   Getting around work system security.
  Since they don't seem to challenge me at work I have a lot of spare time, so I've took it upon myself to work on my projects here at work. Now there really is only one problem, the security picks up install shield. Which is one of the reasons why I modified the code to compile in dev-cpp as well as msvs7.Now I need to install the directX sdk on this machine(I've already installed the devpak), is there some way I can get this installed another way? (d3dx9.dll err) Anything with install shield pretty much gives me administrative errors. I can continue to code the openGL side of the code but I'd have to remove all the D3D references and I'd rather work on both.Any idea how I'd get around this?   
  90% of the time, an installer does three simple things:Copy files to destination locationsAdd some cruft to the registryRun regsvr32 on appropriate DLLs, OCXs, etc.If you can reproduce those three steps by hand, you've got a good shot of getting things working, more or less. However, if the installer does anything interesting, you're pretty much screwed.Even in the rare case that the DXSDK doesn't do interesting stuff in the installer, it's bloody huge. I don't envy you the task of doing that by hand.If you want to actually attack the security system itself, that's another matter - and, likely, a lot more practical, even if theoretically more difficult. The first and most important thing we need to know is how the system is implemented - what software is involved, etc.Oh, and when you get fired, I didn't say any of this.   ;Quote:Original post by PumpkinPiemanSince they don't seem to challenge me at work I have a lot of spare time, so I've took it upon myself to work on my projects here at work. Now there really is only one problem, the security picks up install shield. Which is one of the reasons why I modified the code to compile in dev-cpp as well as msvs7.Now I need to install the directX sdk on this machine(I've already installed the devpak), is there some way I can get this installed another way? (d3dx9.dll err) Anything with install shield pretty much gives me administrative errors. I can continue to code the openGL side of the code but I'd have to remove all the D3D references and I'd rather work on both.Any idea how I'd get around this?Find a program that your company runs with admin privledges on your machine (my company has special permissions to run Performance Monitor with admin privledges). Open the program and find a dialog that allows you to open or save a file. In that dialog, type in *.* in the filename box and press enter; this will show every file. Now find the DX install file, right click, and select "Open" (not the dialog open button, but the right-click context menu). This will spawn the new process with the same permissions as the process that spawned it, which has admin privledges.Our security guys here still can't figure out how I got WinAMP installed on this machine. *sigh*   ;  Well I can give it a quick fix by dumping the dlls from the dev-pak into the system32 directory, it works. Just not being able to install small things is getting on my nerves.Mithrandir: I'll keep that in mind, I don't usually need to deal with security so I'll keep an open eye. (this machine doesn't have this. :P)   ;Quote:Original post by PumpkinPiemanSince they don't seem to challenge me at work I have a lot of spare time, so I've took it upon myself to work on my projects here at work.Be advised that that's usually a very quick way to give your employers ownership of your personal projects.   ;Quote:Original post by MithrandirQuote:Original post by PumpkinPiemanSince they don't seem to challenge me at work I have a lot of spare time, so I've took it upon myself to work on my projects here at work. Now there really is only one problem, the security picks up install shield. Which is one of the reasons why I modified the code to compile in dev-cpp as well as msvs7.Now I need to install the directX sdk on this machine(I've already installed the devpak), is there some way I can get this installed another way? (d3dx9.dll err) Anything with install shield pretty much gives me administrative errors. I can continue to code the openGL side of the code but I'd have to remove all the D3D references and I'd rather work on both.Any idea how I'd get around this?Find a program that your company runs with admin privledges on your machine (my company has special permissions to run Performance Monitor with admin privledges). Open the program and find a dialog that allows you to open or save a file. In that dialog, type in *.* in the filename box and press enter; this will show every file. Now find the DX install file, right click, and select "Open" (not the dialog open button, but the right-click context menu). This will spawn the new process with the same permissions as the process that spawned it, which has admin privledges.Our security guys here still can't figure out how I got WinAMP installed on this machine. *sigh*Wow, you are kidding right? And people get paid to design secure programs? Why even bother, just put a icon in the middle of the desktop saying "Install any thing here. Anything at all, even a virus".   ;  Use Remote Desktop or VNC to get on your home machine from work. No hassle, very fast, no need to synch your files, and your employer can't say anything.Remote Desktop comes installed with Windows XP.   ;Quote:Original post by TalrothWow, you are kidding right? And people get paid to design secure programs? Why even bother, just put a icon in the middle of the desktop saying "Install any thing here. Anything at all, even a virus".It's not a big surprise. That sort of feature (Run As) is more or less a workaround to get around the multitude of programs that are idiotically designed to mandate administrative privileges to run. There's a lot of corporate applications that require admin privileges: for some reason Palm Desktop does and yet ActiveSync does not. Designed by idiots.Granted, if they're going to give you restricted admin access to a single program, they should just give you Local Admin privileges because you're close enough to it to cause damage anyway (including an administrative shell).If Windows developers took better care of their privileges (I have been guilty of this myself on occasion, but hopefully no more) then this opening wouldn't have to exist to the degree it does.   ;Quote:Original post by superpigQuote:Original post by PumpkinPiemanSince they don't seem to challenge me at work I have a lot of spare time, so I've took it upon myself to work on my projects here at work.Be advised that that's usually a very quick way to give your employers ownership of your personal projects.If I work on employer projects at home, do they become mine?   ;Quote:Original post by smrIf I work on employer projects at home, do they become mine?It's probably in your employment contract that all projects yada yada are the property of the company unless you ask first. Feel free to ask HR that all projects yada yada are your property unless the company asks first.   