What is Windows Activation Technologies (WAT)

Windows Activation Technologies anti-piracy technology helps to confirm that the copy of Windows 7 that is running on your computer is genuine. Windows Activation Technologies helps protect against the risks of pirated software. Windows Activation Technologies in Windows 7 consists of activation and validation components that contain anti-piracy features.

Activation verifies the product key for the copy of Windows 7 that is running on your computer. The product key is a 25-character code that is located on the Certificate of Authenticity label or on the proof of license label. These labels are included with each genuine copy of Windows. A genuine product key can only be used on the number of computers that are specified in a software license.

Validation is an online process that enables you to verify that the copy of Windows 7 that is running on your computer is activated correctly and is genuine. The customer was given the choice to activate or to activate later which was grayed out for the first 15 seconds.

Microsft warns against downloading and installing activation exploits or counterfeit software on the Internet is risky, because sites that advertise these pirated products often contain malware, viruses, and Trojans, which are found bundled with or directly built into the activation exploit or counterfeit software.

Microsoft periodically sends notification to its users about updates that including WAT. Update protects customers by identifying known activation exploits that may affect their PC experience. If any activation exploits are found, Windows will alert the customer and offer options for resolving the issue. PCs running genuine Windows 7 software with no activation exploits will see nothing and the update runs quietly in the background protecting your system. If Windows 7 is pirated, it will display ‘Windows is not genuine’. The desktop wallpaper will be switched to a plain desktop (all of the customer’s desktop icons, gadgets, or pinned applications stay in place). Periodic reminders and a persistent desktop watermark act as further alerts to the customer.Windows Update will run periodic validations (initially every 90 days). During validation, Windows will download the latest ‘signatures’ that are used to identify new activation exploits – much like an anti-virus service. When tampering with missing license files are discovered, the WAT Update runs a check and repair weekly to ensure that the licensing files are properly repaired.

Ed Bott has described the in depth understanding of WAT and its latest update  in his blog post. The below diagram has an over all idea about the activation schema.