection issues. You literally can't proceed without finding a hidden terminal and disabling the process and restarting. Insane.

Windows experience is worse and worse. On my Windows 10 company provided PC I found games installed remotely. In a professional PC! A friend of mine found Spotify installed [1]. That's insane.

[1] https://www.windowslatest.com/2022/09/28/spotify-app-is-auto...

Re: How does Windows decide whether your computer has full Internet access?

#128

Post by gambiting »

unnah wrote: post #120
josephcsible wrote: post #80

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What explanation other than malice is there for Microsoft not giving you that button all the time?

It was becoming common knowledge that you could disconnect your machine from networks during installation to use Windows with a local account (i.e. the normal kind of user account that people have used for decades). Microsoft wants people to register online during installation and to use the online account on all their computers, in order to increase the market share of the Windows app store and other Microsoft onlin…

I mean, sorry, but I consider that malicious. The OS can create a local account but doesn't give you that option specifically to make you create a windows Live account. That is almost textbook definition of malicious for me.

Re: How does Windows decide whether your computer has full Internet access?

#130

Post by samb1729 »

unnah wrote: post #120
josephcsible wrote: post #80

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What explanation other than malice is there for Microsoft not giving you that button all the time?

It was becoming common knowledge that you could disconnect your machine from networks during installation to use Windows with a local account (i.e. the normal kind of user account that people have used for decades). Microsoft wants people to register online during installation and to use the online account on all their computers, in order to increase the market share of the Windows app store and other Microsoft onlin…

> Microsoft wants people to register online [...] in order to increase the market share of the Windows app store and other Microsoft online services

> So it's not malicious

I would have to firmly disagree there. Microsoft are pushing the notion that an online account with some identity provider is a necessity for home computing by hiding the (perfectly functional) option to create a local account.

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