Have you updated your copy of Windows and received the "This copy of Windows is not

genuine" notification. Have you ever wondered how to get rid of it?

The Windows Genuine Advantage notification checks if you have a genuine copy of
Windows registered to that computer. It allows you to update your computer with the
Windows updates. If you have installed it, and you do not have a genuine copy of
Windows XP installed, then you may notice an icon at the bottom of your window before
you Login. It will make you wait three seconds before allowing you to login.

In your tray, you will also notice a WGA icon telling you that you may be a victim of
software counterfeiting.

Here's how to get rid of it.

The Long Way:

• The longer way is to restart your computer and go into Safe Mode. If you do not
know how to boot into safe mode, view our tutorial. Once in safe mode, non-
essential programs will not run, including WgaTray.exe (the Windows Genuine
Advantage program). Once in Safe Mode go to C:\Windows\System32\ and
locate and delete WgaTray.exe

Cheat notes for computer savy users:

1. Restart your computer and boot into safe mode (press F8 while you restart your
computer)
2. In Safe mode browse to C:\Windows\System32\
3. Search for WgaTray.exe and Delete it.
4. Reboot your computer and you are done.

The Quick but more difficult way (requires speed):

• If you do not want to restart your computer and get into Safe Mode, you can do it
in the following way. This requires a bit of speed with both the mouse and
keyboard because every time you close the WgaTray.exe process, it will restart
itself in less than a second.

• Go to C:\Windows\System32\ and locate WgaTray.exe and highlight it. Trying

to delete this right now will not work since WgaTray.exe is currently running.
Next press ctrl+alt+del and select the process tab. Find WgaTray.exe in the list.
To make it easier to find it, you can sort the list in alphabetical order by clicking
the Process title at the top. Highlight WgaTray.exe.
 • Here's where your speed comes in. You have to end the WgaTray.exe process
and then quickly go to the other window and delete WgaTray.exe.

• Tip: Press end process then enter, then alt+tab, then delete, then enter. This is the
sequence you should go through.

• Note: If you do not delete WgaTray.exe before the program restarts itself, you
will not be able to delete it. You will have to try again.

In both cases, continue with the following steps.

Next go to C:\Windows\System32\dllcache\ and delete WgaTray.exe here also.

Next you have to modify your registry.

• Press the Start Button > Run and type regedit and then press enter.
• Go to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows
NT\CurrentVersion\Winlogon\Notify and delete the WGALOGON folder.

That's all you have to do, now you are WGA free. Just make sure you don't automatically
install the WGA update again. Restart your computer to see if you did it correctly. The
WGA logo should not appear on your login screen.

DISCLAIMER: We do not condone having pirated copies of Windows on your

computer. You should have one CAL per computer. This is for educational purposes
only.
How to Remove Windows Genuine
Advantage Notifications
originated by:BrettCapewell, Horses4Ever, Anonymous, Brett (see all)

Article Edit Discuss View History

Windows Genuine Advantage notifications occur when your computer hasn't passed the
validation test. The validation test can be failed due to being sold a pirated (non-genuine)
copy of XP, or because you have changed your XP product key to a software-generated
key, or sometimes it just happens for no reason at all. The failed validation installs three
types of notifications on your computer: one on the log in screen, one log in timer, and
one balloon. It also stops updates from Microsoft and disables your ability to install IE7
and Windows Media Player 11. This solution can get rid of all three notifications, even
though you will still not be able to update through Windows Update. You will not be able
to download things from Microsoft that requires a valid license either.

edit Steps
Delete Method

1. 1

If you have only just installed Windows Genuine Advantage notifications,

simply using the system restore function will remove the program. Then
refuse to accept the WGA update next time Windows updates. Otherwise, proceed
as detailed below. (NOTE: If you try these steps while you are in "Safe
Mode," step #8 is unnecessary).

Windows 7

Find Computer Software Retailers in Malaysia Business Directory

www.701panduan.com

2. 2
 First, try the following:

3. 3

Open a Command Prompt window by clicking on Start -> Run. Type CMD
and press OK.

4. 4

Change Directory into the System32 Folder (type cd \windows\system32)

5. 5

Open a Notepad window and type the following lines:

o taskkill -IM wgatray.exe

o del wgatray.exe
o del wgalogon.dll
6. 6

Highlight and copy the three lines above to the Clipboard.

7. 7

Paste the contents of the Clipboard to Command Prompt.

8. 8

This should kill the wgatray.exe process from the Taskbar and immediately
delete both files wgatray.exe and wgalogon.dll without the need to to go through
all steps bellow.

9. 9

If that does not work, follow the steps below:

10. 10

Open System32 by either of the following methods:

o
 Click "Start" -> "Run", then type "system32". Click "Okay".

o Find system32 manually by clicking "Start" > "My Computer" > "(C:)" (or
whatever your drive letter is) > "WINDOWS" > "system32".

11. 11

In "system32", go to "Tools" > "Folder options", click on the tab, "View",

and uncheck "Hide extensions for known file types" if it is not already.

12. 12

Check to make sure the window that comes up has a full screen of various
files. The files are in alphabetical order, which makes it easier to locate the
specific file.

13. 13

Find "WgaLogon.dll" and rename it "WgaLogon.dll.bak".

14. 14

Create an empty copy of WgaLogon.dll:

Right click on a blank space in system32 and select "New" > "Text
Document".

o Leave the text document empty and label it "WgaLogon.dll". Press Enter
(on your keyboard).
 o

You may get a warning from the above step that says, "If you change a file
name extension, the file may become unusable. Are you sure you want to
change it?". Click "Yes" on this warning.

15. 15

Be ready to complete the next two steps very quickly! Find "WgaTray.exe" in
"system32" and delete it. You will then have 5 seconds to find "WgaTray.exe" in
the Task Manager (the next step). NOTE: If you remove the files mentioned
above while you are in "Safe Mode," step #8 is unnecessary.

16. 16

Immediately open Task Manager. You can do this by pressing the Ctrl, Shift,
and Esc keys simultaneously, pressing the Ctrl, Alt, and Delete keys
simultaneously, or right clicking the Taskbar and selecting "Task Manager". Click
on the process tab and click end process when "WgaTray.exe" is selected. Note:
If you take longer, do not panic! All that will happen is that "WgaTray.exe" will
keep reappearing in the processes list (i.e. you won't be able to delete it as
required). To remove the notifications after this, return to system32. You will find
two files:"WgaLogon.dll.bak" (the one you renamed) and an Application
Extension (0KB) called "WgaLogon.dll". Delete the Application Extension,
rename "WgaLogon.dll.bak" to "WgaLogon.dll" and repeat the steps from the
fifth one onwards (at a greater speed!!).

17. 17

Restart your computer once you have finished. All the notification messages
should be gone.

Rename Method

1. 1
 Open a CMD window by clicking on Start -> Run -> type CMD and click
OK.

2. 2

Open a Notepad window (Start -> Run type NOTEPAD click OK) and type
or copy (select the lines, and then press Ctrl-C) the following lines and paste
(Ctrl-V) into the Notepad window:

o CD %systemroot%\system32
o rename wgatray.exe wgatray.exe.bak
o rename wgalogon.dll wgalogon.dll.bak
o rename LegitCheckControl.dll LegitCheckControl.dll.bak
o taskkill /F /T /IM wgatray.exe
o del wgatray.exe.bak
o del wgalogon.dll.bak
o del LegitCheckControl.dll.bak
3. 3

Make sure there is a blank line at the end of the text document, right after
the last line.

4. 4

Select all the text (Ctrl-A) and copy to the clipboard (Ctrl-C)

5. 5

Paste the clipboard into the CMD Window (right click -> Paste)

6. 6

This should kill the wgatray.exe process and delete the files it uses.

Ads by Google

Malaysia Dedicated Server

1000+ Servers. ISO9001 Certified. 24/7 Support. Low Price. Fast Setup
shinjiru.com.my

Double Glazing Door

Save energy and reduce noise with double glazing door!

www.glassnetwork.com.my
 Clean up your computer

SmartCleaner will clean & speed up your computer. Great for beginners!
www.smartcleaner.net

edit Tips
• This process will only get rid of the notifications, and will not validate your copy
of XP. It will remove the timer at the beginning of your XP log on, the white
notice on the log on screen, and the annoying yellow star that appears in the
bottom right corner of the screen.

Ads by Google

Window Repair, Replace

Window Repair, Replacement Servicing the Northern parts of IL

WindowRepairCompany.com

• This is easier to do if you have someone reading the steps to you while you do it.
• You may need to Find Hidden Files and Folders in Windows to get to System32
manually.
• If task manager processes are moving, click the title of the "image name" row to
freeze them.
• If you are having problems after this, disable the updates before rebooting.
• There is a program called RemoveWGA which does all of this for you. Just run
the program, click yes, and you're done. (See External Links, below.)
• If you have problems changing files in the system32 directory, you will have to
turn off System Restore. Go to "Start" -> "Control Panel" -> "System" -> "System
Restore" and check the "Turn off system restore" check box.
• You will not be able to use Automatic Updates anymore; instead, you have to
manually update them. In External Links, there is a program that will allow you to
update any system, regardless of if it is genuine or not.
• You can also rename WgaTray.exe to WgaTray.exe.bak if you can't remove
WgaTray.exe from your Taskbar. Press Ctrl+Shift+Escape to do so.
• It will be useful to have Task Manager open first before deleting WgaTray.exe
• Unlocker is a free program that can assist in removing WGA notifications.

edit Warnings
• Do not edit anything but what is told in system32, or it could cause system start
up failure.
• If you are new to computers, do not attempt this because if you modify the wrong
file you may crash your computer.
• This is not required for systems older than Windows 2000, as older versions of
Windows do not have WGA installed. This list includes Windows 3.1, 95, 98, NT
3.51, and NT4. (WGA now installs for Windows 2000 searching for the most
commonly used pirated keys.)
• If you don't have a genuine version of Windows, it's better to get it because you
will be eligible get non-critical updates, IE7/8, and Media Player 11.
• If you are not using a genuine version you will still receive critical updates.