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Groups > comp.lang.basic.visual.misc > #292

Re: "Run-time error 75" updating program in Vista/Windows 7 Program Files (x86) directory

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-- 
| >    I set up my installer to remove restrictions on the
| > program folder during install, so that I can avoid
| > the Vista/7 mess without creating any security risks.
|
| Erm... removing the restrictions on the installation folder is doing the
| exact opposite and opening the system wide up.
| It means that any infection or malicious user can spread to other
| users/root the machine if spread to an admin user.
|

   I don't know what sort of scenarion you're talking about.
An unhappy employee might decide to swap out your DLL
so that next time your program calls that DLL it erases
your hard disk? I guess that's possible, if one removes
restrictions from the parent program folder. Of course,
that person might also take a hammer to the PC when
no one is looking. (Hopefully no one here is shipping
hammers with their software.)

   In my case I'm only removing restrictions from subfolders
where the program reads/writes settings and stored data.
The software is mainly aimed at people who own their PCs,
who trust others using those PCs, and who are unlikely to
be using per-user settings. I also inform about the situation
during install, so that a corporate Admin can change restrictions
after install if they want to.

  It wasn't clear what Bill wants to update. If it includes
executables and the PC user is a restricted corporate
employee who's not supposed to be able to do anything but
write Word docs and save them to a personal folder then I'd
agree with your first post -- non-admins shouldn't be able
to do such updating.

| The whole reason they are read only is so that infections and
| stupid/malicious users are mitigated against.
|

   Yes. There's certainly a time and a place for that. But you're
applying a principle out of context. ... It's rather a strange world
where people assume that the person using *any* PC is a menace,
while any software on that PC is assumed to be entirely trustworthy,
enough so that it's allowed unfettered communication and downloading
of files from online. You get all worked up about changing permissions
on non-personal folders, but you have nothing to say about a much
more serious issue here: an installed software program that is
designed to update itself silently without asking...and all the implied
security risks involved with that. Just because MS
and Google do it, that doesn't make it right, or safe, or advisable in
terms of system stability. How did we arrive at this bizarre situation
where people think it's a good idea to have 30-odd programs on a
PC -- including the OS itself -- that are all essentially betas on update
drip-feeds?

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"Run-time error 75" updating program in Vista/Windows 7 Program Files (x86) directory Bill <bbuntain@gmail.com> - 2011-06-22 08:27 -0700
  Re: "Run-time error 75" updating program in Vista/Windows 7 Program Files (x86) directory Deanna Earley <dee.earley@icode.co.uk> - 2011-06-22 16:51 +0100
    Re: "Run-time error 75" updating program in Vista/Windows 7 Program Files (x86) directory Bill <bbuntain@gmail.com> - 2011-06-22 13:21 -0700
  Re: "Run-time error 75" updating program in Vista/Windows 7 Program Files (x86) directory "Nobody" <trinity@nobody.com> - 2011-06-22 11:52 -0400
    Re: "Run-time error 75" updating program in Vista/Windows 7 Program Files (x86) directory Deanna Earley <dee.earley@icode.co.uk> - 2011-06-22 17:06 +0100
      Re: "Run-time error 75" updating program in Vista/Windows 7 Program Files (x86) directory Karl E. Peterson <karl@exmvps.org> - 2011-06-24 14:35 -0700
        Re: "Run-time error 75" updating program in Vista/Windows 7 Program Files (x86) directory "Thorsten Albers" <gudea@gmx.de> - 2011-06-24 22:59 +0000
          Re: "Run-time error 75" updating program in Vista/Windows 7 Program Files (x86) directory Karl E. Peterson <karl@exmvps.org> - 2011-06-24 17:00 -0700
        Re: "Run-time error 75" updating program in Vista/Windows 7 Program Files (x86) directory Tony Toews <ttoews@telusplanet.net> - 2011-06-28 16:13 -0600
          Re: "Run-time error 75" updating program in Vista/Windows 7 Program Files (x86) directory Karl E. Peterson <karl@exmvps.org> - 2011-06-28 15:28 -0700
            Re: "Run-time error 75" updating program in Vista/Windows 7 Program Files (x86) directory Tony Toews <ttoews@telusplanet.net> - 2011-06-29 13:08 -0600
              Re: "Run-time error 75" updating program in Vista/Windows 7 Program Files (x86) directory Karl E. Peterson <karl@exmvps.org> - 2011-06-29 12:30 -0700
              Re: "Run-time error 75" updating program in Vista/Windows 7 Program Files (x86) directory "Mayayana" <mayayana@invalid.nospam> - 2011-06-29 18:39 -0400
                Re: "Run-time error 75" updating program in Vista/Windows 7 Program Files (x86) directory Tony Toews <ttoews@telusplanet.net> - 2011-06-30 12:57 -0600
  Re: "Run-time error 75" updating program in Vista/Windows 7 Program Files (x86) directory -mhd <not_real@invalid.com> - 2011-06-22 12:45 -0400
  Re: "Run-time error 75" updating program in Vista/Windows 7 Program Files (x86) directory "Mayayana" <mayayana@invalid.nospam> - 2011-06-22 19:19 -0400
    Re: "Run-time error 75" updating program in Vista/Windows 7 Program Files (x86) directory Deanna Earley <dee.earley@icode.co.uk> - 2011-06-23 08:53 +0100
      Re: "Run-time error 75" updating program in Vista/Windows 7 Program Files (x86) directory "Mayayana" <mayayana@invalid.nospam> - 2011-06-23 09:28 -0400
        Re: "Run-time error 75" updating program in Vista/Windows 7 Program Files (x86) directory Deanna Earley <dee.earley@icode.co.uk> - 2011-06-23 17:57 +0100
          Re: "Run-time error 75" updating program in Vista/Windows 7 Program Files (x86) directory "Mayayana" <mayayana@invalid.nospam> - 2011-06-23 18:52 -0400
        Re: "Run-time error 75" updating program in Vista/Windows 7 Program Files (x86) directory Neila <david.marso@gmail.com> - 2011-06-24 05:47 -0700
    Re: "Run-time error 75" updating program in Vista/Windows 7 Program Files (x86) directory Bill <bbuntain@gmail.com> - 2011-06-23 12:23 -0700
  Re: "Run-time error 75" updating program in Vista/Windows 7 Program Files (x86) directory "Nobody" <nobody@nobody.com> - 2011-06-22 20:22 -0400
    Re: "Run-time error 75" updating program in Vista/Windows 7 Program Files (x86) directory Bill <bbuntain@gmail.com> - 2011-06-23 12:17 -0700
      Re: "Run-time error 75" updating program in Vista/Windows 7 Program Files (x86) directory ralph <nt_consulting64@yahoo.net> - 2011-06-23 20:41 -0500

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