by a Thinker, Sailor, Blogger, Irreverent Guy from Madras

How to disable Windows XP WGA nag screen


Today, I went out to help a friend on his PC problem.  The problem was that the PC was not booting - & no beeps too.  I already had a suspicion & it proved correct.  The BIOS cell CR2032 in the motherboard had given 'up', & hence the PC would not boot.  Anyway once the new cell was put in, the machine was up & running; except for the WGA Warning.

The 1st time I am coming across it - my personal copy being genuine.  Have you seen it ?  It says 'this copy of windows is not genuine' or something alarming like that.  There is a log in pop-up, a stupid pop-up balloon warning on the system tray.

wga-warning-on-Win-XP

I decided to do something about it - a workaround.  It is simple, really:
Warning :  Standard Disclaimer applies - If your PC is toast, don't blame me. It is your PC, your responsibility.  Also, note, fingering around with system32 folder is fraught with danger.  Any mixup & you will need to reinstall the OS.

1) Go to the PC's system32 folder (Normally it will be C:\WINNT\System32)
2) Locate the file 'WgaLogon.dll' & rename it to 'WgaLogon.dll.bak'
3) Create a New Text Document inside system32 (Rt-click >>> New >>> Text Document)
4) Rename the (blank) text document as WgaLogon.dll (ignore any warnings & say OK)
Now the tricky part :  You WILL have to complete both steps (6 & 7) within 5 seconds.
5) Open Task Manager & keep it to the right of screen (Ctrl + Alt + Del)
6) Locate 'WgaTray.exe' in _System32_ folder (not Task Manager) & delete it.
7) Locate 'WgaTray.exe' in _Task Manger_ & hit 'End Process' or 'Terminate'

Restart & you are done.

If it is too painful or you don't want to take risks, download & use the following file from : (~ 13 KB)
[http://download.softpedia.com/software/tweak/RemoveWGA.exe]

Remember : This does not remove WGA or make your copy of windows genuine.  It just disables the annoying pop-up / login screen notifications.

Always use genuine software.  It is safer, secure and you can sleep easy :-)

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